Prince Harry's tabloid saga
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 22 January 2025
⏱️ 22 minutes
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Summary
On Wednesday, Rupert Murdoch’s British media group agreed to pay “substantial damages” and apologized to Prince Harry as part of a settlement agreement over claims that the paper illegally intruded into the prince’s life. Harry is one of many celebrities and politicians who have sued Murdoch’s papers for illegally obtaining private information – the claims stretch back to 2011, when it was first revealed that journalists at the tabloids might be hacking phones.
Martine speaks with democracy reporter Sarah Ellison about why Prince Harry finally decided to settle and what this outcome means for the Murdochs.
Today’s show was produced by Sabby Robinson, with help from Rennie Svirnovskiy. It was edited by Reena Flores and mixed by Sam Bair.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This week, Prince Harry was set to face off against the Rupert Murdoch Media Empire in court. |
| 0:08.2 | It was this long-awaited trial in London. |
| 0:11.3 | Prince Harry's lawsuit centered on allegations that British tabloids used illegal tactics to get his personal information. |
| 0:18.6 | The trial was supposed to start today. |
| 0:21.8 | But then, it didn't happen. |
| 0:26.3 | In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that the Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch's UK media empire has indeed engaged in illegal practices. |
| 0:42.3 | This represents a vindication for the hundreds of other claimants who were strong-armed into settling |
| 0:50.0 | without being able to get the truth of what was done to him. |
| 0:54.8 | That is Harry's lawyer, David Sherbourne, |
| 0:57.7 | addressing a crowd of reporters outside the High Court in London this morning. |
| 1:02.1 | And the announcement he's making is that there will be no trial. |
| 1:06.7 | Prince Harry and Murdoch's British media group have decided to settle |
| 1:10.7 | for an apology and for money, |
| 1:13.6 | an amount that's being reported as somewhere in the range of eight figures. |
| 1:18.0 | News UK is finally held to account for its illegal actions and its blatant disregard for the lawsuit. |
| 1:33.4 | From the newsroom of the Washington Post, this is Post reports. I'm Martine Powers. It's Wednesday, January 22nd. Today, the trial that wasn't. We're talking to reporter Sarah |
| 1:39.8 | Ellison. She's been covering the Murdoch Media Empire for years. We'll hear from her about why Prince Harry was suing Murdoch's tabloid in the first place. |
| 1:49.3 | And who actually wins in this settlement? |
| 1:58.6 | All right, so Sarah, this was a trial that was highly anticipated. |
| 2:04.2 | Explain to me, what was this lawsuit actually about, |
| 2:08.0 | and what was being alleged here by Prince Harry and his lawyers? |
| 2:12.7 | Well, the phone hacking in general has been something that really convulsed London and the UK. |
... |
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