Prince Harry's complaint against tabloid article rejected by press watchdog

Britain's press watchdog has rejected Prince Harry's complaint about an article published in a tabloid newspaper which said that the wild animals pictured in photos which were posted on Duke and Duchess of Sussex's official Instagram account were drugged and tied up. The grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Harry had posted pictures that were taken in African Wildlife on Instagram to mark Earth Day in an account with 5.6 million followers.

However, The Mail on Sunday newspaper had reported in April last year that those photos failed to reveal the full story. The report further added that animals had been tranquilised and while referring to the picture of an elephant, Malawi had been edited to hide the rope around its hind legs. According to international reports, the headline of the tabloid article had read, 'Drugged and tethered...what Harry didn’t tell you about those awe-inspiring wildlife photos.'

Read - Prince Harry Doppelganger Spotted In Ad For Handyman, Netizens React

IPSO's rejection

However, the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) did not uphold the complaint by Prince Harry who had argued that the article was inaccurate as it indicated towards the intentional misleading of the public and give the impression that he was a superior wildlife photographer who had captured the images in dangerous circumstances. But, the publication denied that the article was inaccurate as it explained the circumstances in which the photos were captured. 

Read - Princess Eugenie And Beatrice Could Take Over Prince Harry And Meghan's Royal Roles

IPSO said in its official release, “The Committee considered that it was not clear from the images themselves that the animals had been tranquilised and tethered. The photograph of the elephant had been cropped to edit out the animal's tethered leg; the publication had demonstrated that the photograph could have been edited differently and the complainant accepted that the album could have been uploaded in a different format.”

While Prince Harry complained against the tabloid article, his wife, Meghan Markle is suing The Mail on February 2 over its publication of a private letter that she had sent to her father Thomas Markle. Meanwhile, Prince Harry has accused some newspapers of bullying his wife in the same way they had treated his mother, Princess Diana who was killed in a car crash in 1997. 

Read - Meghan, Prince Harry 'should Return' $6.5 Million To Taxpayers, Demand Activists

Read - Meghan Markle’s Father Claims His Daughter, Prince Harry Stepped Down ‘for Money’