Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (courtesy Northern Ireland Office via Wikimedia)
Constitutional expert Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, says the wild accusation thrown out by Prince Harry that America's First Amendment is "bonkers," is serious, more than just another one of those elites tossing about opinions.
It's because "bonny Prince Harry" and his "American wife Meghan Markle" already have fought against press freedom in the United Kingdom, where the laws are different, and won.
Now, Turley warned, they are bringing their war against freedom to America.
"Harry and his American wife Meghan Markle have attacked media rights in England and succeeded under the laws of the United Kingdom," he wrote, "They are now joining a growing anti-free speech and free press movement in the United States."
He said the U.K.'s "harsh" laws give the government great power over publications.
"Fortunately, the government has been largely benign in the use of such laws but there are far greater restrictions placed on British media than their American cousins. (For full disclosure, I was until a few months ago a legal analyst for the BBC)," he explained.
But in the case of the royalty who fled their duties in England, he explained, Markle complained to that nation's "Office of Communications," which runs a "chilling set of regulations" to govern publications.
She objected to television host Piers Morgan saying he didn't believe what she said during a television interview. He was removed from his post.
She also won in a case against the Daily Mail over a letter she wrote to her estranged father.
"The lawsuit would have failed in the United States under the freedom afforded to the press, but prevailed in Great Britain," Turley said.
"Keep in mind that this letter was given or leaked to the media – a common factor in some of our most important investigative journalistic works. While Meghan could accuse her father or others of a privacy violation, she went after the media and Judge Warby not only ruled in her favor but ruled against an appeal. He ordered the defendants to publish an account on the front page of their newspapers," Turley noted.
"Markle rejoiced in the victory and declared 'The world needs reliable, fact-checked, high-quality news . . . We all lose when misinformation sells more than truth, when moral exploitation sells more than decency, and when companies create their business model to profit from people's pain,'" he said.
"What was particularly chilling was how Meghan assured all of her following that this was a triumph for them: 'I share this victory with each of you—because we all deserve justice and truth, and we all deserve better.'
"What Harry and Meghan achieved in the challenge was a direct assault on core press freedoms. They then sought to get millions to cheer them for the effort. What is worrisome is that many did," he said.
Online, Turley said, "It was a surprise for many to hear Harry lash out at the First Amendment. After all, Harry and Meghan are so woke, they are virtual insomniacs.
"However, that is the point. The First Amendment no longer holds the inviolate position it once did with the left. Indeed, the First Amendment is now often treated as a danger than a guarantee to a fair and just society. Experts have explained how to evade its limitations to silence others. They have found precisely what Harry discussed in the interview when he noted 'you can find a loophole in anything.'"
It's part of an agenda from "Democratic leaders" who now demand "corporate censorship and banning of books and authors," he described.
"Harry was raised in a system that rejects core press freedoms and Meghan is an enthusiastic convert to that system. It is ironic that they left what Harry described as the 'toxic' media environment of Great Britain to come to a country with greater protections for the press. However, the couple took little time in seeking to challenge the core values of the free press in this county. Now that is not just bonkers, it is bollocks."
Content created by the WND News Center is available for re-publication without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@wndnewscenter.org.
SUPPORT TRUTHFUL JOURNALISM. MAKE A DONATION TO THE NONPROFIT WND NEWS CENTER. THANK YOU!
The post Prince Harry's blast at 1st Amendment is 'serious,' Turley says appeared first on WND.
