If Netflix and their heroes of the documentary "Harry & Meghan" are aiming for maximum attention, which is to be assumed, they should be satisfied this Thursday.

As soon as the first three episodes had been put online by the American company, the British newspapers and television stations set up special zones for reporting.

Jochen Buchsteiner

Political correspondent in London.

  • Follow I follow

And although the documentary had no new "revelations" to offer, there was a tangible denial: at no time were family members asked if they wanted to contribute to the documentary, it said on Thursday at Buckingham Palace.

This is exactly what Netflix had insinuated.

The first episode was preceded by a note that members of the Royal Family had "refused" to comment on the content of the series.

Maybe that's also rabulistic, because the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as Harry and Meghan also call themselves, knew best that the family in Great Britain would not enhance their media self-portrayal with interviews or comments.

She didn't even have anything to say about the project after the fact, about "not a single aspect," according to the palace on Thursday.

"One-sided PR effort"

In the British media, the broadcast was received along the usual political divides.

The left-wing, more monarchy-critical press pounced on the cryptic accusations of racism, which Harry renewed.

"According to Prince Harry, the royal family failed to understand that his wife-to-be needed protection against racist attacks," the Guardian news report began.

The newspaper, while calling the documentary a "one-sided public relations effort" without dissenting voices, highlighted the passages in which Harry accused his family of "unconscious biases about racial issues" and also "sometimes being part of the problem rather than the solution." “.

Much quoted is the passage in which Harry explained, apparently referring to his older brother William: "Some family members said, 'But my wife went through it too, why should your girlfriend be treated differently, why should she have special treatment, why should they be protected?'

I said, 'The difference is the skin color aspect.'” Employing hints and cuts, the filmmakers created the impression that Meghan had been the victim of racial prejudice not just within the family, but across the kingdom.

The conservative "Daily Telegraph" was incensed that these scenes were spiced up with motifs from the Brexit camp.

Columnist Ross Clarke wrote gallingly that the message was pretty clear: "Meghan fell victim to a population charged with racist and xenophobic hatred by the Brexit campaign.

The only option for Harry and Meghan was to flee the racist hellhole that is Britain and seek sanctuary in the notoriously harmonious melting pot of the United States."

Others joked that Harry called it his "duty" and "service" to make the documentary for Netflix, primarily to "expose media exploitation."

Once again, the couple, who know how to stage themselves so masterfully, presented themselves as victims of journalistic persecution and intrigues - and as fighters for a higher cause.

"Because we stand for something, they destroy us," said Meghan, "they" probably meaning both the press and "the institution," as she likes to call the royals.

A good portion of narcissism is detected in the couple's apparent modesty: "This isn't just about our story.

This was always bigger than ourselves.”