Is it time for The Sussex Squad to hit the mute button on The British Press the same way Harry and Meghan have?
To be clear, this is not me dictating to the entire squad what each individual does or doesn’t choose to do. I’m simply putting this question out there for all of us to discuss.
I’m old enough to remember when The Sussex Squad were accused of being Russian bots, uneducated ‘sugars’, and ‘megbots’ desperate for attention. We are none of those things. On the contrary, we are online tech-savvy, coordinated, incredibly generous with our time and money, and we have proven to be effective against the attacks against Meghan, whether the #CarnivalOfSoCalledExperts want to admit it or not.
THEY DID NOT SEE US COMING.
We have proven to be a powerful force against the anti-Meghan narrative, but is that same power and energy now being used against us to keep the press machine churning?
Take some of the articles that have come out of the British Royal press machine since the Oprah interview;
Incandescent is the world’s sexiest bald man.
Lillabeth is bigger than Beyonce, Oprah, and Coca-Cola.
These types of stories are bound to go viral, but they have also resulted in The Royals being mocked.
There is a distinct difference in the tone of these articles compared to the more polished wafflings we see coming out of Vanity Fair, Tatler, and The Times, like The Other Brother feature by Roya Nikkah. The difference being these articles usually have ‘insider info’ from ‘palace sources’. They’re less ‘showbizy’ and written by official Palace Rota.
It’s obvious the more polished propaganda stories are coming from The Firm, but the showbiz style features baiting readers by throwing Beyonce and Oprah’s name into the mix…are all of those coming directly from The Firm too? If that is truly Palace PR trying to make their bosses look good, it’s not working, if anything, it’s getting them dragged. But, if you’re a rag-mag writer desperate for money and you know the Royals can’t clap back, do you care if they end up looking bad as long as you please your editors with web traffic?
Is there a chance that these click-baity articles are just the thirsty attempts of rag-mag writers trying to trigger the reaction of The Squad and other fan groups like the Bey Hive?
If it is, it’s working very well, because these stories go viral every time. With virality comes clicks, with clicks, comes money and money feeds the beast.
Of course, as I was pondering on the idea of hitting mute on the #CarnivalOfSoCalledExperts in the British press, I also thought about how we can still hold the press accountable.
Do we chose to hit mute on some things, like the clickbaity trash, but continue to call out the racist trash?
Do we hit mute for a sustained period of time and see what the clowns attempt to do when they’re not getting our attention?
Do we hit mute entirely and focus solely on Harry and Meghan’s endeavours?
Again, I don’t have the answers, I’m simply posing the questions.
We know the British press play on the insecurities of bitter and bigoted internet trolls who don’t realise their hatred for Meghan only benefits the tabloids. Should we really be engaging in a similar game by reacting to every ridiculous article they churn out?
How much do you want to bet we’ll be getting more baity articles going forward?
The question is; will you be responding?
Next; how Kate walked on water and fed all the hungry children of broken Britain lining up for food banks with one fish.
Sheffaneese Knight says
I agree with ignore for a period and see what happens. I personally only see what the squad posts and respond to same.
Elizabeth+Badu says
I for one, have never been interested in what the British media have to say or write when Harry and Meghan left that country, so they will never get my click they are not worth, l only hear these news when l want to read your articles or on your podcast, so it’s good you are putting all these questions out there, so to all Sussex supporters be diligent and smart on these issues. Another exellent article.
Refilwe says
I always push back..Am sorry i cnt stand it..Am all over them like a bad rash.I cnt ignore them.I match them toe to toe nd eventually they back off..
Lola says
YES. They are getting paid from having us checking to see what new atrocity they are writing. Let’s shut it down by ignoring them.
Conie Brussels says
I have blocked everything coming from UK!!!!!!! period!!!! Thanks for another excellent article 👍👍👍💞👏💖👏 Well done and keep it coming!!!!!
Marjorie Ireland says
Me too! I will not read, will never visit, will not buy any products from the England . I cant support a country where they did a poll after an interview that made serious allegations of abuse & racism about the Welfare “Royal Family” and Kate the Liar, Andrew the accused Pedophile et al all had popularity boosts but Harry & Meghan went down in popularity because they told the truth. What they were subjected to was there for all the world to see in the UK press hour by hour, day by day. What kind of country is England? Certainly not somewhere with any morals or sense of decency! I would love the name of the person in the family who questioned how black Archie was going to be 5to be released. The poll the next day would see a 20% rise in that person`s popularity I am sure!
Catherine says
Il semble important de décrypter et analyser les fausses informations, sinon que reste-il au public comme possibilités ? Votre travail de recherche d’informations est très important, en France ou au USA ce travail s’apparente à celui des journalistes d’investigations, il n’y en a visiblement pas au Royaume Uni. Votre travail est d’autant plus important que cette presse anglaise, qui invente des faits et salit des personnes (qui deviennent des boucs émissaires de toutes les frustrations), a maintenant des relais dans beaucoup de pays. En effet même la presse Française reprend sans vérifier et sans se poser de questions des informations inventées de toutes pièces, par exemple le journal ELLE qui défend soi-disant les femmes contre le harcèlement, le machisme, le racisme relais toutes ces fausses informations, qui sont du harcèlement, du machisme et du racisme. Elle parle de harcèlement tout en le pratiquant. Alors merci de continuer à nous donner les clés de lecture.
RoseH says
Good one and following what Tina said, I tend to mute, ignore and not touch at all. Once you know it is not pro- the Sussexes, it’s wiser not to even click. Remember silence is the best answer for those idiots.
Kathleen Williams (Majorie Williams) says
Actually, the clickbaity articles are making the monarchy look ridiculous by “cheapening the royal brand”. In that case I don’t care; no pushback is necessary. I agree that we should save our efforts for more serious challenges. The Firm created the tabloid dogs and are now being bitten by the fleas. Good.
DEBORAH BRANGMAN says
I don’t think we can stop. The pushback made all the difference. They will get worse, other “News” outlets will simply lift their narrative. Royal experts will become US Royal Experts. Unfortunately, we somewhat contain the bigotry and the thinly vailed hate.
Tina says
There is a difference between hitting mute vs enabling the abuse by clicking. We can still fight back without helping them amplify their message or give them clicks.
RoseH says
Pushback can be effective somewhat