Princess Catherine of Wales disappeared conspicuously from the public eye for the past few months. The press and social media ran amok with speculation and people mocked her from across the globe. On March 22, 2024, Kensington Palace announced that the princess had been diagnosed with cancer. The jokes about her disappearance now proved to have been in poor taste.
Middleton remained out of the public eye since she underwent abdominal surgery in January. On the United Kingdom’s Mother’s Day, Kensington Palace released a photograph of the smiling princess and her three children, the first photograph since her surgery. After the image circulated in the press, inconsistencies in the photo were exposed: Princess Charlotte’s left hand seemed out of its socket, and the photo contained zippers and hair in malalignment. In a tweet, Kate admitted to editing the image, “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.”
The edited photo sent social media outlets into a frenzy, with speculation about the princess’s whereabouts. Actress Blake Lively posted a photo on Instagram advertising her Betty Buzz beverage line. The photo is of her holding a can of the beverage with a comically enlarged thumb and a lemon hovering above her head. The caption jokes, “I’m so excited to share this new photo I just took today to announce our 4 new @bettybuzz & @bettybooze products! Now you know why I’ve been MIA.” New York City Sanitation poked fun at the princess by tweeting that they had found her, attaching a grossly photoshopped image of Kate taking out the trash.
On March 22, Her Royal Highness sat on a bench in a serene garden and declared that she had been undergoing cancer treatment in a video broadcast worldwide. She pleaded for privacy until she has recovered from preventative chemotherapy: “We hope that you will understand that, as a family, we now need some time, space and privacy while I complete my treatment. My work has always brought me a deep sense of joy, and I look forward to being back when I am able, but for now I must focus on making a full recovery.”
The endless gossip and teasing the Middleton faced deepened the wounds caused by her health concerns. Guilty celebrities rushed to apologize on social media pages, attempting to save face, but the damage to Kate and her family had already been done. Prince William became collateral damage as a focus of vulgar jokes aimed at his wife’s absence. Amidst this personal turmoil, Prince William has also been dealing with his father’s prostate cancer diagnosis revealed in early February.
The Kate Middleton rumors and jokes clearly show how harmful social media can be. Celebrities with massive followings trolled the princess without consideration for the emotional damage it could cause her and her family. The reaction to Kate’s temporary absence, later explained by the announcement of her diagnosis, demonstrates how irresponsible and thoughtless some people can be online.
The royals embody the cliché, “You don’t know what goes on behind closed doors,” on an international scale, however, in this case, the public is to shame. Despite the princess’s status as a public figure, the torment she receives from the press is not justified. She and her family have the right to recover privately and allowing it is the decent thing to do.
