Meghan Markle bullying fight back raises questions (2025)

Meghan Markle's staff broke their silence with Us Weekly to counter bullying allegations but the fightback has an awkward background relating to a past lawsuit.

The Hollywood Reporter this month quoted an anonymous source saying Meghan marches around like "a dictator in high heels" and belittles staff.

Sussex employees past and present countered that narrative with a series of comments published Tuesday by Us Weekly, which is edited by Dan Wakeford.

The move appears to have raised eyebrows at the Daily Mail because of Wakeford's role in a previous media fightback on Meghan's behalf in February 2019 by People magazine, where he was the deputy editor at the time, though he went on to become editor-in-chief.

Meghan Markle bullying fight back raises questions (1)

In 2020, Meghan's lawyers told the High Court in London she did not authorize that story during a case she brought against Associated Newspapers, publisher of The Mail on Sunday and Daily Mail.

Richard Eden, diary columnist at the Daily Mail, wrote on Twitter: "By coincidence, the editor behind the new Us Weekly article, Dan Wakeford, was also behind this memorable piece for People magazine, which Meghan testified in court that she played absolutely no part in."

The fact that Wakeford has been linked to two similar fight backstories does not necessarily mean Meghan authorized them, or by implication that she misled the court.

But some might think Us Weekly an awkward choice through which to take on The Hollywood Reporter given her staff, including her current press secretary, could hypothetically have taken their testimonies to any outlet.

Meghan Markle's Five Anonymous Friends

The duchess was first accused of being difficult to work for in a Sunday Times article from December 2018, one of several stories that Meghan has suggested turned the tide of public opinion against her.

In February 2019, five of her friends spoke anonymously to People to offer a defense against the negative headlines.

One of the friends mentioned Meghan's relationship with Thomas Markle, which had disintegrated, and suggested she had sent her father a letter as an olive branch.

Markle Snr. then leaked the letter to The Mail on Sunday, which published substantial extracts, in turn sparking a privacy lawsuit by Meghan.

The reason the saga is relevant now is because Meghan was accused at the time of authorizing her friends to speak to People, thereby eroding her own privacy, according to the Mail's lawyers. She denied doing so.

A court filing by Meghan's legal team from July 2020, seen by Newsweek, read: "The Mail on Sunday expressly purported to justify its decision to publish the Letter—which it admits it did without approaching [Meghan] for her consent—on the basis that [Meghan] was 'said to have authorised five of her closest friends to speak to US People magazine to correct the falsehoods.' As she has repeatedly made clear, she did not."

And in a witness statement to the Court of Appeal in November 2021 Meghan wrote: "I did not read the People article when it first came out. When I was informed that it contained quotations from a third party (known in this litigation as 'Friend A') that included a passing reference to the Letter which was inaccurate in certain respects, I was upset and surprised, because I had not known in advance that 'Friend A' would refer to the Letter much less inaccurately.

"I did not cause or permit my Letter to my father, or its contents, to be published in People magazine."

The saga was emotionally traumatic for Meghan as The Mail on Sunday in July 2020 attempted to force the publication of the names of Meghan's five anonymous friends. People maintained their anonymity.

In fact, during their Netflix show, Harry blamed the newspaper for Meghan miscarrying that same month: "I believe my wife suffered a miscarriage because of what The Mail did. I watched the whole thing.

"Now, do we absolutely know that the miscarriage was created, caused by that? Course we don't. But bearing in mind the stress that that caused, the lack of sleep, and the timing of the pregnancy, how many weeks in she was, I can say from what I saw, that miscarriage was created by what they were trying to do to her."

Meghan's Latest Fightback

One notable dimension of the current fightback is that it includes on the record quotes from Meghan's current communications chief Ashley Hansen.

Nothing in the Us Weekly coverage specifically states whether the staff were authorized by Meghan to speak in her defense, though it would no doubt be a strange decision for a serving press secretary to speak so freely without permission.

Wakeford discussed the story in a YouTube video: "It's rare that people who work for celebrities and notable figures in the public eye talk on the record about their jobs behind the scenes.

"So when we got the opportunity to talk to the current and former employees of the Duchess of Sussex and her husband Prince Harry, I felt it was compelling enough to do a cover story.

"We talked to five staff on the record and another two off the record and they say that the previous anonymous allegations made are wildly inaccurate and damaging. They reveal an unprecedented look into Megan and Harry's work world and also their private world behind the scenes."

He added: "'We're here for a reason', says one of the current team members, 'if you come for our bosses we're coming for you. We're just trying to do good.'"

