Privacy of Royal Personages

The cover page of The Sun on reporting Harry's issue.
Source: The Sun, 2012

The royal family of United Kingdom (UK) has faced a double blow related to their personal privacy within a month. Prince Harry’s nude photo was in the cover page of the major newspapers which was believed, leaked by his companions in the VIP suite of a hotel in Las Vegas, as they were playing strip billiards, reported by TMZ (2012).

Kate and William in their honeymoon trip.
Source: Woman's Days, 2012

On the other hand, Prince Harry’s sister-in-law Kate Middleton’s topless photos while sunbathing in her honeymoon with her husband, Prince William were published by a French magazine. In the article, Hulshof-Schmidt (2012) questioned the extent of privacy right for royal personages and celebrities and the significance of these news stories.

Patching (2011) points out that this kind of reporting is focusing on what they think the readers “need to know” than what they “want to know”.  For me, a reader who is interested in entertainment news than the other news, would like to know the personal life of celebrities and public figure whom I am interested as well; however, I think publishing out photos which reveal their private parts were unethical and the attention of the stories has been distorted.

For Harry’s case, The Sun (2012) argues that the citizens have the right to know the news of the royal members of their country, and the most important point they think they should and it is eligible for them to publish the photos was that “publish pictures which are already widely seen online” is included in the Press Complaints Commission’s code. From this view, Harry’s case can be considered as an exception.

But Kate’s case is different. The Sun explains that they respect Kate and William’s need to enjoy their honeymoon with low profile; Hulshof-Schmidt also feels that sunbathing in France is quite common and it is innocence that she is topless in her private estate, but she was still captured nude by the French press with telephoto lens.

MEAA Codes of Ethics states that journalists should “respect private grief and personal privacy”; therefore I believe that publishing issues regarding celebrities and royal personages with the purpose of human interest is acceptable but it should be ethical.

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References:

Hulshof-Schmidt, R 2012, ‘Royal Exposure: How Much Privacy Should Kate and Harry Expect?’, The Examiner, 14 September 2012, last viewed 3 November 2012, < http://www.examiner.com/article/royal-exposure-how-much-privacy-should-kate-and-harry-expect>

Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance Code of Ethics 2012, Alliance Online, last viewed 3 November 2012, <http://www.alliance.org.au/code-of-ethics.html>
Patching, R 2011, ‘Privacy in the Age of No Privacy’, The Conversation, 20 July 2011, last viewed 3 November 2012, < http://theconversation.edu.au/privacy-in-the-age-of-no-privacy-2363>

The Sun 2012, ‘The Sun Publishes Photos of Naked Prince Harry’, 24 August 2012, last viewed 3 November 2012, < http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/sun_says/4502239/Prince-Harry-Vegas-Pictures-The-Sun-publishes-photos-of-naked-Prince.html >

TMZ 2012, ‘Prince Harry Naked Photos During Vegas Rager’, 22 August 2012, last viewed 3 November 2012, < http://www.tmz.com/2012/08/21/prince-harry-naked-photos-nude-vegas-hotel-party/ >