The paparazzi ‘enjoy a chase’, but many question whether the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are exaggerating, according to a royal commentator.
A spokesperson for Prince Harry said on Wednesday the Duke, Duchess and the Duchess’ mother were in a “near catastrophic car chase” involving "highly aggressive” photographers in New York City.
They said the incident resulted in “multiple near collisions” with other drivers and pedestrians.
Journalist and royal commentator Jennie Bond told The Pat Kenny Show it was “no doubt a very triggering and upsetting for Harry”.
“He has said in the past that every click of a camera, every flash of a bulb, takes him straight back to the image of his mother dying in the Paris tunnel," she said.
Despite that, Ms Bond said when she discovered the Duke and Duchess chose to stay at a friend’s home following an award ceremony in Manhattan, the incident struck her as “completely unnecessary”.
“Why didn't they just stay in a Manhattan hotel next to the venue of the award ceremony?”
"Cynical"
She also said she was surprised there were no arrests despite drivers “driving on the pavement [and] almost running down pedestrians”.
“There were two police officers on who had been detailed to escort them - then why would they not arrest [anyone]?”
However, while Ms Bond said she is “cynical” of the royal couple, she is “not cynical enough” to think the entire incident was staged.
“I just wish that they didn't use such vivid language to describe what happened because it makes us all doubt what they're saying,” she said.
“I've known it no doubt that what happened was very disturbing, but it reignites the whole debate about all the allegations Harry and Meghan have made since leaving the Royal Family.”
Paparazzi
Ms Bond also said the couple’s plan to evade paparazzi by taking longer, less convenient roads did not help.
“The harder you try to evade them, the harder they want to chase,” she said.
The couple should accept some of the consequences of their decisions, Ms Bond argued.
“These two are not only royal but they are celebrities and they've chosen to live in the heart of celebrity land, Los Angeles.”
Ms Bond said these choices, along with the couple’s ‘vivid’ language of their experiences, likely caused people to doubt some of their claims.
“Do they exaggerate everything?” she asked. “Do they just see the world differently, or do they see threats and insults where none exist?”
