Prince Harry and Meghan Markle call out 'underrepresentation, inequity and racial bigotry' in UK journalism

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are using their platform to highlight issues of inequality and racism that are still pervasive in UK journalism. 

• The royal couple made a statement on their Archewell website. 
• The open letter is in response to journalists of color who made a statement against racism following the Oprah Winfrey interview fallout.
• In other royal news, Sarah Ferguson opens up on not being invited to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding.

Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan, have released a statement on their Archewell website that supports journalists of color who have boycotted the Society of Editors.

The statement says, "Archewell is a proud supporter of journalistic diversity and news media organizations that are committed to reporting the truth, uncovering untold stories and giving voice to the voiceless." 

"In every corner of the world, members of the media are using their power—and responsibility—to inform the public, teach communities, battle misinformation and inspire change." 

The couple say that they "applaud the work of independent media, non-profit newsrooms and trusted local news collectives" and that they "demonstrate the deep need for this critical profession to thrive and evolve, particularly in terms of racial equity and representation in newsgathering and newsrooms." 

"For these reasons, we are seeking to bring awareness to a coalition of U.K. journalists calling for stronger initiatives to combat the underrepresentation, inequity and racial bigotry that still persist in this important industry."

The coalition of journalists Harry and Meghan are referring to wrote an open letter to the Society of Editors (opens in new tab) that called out, "its statement denying the existence of racism and bigotry in the UK press (opens in new tab) in its response to Oprah Winfrey’s interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex."

This followed Harry and Meghan's TV appearance and the fallout where Buckingham Palace responded to allegations of racism from Meghan and Harry's bombshell Oprah Winfrey interview. The interview also revealed the shocking comments about Archie that made Oprah gasp in horror.

The group of journalist's open letter asks that the Society of Editors end their silence and speak up against the issues of racism within UK journalism. 

123 "journalists of colour" signed the letter which calls out, "the ham-fisted blanket denial of racism" by the Society of Editors.

Haroon Siddique, the author of the letter said, "Without admitting that racism exists and retracting their previous missive, the Society of Editors are denying the lived experiences of journalists of colour as well as those who have had unfavourable media coverage purely because of the colour of their skin."

The letter concluded by saying, "We, the undersigned journalists of colour, cannot have faith in an organisation that is so detached from our reality and we would urge its member organisations to consider their continued participation in the group."