UK-based newspapers accuse CBS of ‘dishonest misrepresentation’ in interview with Oprah

UK-based newspaper group accused CBS of taking headlines out of context during Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s high-profile interview with Oprah Winfrey in a ‘misleading montage’ intended to deceive the television viewers.

Associated Newspapers, publishers of Mail Online, Daily Mail and Mail On Sunday sent a scathing letter to CBS accusing the network of featuring doctored and out of context footage as headlines on the “Oprah with Meghan and Harry” special Sunday night .

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The letter sent Friday and obtained by Fox News began with CBS internal messaging on the network emphasizing accuracy and integrity, but notes that the recent special did not meet network standards.

“As a responsible and honest broadcaster, we therefore believe that you will belittle, as we do, the deliberate distortion and treatment of newspaper headlines in the deceptive montage of UK newspapers that air in ‘Oprah with Meghan and Harry’. Many headlines have either been taken out of context or deliberately edited and displayed as evidence to support the show’s claim that the Duchess of Sussex has been the subject of racist coverage by the UK press . Therefore, this section of the program is both very inaccurate and misleading, ”wrote Elizabeth Hartley, Legal Director of Associated Newspapers.

Hartley wrote that one of the more egregious examples was a headline ‘Meghan’s Seed Will Taint Our Royal Family’, which was shown during a cut.

“The original, unedited headline was actually a report of someone being suspended from UKIP for this and other racist texts on Meghan. The headline you released is neither accurate nor can it to be seen as an expression of ‘creative integrity.’ This is a completely dishonest misrepresentation of a newspaper headline and an article that was the opposite of racist. No one watching the program would have understood that from the cut Hartley wrote. “Associated Newspapers unquestionably supports free speech and the First Amendment. We do not believe in trying to stifle debate or criticism on the basis of correct facts. This is clearly not the position in relation to this assembly, however. “

The letter then claimed that the creators of the CBS special “apparently felt the need to create these titles in the absence of evidence to support their argument on a subject whose ramifications are extremely important and damaging” and the result is poorly reflected. on producers.

“In light of the above, and given that these misrepresentations have been the subject of significant public analysis in the UK, we anticipate that you will already be taking steps to investigate the montage and explain how it came about. been produced. In the meantime it continues to be made available to viewers on request. If you do not request you must do so, if you adhere to the principles of accuracy and integrity that you adopt and remove without delay editing the footage, “Hartley wrote before adding sample footage.

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Hartley also accused the show of misusing the word “‘niggling”, which she wrote is a common term in the UK.

“In conclusion, the program in its current form does not conform to ViacomCBS editorial policies or align with its stated values. In terms of accuracy and integrity, the program is clearly compromised by the inclusion of this deceptive montage, ”Hartley wrote. . “Accordingly, I would be grateful for your urgent confirmation that the offending material will be removed from the program currently being made available to the public. We also understand that another broadcast is scheduled for tonight. The edit should therefore be removed before that. broadcast. “

CBS did not immediately respond to a request for comment