Rosario Monachino
Kate Middleton has broken her silence after a ‘fake’ family photo was pulled by numerous news outlets.
The last time the Princess of Wales, 42, made a public appearance was on Christmas Day when she joined other members of the royal family for the annual church service and walk.
In mid-January, it was then disclosed that Middleton had undergone ‘planned abdominal surgery’.
While Kensington Palace would give brief updates on the Princess’ health, online speculation about Middleton began to ramp up, leading to a spokesperson reiterating that she is ‘doing well’.
To everyone’s surprise, a photo of the Princess surrounded by her and Prince William‘s three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis was sent out in celebration of Mother’s Day.
It quickly went viral but now, to everyone’s shock, the image has been pulled by news outlets including Reuters, Associated Press (AP), Getty Images and Agence France-Presse (AFP).
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While many were delighted to see a photo of the Princess following her operation, questions were raised when numerous outlets pulled the photo.
Now, Middleton has broken her silence on the ‘fake’ family photo and explained all…
In January, Kensington Palace issued a statement confirming that the royal had undergone a ‘planned abdominal surgery’.
It is understood that the Princess’ surgery was not cancerous, however, no other details on the royal’s health condition have been provided.
The palace informed outlets that Middleton’s procedure was successful but that she would remain in the hospital for ’10 to 14 days’, before returning home to continue her recovery.
The statement added that due to Middleton’s recovery from the surgery, she would not be making any public appearances or taking part in royal duties for at least three months.
The statement asked for privacy throughout the royal’s recovery as she tried to maintain ‘normality’ for her children.
It read: “The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate. She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private.”
Although the royals requested privacy, many fans began speculating on Middleton’s condition due to the lack of updates regarding her recovery.
Despite this, the palace has continued to maintain that she is ‘doing well’ and that there will only be updates unless something significant happens to the 42-year-old.
A spokesperson for the royal couple informed outlets: “We were very clear from the outset that the Princess of Wales was out until after Easter and Kensington Palace would only be providing updates when something was significant.”
But on Mother’s Day, an image of Middleton alongside her children was shared online, in which she made a public statement thanking fans for their support.
The caption read: “Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months.
“Wishing everyone a Happy Mother’s Day.”
View this post on Instagram
But eagle-eyed fans quickly took to the comments and insisted that the image had been digitally edited.
In particular, people have pointed out that Princess Charlotte’s wrist and sleeve of her jumper look like they have been altered, along with her boot and some of the paving behind the family.
While others claimed that Prince Louis’ fingers on his right hand were crossed unusually, with one of his digits looking shorter than the others.
Publications such as Reuters and AP are now informing media outlets to ‘kill’ the photo from their systems and archives.
AP told Sky News: “The Associated Press initially published the photo, which was issued by Kensington Palace. The AP later retracted the image because at closer inspection, it appears that the source had manipulated the image in a way that did not meet AP’s photo standards.”
It added that the photo shows an ‘inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s left hand’.
While Reuters said it withdrew the picture following a ‘post-publication review’.
Following the reports, Middleton has broken her silence on the viral photo, explaining that she ‘experimented with editing’.
The statement reads: “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.
“I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”
Royal sources have added that ‘minor adjustments’ had been made to the image, explaining that Middleton and Prince William simply wanted to offer a picture of the family together for Mother’s Day.
Kensington Palace says it will not be reissuing the original unedited photograph.
@matta_of_fact Breaking #Royal News: The Associated Press PULLED a photo of #KateMiddleton from their photo database, saying it was too manipulated to be considered factual 😵💫☕️ #princesskate #whereiskate #willandkate #princessofwales #royalfamily #royals #royalty #royaltea #britishroyals #britishroyalfamily #royalexpert #royalnews #royalupdate #royalscandal #royalgossip #royaldrama ♬ Pop beat BGM / long version(1283324) – nightbird_bgm
Although an explanation regarding the image has been provided, this hasn’t stopped people from taking to social media and sharing their thoughts…
The royal’s PR team after no one bought the fake Kate Middleton Instagram photo pic.twitter.com/OrSAy15HHy
— Caolán Mc Aree (@Caolanmcaree) March 10, 2024
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