By Jennifer Smith, Chief Reporter For Dailymail.Com
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America’s media reacted to the final three episodes of Harry and Meghan’s bombshell Netflix series with shock and distaste on Thursday, with opinion columnists labeling the pair the ‘most hated royals ever’ while morning news presenters asked ‘goodness me, what will William be thinking?’
In the final three episodes of their Netflix show, Harry and Meghan turned up the heat with their allegations against the royals, accusing them of being jealous of Meghan’s fame and not understanding their quest for love and freedom.
And while the episodes will have come as a delight to the couple’s remaining fans, they seem to have left a bad taste in Meghan’s native US.
Scattered across various morning news shows and early headlines were criticisms of the pair’s allegations against Harry’s brother and of their absolute refusal to accept any blame for the fractured state of the family now.
One morning show host even felt the need to point out that the series was not Netflix’s most watched, despite the streaming giant paying $100million for it.
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Fox said the pair are now on track to be the ‘most hated royals’ after the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson in an opinion column by Lee Cohen
Jezebel said the couple had become addicted to the media. Writer Rodlyn-mae Banting said: ‘I sincerely hope that the worst of their storm is over, and that Harry, Meghan, their kids, and their loved ones can all live out their boring lives unbothered. And I also sincerely hope that this is the last I hear of any of it.’
NBC reporter Daisy McAndrew said the couple took ‘no responsibility’ for their role in the rift with the Royal family and said there is ‘no way back’ from the Netflix series
CNN Royal Correspondent Max Foster said the Palace must respond now to the ‘very serious’ allegations made by Harry and Meghan in the new episodes
NBC’s Kier Simmons’ assessment was: ‘Goodness me, what he said about his brother, you have to wonder… what is William thinking this morning?’
Jezebel’s Rodlyn-mae Banting described the pair as having ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.
The Chicago Tribune
At six hours in total, “Harry & Meghan” may be long, but it is far from thorough….Garbus takes this at face value and it’s unclear if she had more probing questions for the couple — or if it even occurred to her that there’s something amiss with this mindset
Jezebel
In the midst of their own retelling, they can’t seem to help but make caricatures of themselves, steeped in a sort of narcissism only those who’ve been trained to exist in front of a lens (Harry because of his royalty, Meghan because of her profession) can embody.
Fox News
If the Sussexes were even slightly reasonable, they could benefit from the example of the vapid, sad life to which the Windsors were reduced. But while the Windsors ended life as a somewhat tragic old couple, the Sussexes, with their narcissism, tone deafness and provocation of a monarchy and respected around the world, risk a legacy of even greater hostility.
NBC
‘Goodness me, what he said about his brother, you have to wonder… what is William thinking this morning?’
‘Somehow, the show—which has had little new to say up until this point—managed to eek out another three glacially slow episodes.
‘Doubting the cruelty that Harry and Meghan suffered during their time together as members of the royal family—which only worsened once they left—is the wrong takeaway from this story.
‘But when they recount these emotional moments of terror and grief, it’s eclipsed by how much Harry and Meghan make a spectacle of their own story.
‘In the midst of their own retelling, they can’t seem to help but make caricatures of themselves, steeped in a sort of narcissism only those who’ve been trained to exist in front of a lens (Harry because of his royalty, Meghan because of her profession) can embody.
‘I sincerely hope that the worst of their storm is over, and that Harry, Meghan, their kids, and their loved ones can all live out their boring lives unbothered.
‘And I also sincerely hope that this is the last I hear of any of it.’
NBC’s Daisy McAndrew slammed the couple for making no effort to apologize for their role in the breakdown of Harry’s relationship with his family, while CNN’s Max Foster pointed out how one-sided the documentary was.
Fox News columnist Lee Cohen said they are on track to become ‘the most hated royals’ ever and suggested that not even Wallis Simpson and the Duke of Windsor’s connections to Nazis left the public so disappointed.
The Associated Press, universally regarded as the peak of journalistic impartiality, summarized the finale with this headline: ‘Harry, Meghan vent their grievances in final Netflix episodes.’
Even Meghan’s friend Gayle King – who has been effusive in her praise of the couple until now and who attended Meghan’s New York baby shower – said it was the ‘right tac’ that the Royal family isn’t responding, and called the episodes ‘dicey’.
‘Harry and Meghan said all along they wanted to tell their story… but this does sound very dicey.’
NBC’s McAndrew, broadcasting from outside Buckingham Palace, said: ‘I kept thinking, what would William and Kate think about these constant revelations and accusations?
The Washington Post also focused on Harry and Meghan’s allegations against the palace
NBC news was among outlets that seized on the fresh allegations lobbed at the Royal family
Howard Stern slammed the couple for complaining about the intrusion into their lives while putting them on display themselves earlier this week
The criticism crossed borders, with Spanish newspaper El Pais running this column this week
The Associated Press, universally regarded as the peak of journalistic impartiality, summarized the finale with this headline: ‘Harry, Meghan vent their grievances in final Netflix episodes’
‘It’s very often when you have a family row, if you want to try to patch it up, you’ll take some responsibility. There was nothing of that from Harry and Meghan from how perhaps they might take a little responsibility of how things have gone wrong.
