Meghan Markle ‘gets twice as much negative press’ as Kate Middleton, data shows

Analysis supports argument Meghan has been highly criticised in the media

The Duchess of Sussex has received more than twice as much negative press as the Duchess of Cambridge, new data reveals.

According to analysis conducted by the The Guardian, 43 per cent of articles written about Meghan Markle between May 2018 and mid-January 2019 were negative in tone.

Out of 843 articles about Meghan published in 14 newspapers, just 20 per cent were found to be positive, while the remaining 36 per cent were neutral.

In contrast, most articles written about Kate Middleton in the same time period were either positive or neutral.

The analysis found that out of 144 articles about Kate, 45 per cent were positive, 47 per cent were neutral and just eight per cent were negative.

A month-by-month breakdown of the data shows how Meghan received mostly positive press in May 2018, the month she married the Duke of Sussex.

But two months later, the amount of negative media attention she received far outweighed any positive press.

The data found that several of the negative media pieces surrounding Meghan described her as "boastful" or "self-obsessed", criticisms which seemed particularly prevalent in July 2019 when Meghan was revealed as the guest editor for British Vogue's September issue.

Negative news items about Meghan also spiked around the time she and Prince Harry were accused of hypocrisy for using two private jets in a week despite their staunch views on the climate crisis.

At the time, Sir Elton John, who had loaned the couple his private jet, condemned the criticism as "relentless".

The analysis comes after Meghan and Harry announced their decision to "step back" from their roles in the royal family.

On 8 January, the couple released a statement an Instagram revealing they would work to become "financially independent" and split their time between the UK and North America.

Last week, following a meeting at Sandringham with Prince Harry, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, the Queen announced her support for the couple.

“Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the royal family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family,” the monarch said in a statement released by Buckingham Palace.

The statement continued: “Harry and Meghan have made clear that they do not want to be reliant on public funds in their new lives.

“It has therefore been agreed that there will be a period of transition in which the Sussexes will spend time in Canada and the UK.

“These are complex matters for my family to resolve, and there is some more work to be done, but I have asked for final decisions to be reached in the coming days.”