The Fuss Over The Royal Family Photo

She probably photoshopped her hands to hide the cannula bruises and forgot about the rings.

Leave her alone, you don’t know how she’s feeling, always on show 24/7 even when unwell.

CoolCoco

She probably photoshopped her hands to hide the cannula bruises and forgot about the rings.

You've seen her in person? You've seen the cannula bruises? Wow with that intimate a relationship to her, shouldn't you be being a bit more discreet?

I genuinely don't get all the fuss about this. People edit photos all the time, usually just to make the shared photo look as 'nice' as possible.
So the lack of rings was overlooked. That doesn't mean that the reason was anything more than a simple oversight. These things happen.

Her PR team have failed her.

Or maybe the public have failed her? Poor girl only wanted to put out a happy Mothers Day greeting. She probably never expected the Spanish Inquisition.

We do all realise that she didn’t post it, right? It and the message that went with it will have been drafted by her team - she’ll have signed it off, most likely (or not, if she’s out of commission), but it’s not like she’s on Instagram merrily uploading pictures. It’s a calculated PR move, and in this case it backfired.

AmberSpyglass

We do all realise that she didn’t post it, right? It and the message that went with it will have been drafted by her team - she’ll have signed it off, most likely (or not, if she’s out of commission), but it’s not like she’s on Instagram merrily uploading pictures. It’s a calculated PR move, and in this case it backfired.

👏👏👏

I love the way that the headline on the Mirror Group FB page this morning was phrased that it it was the "public" that had spotted the 5 things that were not right with the photo. 🙄🤷 I am sure the majority of the public have better things to do than scrutinise photos, most of us would look , say what a nice photo of her and the children glad he he is feeling better and scroll past.
We all know the news agency people touch up their photos what is so different, afraid they are will of a job!!

The Princess of Wales does not need to apologise .
It's a beautiful family photograph , which she has photoshopped .
It isn't evidence in a crime scene .

For the fiftieth time, news agencies do not “touch up” photos. PR agencies do. Magazines and newspapers might for their own photoshoots. News agencies do not.

And this wasn’t “touching up”, it was significant digital manipulation to create a photo that probably wasn’t ever taken in the first place, or at least not in the way it was published by KP.

She’s been let down by her PR team imo. She’s off sick, tried to do something ro quell conspiracy theories and been left dangling

A woman who chose not to disclose why she needed surgery,
She has been criticised ever since and by women here and by the media, it’s so cruel, so wrong

Anniebach

A woman who chose not to disclose why she needed surgery,
She has been criticised ever since and by women here and by the media, it’s so cruel, so wrong

Photo editing aside, it seems some feel that the POW is public property via the Sovereign Grant (figures vary on the cost per person, per year - I've seen as little as £1-62 or thereabouts, but it depends on who is doing the calculating and what they do or do not include).

"The public have a right to know" said one individual on a social media site.

I don't quite know why I feel so incensed by this - by nature, I am a Republican - but I do.

Prurient curiosity and speculation - some of, about the state of her marriage to William - revolts me. Voyeuristic conjecture about anyone is to me just idle curiosity and in this case being given legitimacy because of who she is.

The king chose to reveal his prostate condition, but not the type of cancer he's been diagnosed with. Catherine has decided that it is enough that we know she has had abdominal surgery. IMO no-one, royal or not, should be compelled to reveal any intimate detail about their medical condition that they do not feel comfortable with.

Someone up-thread suggested Catherine photo-shopped the photo to hide the bruising from a canula insertion and forgot about her rings. This is the kind of frivolous speculation that makes me cringe, and despair.

The POW does not run the country, her condition will have no material effect on anyone's life. I simply do not understand the, for some, obsession with the need to know anything more than we already do.

So true Dickens many comments have really upset me, not
as a royalist but a woman , someone said ‘we deserve more’ , what blood ? Women talking and criticising a woman for such shallow reasons.

I understand what you say, Dickens and while I have no particular interest in the Monarchy, I do think that the Royal Family as a whole needs to consider its relationship with the public and the media over how it handles health stories. While I respect the family’s right to privacy, they do send out mixed messages that you yourself have touched on.

King Charles made it very public that he was being treated for a prostate condition but when it was discovered that he had cancer, the type of cancer was and has been concealed.

With the Princess of Wales, it has been reported that her surgery was not cancer-related but the precise nature of her illness has been concealed.

Isn’t it a fact that when famous people are open about their health conditions, it creates positive public awareness? Surely, King Charles’s openness about his prostate condition would have encouraged more men to come forward to be checked. So why not be open about whatever kind of cancer he has for the same reasons?

Prince William has been very open about his own struggles with mental health and PTSD and in doing so has encouraged other men to be more open and to seek help.

It seems to me that the length of the Princess’s hospital stay and the length of her recovery suggests something quite serious so might that not make her a candidate to become an ambassador for any charity which supports her condition?

The Royal Family are public servants after all and do have a duty to the public.

