Unfortunately, things went from bad to worse. A Mother’s Day photo shared by Kensington Palace on March 10, undoubtedly dented the beloved Princess of Wales’ credibility and sparked rumours that spread like wildfire.
Princess Kate’s reputation ‘dented’ by Mother’s Day photo crisis
March 2024 saw the Waleses slammed with scandal in the most unlikely way. On Mother’ s Day last year, Kate Middleton released a photo alongside George, Charlotte, and Louis on Instagram.
At first glance, the image seemed to be a sweet glimpse at Kate’s close bond with her children. However, eagle-eyed fans noticed oddities in the photo that exposed that the image had been doctored.
This was later confirmed by image agencies who described the photo as “manipulated”.
Kate’s public absences had already sent tongues wagging, with some conspiracy theorists even claiming that the princess had gone missing, so with an edited image doing the rounds, fuel was relentlessly thrown onto the fire.
Kate Middleton’s Mother’s Day photo editing blunder
Pressure was mounting on the royals as photo agency PA did their best to “kill” speculation by retracting the image.
Arguably only making matters worse, with headlines clamouring over the most convincing yet sinister theories behind Kate’s absence.
The Speculation was endless until the Princess of Wales was forced to clarify why the photo had been edited.
Of course, later that month, Kate also announced her heartbreaking cancer diagnosis.
Kate issued an apology on X at the time. She stated: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing.”
Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, according to personal brand guru and multi-award-winning brand strategist Kelly Lundberg.
Keep reading to discover Kelly’s thoughts on how Kensington Palace should have dealt with Princess Kate’s Mother’s Day photo crisis…
How Kensington Palace should have handled the scandal
“Kensington Palace was incredibly naive to believe that issuing an altered image to the media on Mother’s Day (or at any other time) wouldn’t go unnoticed.
“And the furore that followed certainly should have been a wake-up call to the royal family and their PR teams. All successful public images are built on trust – and that requires acting with transparency and authenticity.
“The royal family must be seen as a credible news source – and this doctored image gave reason to doubt that.”
Discussing Kate’s statement made a day after the photo was released, Kelly explained why the princess failed to squash rumours.
Princess Kate’s failure to ‘squash speculation’
“It didn’t quash the speculation, with many asking why she had edited, what she had changed, and for what reason. It was issued after the horse had bolted – with widespread speculation and potential damage to Kate’s carefully curated public image.
“Conspiracy theorists went into overdrive. There was global coverage, and ongoing debates into standards and trust when it comes to the expectations of the royals, as well as manipulation in the digital era of AI and fake news.
The best way to salvage a personal image is to lean into honesty and openness.
“The delay between issuing the image and Kate’s comment allowed stories of distrust to gain traction, denting the goodwill the much-loved duchess has built over the years.”
What the royals should have learnt
Kelly Lundberg details how Kensington Palace should have acted, explaining: “What would have worked more in Kate’s favour would have been a quicker response, something more candid that really addressed the issue.
“A personal statement from Kate (not just on social media) issued by the palace, would have shown accountability and helped control the narrative before it spiralled.
“And perhaps, she should have shared the original image. While I don’t believe this incident alone would have permanently tarnished Kate’s reputation, it did temporarily dent her credibility.
“The best way to salvage a personal image is to lean into honesty and openness. For the royal PR team, this was an important lesson in proactive crisis management. They must recognise that the traditional ‘never complain, never explain’ approach is no longer fit for purpose in the digital age.”
