Rupert Murdoch’s U.K. tabloids, News Group Newspapers, have apologized to Prince Harry and acknowledged intruding in his life for years, including the late Princess Diana. The company has agreed to pay substantial damages to settle Harry’s privacy invasion lawsuit.
News Group acknowledged its private investigators and journalists targeted Harry with phone hacking, surveillance, and misuse of private information. They offered a “full and unequivocal apology” for intrusion by the now-defunct News of the World and its sister tabloid The Sun.
The apology also acknowledges the impact on Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, who was killed in a car crash in 1997 while being chased by paparazzi in Paris. Harry had vowed to take his case to trial to publicly expose The Sun’s misdeeds and win a court ruling upholding his claims.
However, the settlement means Harry will not get his day in court. His lawyer said it delivers accountability for himself and hundreds of others who were snooped on with intercepted voicemails, tapped phones, bugged cars, and various forms of deception.
The litigation has been a source of friction in Harry’s family. He blamed the media for his mother’s death and the persistent attacks on his wife, Meghan Markle, that led them to leave royal life and flee to the U.S. in 2020.
News Group Newspapers have now settled more than 1,300 claims without going to trial, spending over $1 billion in payouts and legal costs. The company still denies allegations of perjury and cover-ups but acknowledges an “extensive conspiracy” to obstruct justice.
The settlement marks an end to the story for News Group Newspapers, but Harry’s case against the publisher of the Daily Mail is set to proceed next year.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/prince-harry-hacking-lawsuit-rupert-murdoch-british-tabloid-88c61a08225269014224283c37225bf8