There is also the question of owning one’s own story. Be open about something and after a few days it ceases to be news rather than creating weeks and months of media and social media speculation which this photo farrago has only served to increase. Nobody is ever going to be able to quench the public and media thirst for stories about the Royal Family so why stoke the fire?

Oldnproud

I genuinely don't get all the fuss about this. People edit photos all the time, usually just to make the shared photo look as 'nice' as possible.
So the lack of rings was overlooked. That doesn't mean that the reason was anything more than a simple oversight. These things happen.

I agree, it’s a storm in a teacup.
If the pic had been taken by a professional it would have still been tweaked here and there to bet the best result.
If, say, the pic had pretended to be taken in the South of France or on a yacht then that would have been a lie, but as it is there’s no harm done whatsoever.

I am not sure it is criticism to comment on the fact that a photo was altered and so turned down by a number of press outlets. Should we lie, pretend it didnt happen. If the institution that you want to protect is reliant on people avoiding repeating facts, well its just not going to work.

I wish speculations and innuendos about all this would stop. Just leave Katherine to recuperate.

So, this scrutiny and publicity over a family photo is what today’s reporters class as journalism? Seriously? Does it really matter if it was photoshopped? I think these so called reporters need to stop behaving like playground bullies and go out into the big wide world and report on something a little more serious?

The poor girl should simply be left alone to recover. Gossip has turned into an industry these days.

Anniebach

A woman who chose not to disclose why she needed surgery,
She has been criticised ever since and by women here and by the media, it’s so cruel, so wrong

Absolutely. A photo taken by Prince William to show his wife and children on Mother's Day. Kate had a try to edit it. so what? It's their photo. She is entitled to privacy about her recent surgery. I hope she continues to keep it to herself and not feel she has to bow to the nosy amongst us who feel they have a right to know. They don't!

Anniebach

So true Dickens many comments have really upset me, not
as a royalist but a woman , someone said ‘we deserve more’ , what blood ? Women talking and criticising a woman for such shallow reasons.

Yes, I agree with you Annie and Dickens.
Women criticising other women? What’s that all about? Why did women fight so hard for liberation? It is Catherine’s right to disclose as much or as little of her private medical information as she wishes.
I actually think the media are at fault here too because they’ve whipped the whole none story up into a storm.

Maybe the expensive looking engagement ring was in the safe. What a fuss and hoo ha. Hope the press leave her alone to recover.

It's awful. I feel for the children. They've had to go to school and something is bound to be said.

It's just cruel and unnecessary.

TinSoldier

I understand what you say, Dickens and while I have no particular interest in the Monarchy, I do think that the Royal Family as a whole needs to consider its relationship with the public and the media over how it handles health stories. While I respect the family’s right to privacy, they do send out mixed messages that you yourself have touched on.

King Charles made it very public that he was being treated for a prostate condition but when it was discovered that he had cancer, the type of cancer was and has been concealed.

With the Princess of Wales, it has been reported that her surgery was not cancer-related but the precise nature of her illness has been concealed.

Isn’t it a fact that when famous people are open about their health conditions, it creates positive public awareness? Surely, King Charles’s openness about his prostate condition would have encouraged more men to come forward to be checked. So why not be open about whatever kind of cancer he has for the same reasons?

Prince William has been very open about his own struggles with mental health and PTSD and in doing so has encouraged other men to be more open and to seek help.

It seems to me that the length of the Princess’s hospital stay and the length of her recovery suggests something quite serious so might that not make her a candidate to become an ambassador for any charity which supports her condition?

The Royal Family are public servants after all and do have a duty to the public.

There is also the question of owning one’s own story. Be open about something and after a few days it ceases to be news rather than creating weeks and months of media and social media speculation which this photo farrago has only served to increase. Nobody is ever going to be able to quench the public and media thirst for stories about the Royal Family so why stoke the fire?

Nobody is ever going to be able to quench the public and media thirst for stories about the Royal Family so why stoke the fire?

So Charles and Catherine - in order to sate the public and media interest - give a little more information. Charles indicates what type of cancer he has, and Catherine tells us why she had to have abdominal surgery. Even though they might rather not.

I've had abdominal surgery - it has led to all kinds of 'issues' that I'd rather keep to myself which, fortunately, I can, because there's no one demanding to know all the details.

The RF may be public servants - but like all public servants, they have a right to privacy and I really don't believe it is part of their 'duty' to divulge their medical ailments to a degree that they are not comfortable with. Charles was obviously comfortable with mentioning his prostate problem, but clearly does not want to have to talk about, or be questioned about, his cancer diagnosis.

If he were to tell us what type of cancer he had - or Catherine give the reason for her surgery - I am pretty sure there are those who would want to know even more details, and there would be continued speculation about the condition / disease that they'd contracted. No, I just cannot accept that idle curiosity should be pandered to.

Some things are sacred - what people know about your body and its functioning should be one of them.