....to think that this is a new low in the Meghan Markle Debacle

[Bestfootforward1]

Up to now I've been fairly neutral about Harry and Meghan. I'm not a royalist, im a bit of a republican, but I like to see what the royals are up to, and like a royal wedding. The family rows, extravagant baby shower, all the rumours....I believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt, i was pretty indifferent. And i liked the way she was shaking up the royal family.
However, this sickened me a bit. Using an instagram post supposed to benefit mental health charities to flog her rich mate's £900 a night hotel/retreat. Its such a blatantly tasteless and crass thing to do I think its shocking. Welcome the new Fergie.

You're "sickened" ?? Really? You need a hobby or something.

It was the fact it was so blatant. And hidden in a post about struggling mental health charities.

It can't be blatant and hidden. So which is it?

OP there is a game being played here you see. It goes like this:

DM realise that Harry and Meghan are of stellar celeb interest and want loads of access and details to furnish their click beauty articles.

Harry and Meghan don’t want to give them loads of access for that.

DM change tack and go after Meghan’s father.

Meghan and and Harry don’t rise to it and instead shut it down. They then don’t invite DM to photo calls and don’t supply them with information at all.

DM decide to go full character-assassination instead and get their clicks that way.

People like you click on them and then get all ragey on mumsnet while posting links.

DM continue to coin it in. For ever.

You shouldn’t fall for it!

Do people actually read posts that reference the Sussex’s anymore or do they just scream racism regardless of the content? The Royal family are not allowed to advertise or receive freebies. This post goes completely against this and I don’t really know how it’s slipped through the PR net.

How wonderful to hate on a new mother!

Yes - it's so awful of anyone to care about vulnerable people with mental health issues being advertised to and influenced by a couple who are meant not to involve themselves in commercial ventures. How horrible we are

This is an issue that the ASA and now actually starting to take seriously, in part due to the number of vulnerable new mothers being flogged products on the sly by instagrammers. This is exactly the same.

I'm no fan of the royal family, but you are really scraping the bottom of the barrel to be outraged by this non-story. Four clicks away! Oh, the humanity.

That's not true. When the Obamas met George, he was wearing a dressing gown. It was a gift from the company, who said so when their site crashed. please post the link to that as that is not permitted

Also totally agree on it being dangerous to encourage a venture that has a Goop approach to mental health, “buy this lotion and your depression will lift” type crap.

Not only a breach of royal conduct but surely of advertising standards here in the UK.

And if I were one of the other charities listed on that post, I wouldn’t be too keen to be sat alongside a yoga girl with a lotion to plug. And if I were one of the charities unfollowed, I wouldn’t be too happy either.

This is a Harry and Meghan issue - it’s gross of both of them.

People claiming this and anything bad said about her is racism are pathetic. Do you all really think she should be beyond reproach and critisism because she's mixed race?

It would save a lot of time if people slagging off the Duchess of Sussex would just be honest and start their threads or posts off with "I hate her because she's black And American."

Wealthy people do wealthy things that supports other wealthy people. I know royal wealthy people have some sort of code by where they are meant to be seen to be above and outside of things, but they are still wealthy people who still do wealthy things. This should never come as a shock.

Bestfootforward1 as you're rapidly finding out, the hate some real racists have for Meghan is nothing compared to what you'll get on here for pointing out that, on this particular occasion, she might perhaps have done something unwise

Personally I thought the most ironic thing was Penny Junor's remark about the RF needing to be "cleaner than clean" - and this in a week when Charles has been officially criticised for supporting a paedophile bishop after his activities came to light

Anyway, it'll be interesting to see what the deletion message says this time ...

She is American/celeb status and she isn't the stiff quiet type that Kate portrays herself to be but maybe that's a good thing.

I’m convinced this is why people hate Meghan. They expect Royal women to be seen and not heard; to have no opinions and no personality (this is, I feel, Kate’s public persona in a nutshell). Meghan is too confident, too American, too willing to speak in public, too full of options. She can’t do anything right.

