Prince Harry will address his “mission to continue his fight against the illegal tactics of Britain’s tabloid press” in ITV’s Tabloids On Trial, which airs on Thursday, July 25.
In an interview with ITV News’s Rebecca Barry, the Duke will be asked whether his resolve to pursue legal action against newspaper publishers contributed to “destroying the relationship” with his family.
“Yeah, that’s certainly a central piece to it,” Harry responds. “But, you know, that’s a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press.
“I’ve made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family. I believe that, again, from a service standpoint and when you are in a public role, that these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good. But, you know, I’m doing this for my reasons.”
Rebecca asks the Duke: “What do you think of their decision not to fight in the way that you have?”
Harry replies: “I think everything that’s played out has shown people what the truth of the matter is. For me, the mission continues, but it has, yes. It’s caused, as you say, part of a rift.”
The father-of-two, who now lives in Montecito with his wife Meghan and their children, Prince Archie, five, and Princess Lilibet, three, settled his lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers in February.
Harry took legal action against the newspaper publisher, alleging that journalists from its publications were involved in illegal activities such as phone hacking, “blagging” (deceptive information-gathering), and using private investigators for unlawful purposes.
He was awarded £140,600 after the judge determined that there was “extensive” phone hacking by MGN from 2006 to 2011, including during the Leveson Inquiry into media standards.
The Duke is also one of seven prominent claimants suing Associated Newspapers Ltd, the publisher of the Daily Mail, for allegations of unlawful information-gathering.
His case against News Group Newspapers (NGN), which publishes The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World, involves claims of unlawful information-gathering but not phone hacking. This case is scheduled for a full trial in January 2025. Both newspaper publishers deny the allegations.