At the time of the original People article in February 2019, Wakeford was interviewed about it on Good Morning America.

"Meghan's friends say she's not like she's been portrayed in the British press and that she is a really kind and selfless and caring individual, the sort of person who puts other people first all of the time," he said.

"They feel she had been portrayed as an uncaring daughter, as somebody who was a demanding bride."

Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

Do you have a question about Charles and Queen Camilla, William and Kate, Meghan Markle and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.

Meghan Markle bullying fight back raises questions (2025)

FAQs

Which is the most appropriate response to being cyberbullied? ›

  1. Talk about it. Tell someone if you're. ...
  2. Ignore them. If there is an isolated. ...
  3. Never retaliate. Be the bigger person and never retaliate against someone who cyberbullies. ...
  4. Tell them to stop. For repeated bullying, ...
  5. Laugh. ...
  6. Save the evidence. ...
  7. Block access to cyberbullies. ...
  8. Report it to the content provider.

Which of the following could be characteristics of bullying behavior? ›

Bullying behaviors include: Teasing, name-calling and taunting. Spreading rumors about someone or intentionally embarrassing someone in a public setting. Hitting, kicking, tripping, punching or spitting.

What are the statistics of bullying? ›

How Common is Bullying? According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2019: About 20% of American students ages 12-18 were bullied on school property. About 16% of students ages 12-18 were cyberbullied.

What does workplace bullying look like? ›

Engaging in excessive social bantering, teasing, and humiliation. Deliberately insulting others and taking part in behind-the-back put downs. Monitoring another excessively. Stealing credit for other employees' work.

What is the golden rule of cyberbullying? ›

The Golden Rule – treat others as you want to be treated – applies to online friendships and communications, just as it does with face-to-face interactions. If you wouldn't feel comfortable saying it to someone's face, you shouldn't type it.

What are the three elements of bullying? ›

Bullying Definition:

If the physical harm or psychological distress is not the result of systematic or chronic behavior, evaluate for Harassment. SESIR Bullying must include 3 elements: It must be 1) repeated; 2) intentional; and 3) involve a power imbalance.

What are the four types of bullying? ›

The four most common types of bullying are physical, verbal, relational, and cyberbullying.

Who is most impacted by bullying? ›

Any number of factors— physical vulnerability, social skill challenges or intolerant environments—may increase the bullying risk to kids with disabillities and special needs. Kids with special health needs, such as epilepsy or food allergies, also may be at higher risk of being bullied.

Which group is most targeted for bullying? ›

Disabled children and those with SEN are significantly more likely to experience bullying in school.

Who do bullies target at work? ›

Targets are often the veteran, “go to” expert on staff on whom everyone relies for answers, solutions, and expertise. That's why they are targeted. Not for weakness, but for their strength. The petty tyrants who bully prefer to bully those who make them look incompetent by comparison.

What does the Bible say about bullying? ›

What does the Bible say about bullying? The Bible doesn't talk directly about bullying, but that doesn't mean that we can't use biblical principles to address the issue. The Bible commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:31) and to treat others the way we would like to be treated (Luke 6:31).

What is passive intimidation? ›

It can include subtle things such as offhand negative remarks or jokes; undermining colleagues through the quiet spread of misinformation; sabotaging a colleague's work by withholding information; or deliberately socially excluding people.

What is the best way to respond to cyberbullying? ›

What can I tell my kid to do if they are being cyberbullied?
  1. Sign off the computer. Ignore the attacks and walk away from the cyberbully.
  2. Don't respond or retaliate. ...
  3. Block the bully. ...
  4. Save and print out bullying messages. ...
  5. Talk to a friend. ...
  6. Tell a trusted adult.
Aug 19, 2024

How to help someone being cyberbullied? ›

Let them know you're there to help, not to blame them or to punish them. Then actually help them or encourage them to report the abuse to the site or app where it's happening. If the cyberbullying gets really serious and the site or app doesn't help, that's where it can be reported it to eSafety.

Which is the most effective way to deal with bullying? ›

You can:
  • Tell a trusted adult. ...
  • Ignore the bully and walk away. ...
  • Walk tall and hold your head high. ...
  • Don't get physical. ...
  • Try to talk to the bully. ...
  • Practice confidence. ...
  • Talk about it. ...
  • Find your (true) friends.

How are you going to handle cyberbullying? ›

First, block the person and report the harassment online. Most social media sites have a way to report abuse—and bullying definitely counts as abuse. Experts also recommend not responding to the texts, emails or other messages. Instead, take screenshots of them and save them in a file.

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