‘There can be very little coming back. All these accusations about William behaving badly, William shouting and screaming, William being unkind to his brother.’
She added that Harry’s relationship with King Charles III ‘got worse today’.
Kier Simmons, another NBC reporter, said: ‘Goodness me, what will William be thinking this morning?’
In the TODAY show studio, host Hoda Kotb refrained from giving her assessment of Harry and Meghan’s comments, but she did point out the series was knocked off the number one most watched spot by the Addams Family series, Wednesday.
‘It’s not in the number one slot. It’s in the number two slot. Wednesday is in the number one slot!’ she said.
Last week, her co-anchor Savannah Guthrie kicked off coverage of the first three episodes by thanking the correspondents for watching the series ‘so we don’t have to.’
In the TODAY show studio, host Hoda Kotb refrained from giving her assessment of Harry and Meghan’s comments, but she did point out the series was knocked off the number one most watched spot by the Addams Family series, Wednesday
ABC’s James Long was more generous. He said the couple remain ‘very popular’ in the UK among younger people and that they are a ‘missed opportunity’ for Britain
Even Meghan’s friend, Gayle King, called the new episodes ‘dicey’ during CBS Mornings. ‘Is it fair to say, “shots fired?”‘ she asked the network’s royal correspondent Charlie D’Agata, before describing the finale as ‘dicey’
Fox‘s Cohen said they were on track to become ‘the most hated royals’ ever and that Harry was following in the footsteps of ‘the reviled’ Duke of Windsor.
‘Like the Windsors before them, the Sussexes have fallen out of favor in Britain for their indecorous behavior.
‘But while the Duke of Windsor let his people down by being irresponsible, he and his wife did not seek the spotlight in any meaningful way. Nor did they exist, as the Sussexes seem to, hell-bent to destroy the monarchy,’ Cohen wrote.
CNN, which is not normally particularly charged on the subject, took a firmer stance this morning.
Royal correspondent Max Foster told This Morning hosts Kaitlan Collins, Don Lemon and Poppy Harlow shortly after 6am: ‘There’s a lot more here there was last time,’ referring to the first three episodes of the series.
He repeated the couple’s view that the Royal family was ‘jealous’ of the media attention they received, but said: ‘Of course, this is all entirely from the Sussexes’ view.’
CNN’s Foster urged the Palace to this time issue a response, explaining: ‘There are some really severe allegations here. They have to give some sort of response.’
Spanish newspaper El Pais ran a column this week titled ‘When there’s nothing left to reveal.’
‘With their Netflix docuseries, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have added little more than a few extra details about the royal family to their well-known narrative. Just what is their endgame?’ asked writer Maria Porcel.
The couple did win over one reporter – ABC’s James Long, who claimed there was a ‘generational divide’ in the UK, and that they are ‘very popular’ among younger people.
‘It’s early days, people are really interested to hear from them. Seeing Meghan hearing how this has impacted her, I think that is landing with people.
‘There’s a big generational divide… the polls say they’re very unpopular here but I think among younger people Harry and Meghan are really popular in this country.
‘Overall it’s a missed opportunity for Britain,’ he said.
In his radio show earlier this week, Howard Stern said the pair were acting like ‘whiny little b*****es’.
‘It’s been painful. I don’t — I wouldn’t stay with it, but my wife wants to watch it, so, you know, we have shows we watch, but they come off like such whiny b*****s. I gotta tell you man, I just don’t get it.
Harry and Meghan in the final three episodes of their Netflix show, where they made fresh allegations against the Royal family
The couple shared new photos and videos from their wedding and their private life
Hollywood superstar Tyler Perry gave the couple his mansion to live in, saying he ‘applauded’ their fight for ‘to be love and be free’
‘I feel bad for Prince Harry losing his mother and all that… so you got my empathy there.
‘But Jesus Christ, when those two start whining about ‘wah wah wah, and they don’t like me’ and she wants to be beloved in this country, but man, oh man, you know, it’s just very weird to watch two people who keep screaming, ‘We wanted our privacy, we wanted the press to leave us alone.’
‘And then what is their special that they put out on Netflix — showing you them and their kids and their life. It’s like the Kardashians except boring. You know what I mean?’
The final three episodes begin with Harry and Meghan’s magical Windsor wedding, but then takes a ‘turn’ into how they were unfairly treated by the Royals and the media afterwards.
Harry describes an intense meeting with King Charles III, Prince William and the late Queen Elizabeth II, during which he claims William ‘yelled and screamed’, and the Queen sat ‘quietly, taking it all in.’
The couple share yet more intimate photos and videos from the multi-million dollar mansion they were loaned by Hollywood superstar Tyler Perry, who also makes an appearance. Serena Williams is also featured.
Netflix is said to have paid a whopping $100million for a multi-show deal with the couple.
The docuseries is the pinnacle of that partnership.
Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd
Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group