For the first time, this is something in Megan Markle’s behaviour that warrants legitimate criticism.

Their break from the other royal accounts and hiring of their own PR team, indicates that she and Harry want to be in control of their own public image. Fair enough.

This article ( despite it being in the Daily Fail) demonstrates how out of touch they both are, and that their judgement is really off!

Heads Together is a mental health initiative spearheaded by The Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, which combines a campaign to tackle stigma and change the conversation on mental health with fundraising for a series of innovative new mental health services- Heads Together Website

Now left to their own devices- their instagram has just demonstrated that they don’t really understand the difference between promoting a friend’s business and health services. They also don’t have an understanding of the aims of the Royal Foundation.

If they want to run an instagram page like a member of the public and promote their friends businesses, they should renounce their titles and association with the Royal Foundation!

I went to have a look at the post it’s well hidden in the description and takes a lot of reading I bet half of people don’t read it and just look at the pictures

All this convention and royal protocol is archaic and ridiculous any way.

Itbie absolutely not archaic - the RF are in receipt of public funds and have huge influence due to the platform they have. Hence why they are meant to be non-political and non-commercial. They are also meant to work on behalf of UK Plc - not be flogging and endorsing New York fitness classes. By the company's own admission, their only world wide "reach" is there retreat in the Caribbean. Many people in the UK suffer from mental health problems - are you really staying that the best advice and assistance for them can only be found in the Caribbean after paying the best part of 5k to attend a retreat run by someone with no mental health qualifications? That was really the best use of the space

A blatant plug for a friend’s business, “hidden” amongst genuine mental health causes - ie masquerading as another charity when it’s not.

Not sure why everyone’s screaming bigotry on this issue. Also can’t think of a similar plug by another royal, where they didn’t get in serious trouble - eg Sophie, Fergie. All should be held to the same standard.

It looks - and is - dodgy. Not sure how it got past Sussex PR and other teams.

are you really staying that the best advice and assistance for them can only be found in the Caribbean after paying the best part of 5k to attend a retreat run by someone with no mental health qualifications?

Oh don't talk pish. I'm not that interested in what they do, or what they promote.

Harry's Invictus games are fantastic, Meghan has spoken a lot on women's rights and I respect her for that.

As I said earlier, I didn't see this level of vitriol aimed at the Middletons squeezing every penny out of their connections.

UK plc

Uh huh. What's that when it's at home?

Agree OP and I quite like her these days. I liked how she said "thanks for all the well wishes and kindness" to the journalists that photographed them for the first photo. Clearly she's had very little in the way of well wishes and kindness and that felt like an acknowledgement of that by the only means she has at her disposal - passive aggression.

But this is a bit off.

I'm way more concerned about the politicians who commit blatant fraud, tax fraud, expenses fraud, contract fraud etc etc and get away with it while the ordinary Joe gets jailed for the same offences.

InTheHeatofLisbon UK Plc is frequently used as a phrase for anyone working for the public, and paid out of public funds. For example, you won’t see Theresa May using IG to plug brands in an advertisement.

This whole thread is about the very issue you say you don’t care about - ie Harry and Meghan using their official IG royal account to endorse a friend’s private and profit-run business, and (worse) this being done under the guise of assisting people’s mental health.

If you want to just say “I like the Sussexes regardless” then fine, but a few of us are saying they’re eroding our support with this unethical behaviour.

UK plc - means the UK and its interests.

You may not care about Meghan and Harry promoting their pal's business online but other people do and it is against the code of conduct they agree to to receive public funds

This is not a binary issue though - PH can do good work for Invictus and have acted inappropriately here. We are not required to fan girl everything they do. Thankfully critical thinking is not against the law. Pointing out a breach of standards - which is a matter of fact - is not racist. The standards apply to every member of the Royal Family

I don’t follow the Middletons, do they really squeeze their royal connections for their private business? Genuinely interested

The original post is bullshit.

I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who gets their "news" from the Mail. It must be a miserable way to view the world.