Kate Middleton might be the hottest trending topic on social media this week because her medical leave has made royal fans feel unsettled. While Kensington Palace told everyone from the beginning that Kate’s “planned abdominal surgery” would keep her out of the public eye through Easter, it’s the lack of communication that has everyone buzzing.
Her spokesperson gave an update on her health on Feb. 29 in hopes of calming everyone down, but it felt like a defensive move in the wake of the conspiracy theories brewing online. “Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates,” her rep explained to Page Six. “That guidance stands.” Even though we can’t hear the tone of the spokesperson’s voice, the update is giving off a sense of exasperation. It’s almost as if the rep doesn’t understand that the entire royal family is in crisis PR mode time.
What the palace communications team doesn’t seem to understand is that Kate’s medical privacy can be respected while they give regular updates. A weekly update would probably suffice, but so would a statement of thanks from the Princess of Wales to her well-wishers. If Kate isn’t healthy enough to write it, there is an entire team in place to do it for her. The royal family hasn’t found the right balance in keeping the speculation about her health in check and the eerie silence is uncomfortable — it leaves too much space for the rumors to fly.
One X account has taken it upon themselves to create a timeline of events that not only covers Kate’s health journey, but also King Charles III and Sarah Ferguson’s battle with cancer. “here’s a simplified thread on the kate middleton/royal family situation, i am not a royalist however i love mess,” they wrote. When the series of events is laid out in front of fans, it’s easy to see why people have fallen into the conspiracy rabbit hole. And people aren’t buying what Kate’s rep was selling in that health update. “Notice that the palace did not provide a statement from Kate or any new information,” wrote an X user. “This was a nothing sandwich press release. Where is Kate? Is Kate okay?”
With only 31 days until Easter, time is running down on the clock that was set by the palace. It’s understandable that Kate may require more time to heal behind the scenes, but the royal family needs to come up with a better strategy to combat the conspiracy theories that have now hijacked the health narrative. It’s been a bumpy road for the royal since King Charles took the throne, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get any easier.
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