What Prince Harry’s deal means for him and the British royal family

Prince Harry’s last-minute settlement of a long-running lawsuit with Rupert Murdoch’s tabloids made the front pages of a handful of London newspapers on Thursday, but conspicuously none owned by Mr. Murdoch.

The Sun, which admitted the illegal activities of private investigators it hired more than a decade ago to dig up personal information about Harry, was only given access to the story on page 6. The Times of London, Mr. Murdoch’s major newspaper, reported on it at the bottom of page 12, alongside a report on the failing eyesight of actress Judi Dench.

The Daily Mail, whose publisher Associated Newspapers is also being sued by Harry for hacking his cell phone and violating his privacy, reported the news on an inside page, as did The Daily Mirror, whose publisher Mirror Group Newspapers , lost a hacked phone. trial against Harry in 2023.

These are the harsh realities of waging war on the British tabloids, as Harry essentially did in 2019, when he filed the first of several lawsuits against three powerful publishers: Associated Newspapers, Mirror Group and Mr. Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers. The Daily Mail case is expected to go to trial next year.

Even newspapers not in dispute with Harry, such as the right-wing Daily Telegraph, have treated the deal with disdain. The Telegraph, in a front-page story, said “Harry goes down after eight-figure payout”, adding: “His quest to bring down part of the Murdoch empire ended with a fizzle rather than a bang.”