Murdoch Media Empire Issues ‘Full Apology’ to Duke of Sussex for Privacy Breach by The Sun

The conservative media mogul's UK newspaper division, known as News Group Newspapers (NGN), has issued a ‘full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion into his private life by The Sun between 1996 and 2011, including instances of illegal activity, conducted by private investigators working for The Sun’.

And that was just the first sentence. The apology to Prince Harry and former Labour MP Tom Watson continued for another four paragraphs.

For Prince Harry, it was a ‘monumental victory’ and for the Sun publishers, it was an outcome ‘in the interests of all parties’. 

The agreement reached between Prince Harry and Murdoch's News Group Newspapers (NGN) is a significant moment in the history of the British media.

A rare public apology was a key part of the settlement, announced in an 11th-hour deal on Wednesday to avoid a high-stakes trial. 

Prince Harry, who had been pursuing Murdoch for five years, declared it ‘a vindication for the hundreds of other plaintiffs who came to the deal with strong arms, unable to get to the bottom of the truth about what was done to them.’

The apology was particularly impressive because it was made at the behest of Murdoch, a tough mogul who has wielded his papers like a weapon for decades. 

Murdoch is not exactly the apologetic type. His aggressive media brands tend to resist any smell of weakness or crime. 

When Dominion Voting Systems sued Murdoch's Fox News for defamation for lying about the 2020 US election, Fox settled for a whopping $787.5 million, but did not apologise.

In this case, a public apology on Fox was never a top priority for Dominion's lawyers. They believed that it would not look genuine in any case. ‘I don't think a forced apology is worth a nickel,’ one of the lead lawyers, Stephen Shackelford, later said.

Wednesday's settlement in the UK was similar to the Dominion case in one respect - it allowed Murdoch to avoid the shameful spectacle of a trial. But Murdoch's tabloids were still held accountable, as the apology included a detailed admission of wrongdoing.

NGN settled more than 1,300 claims after the Guardian exposed the phone-hacking scandal that led to the closure of the News of the World in 2011. Prince Harry's lawyers have estimated that the total value of the company is approximately £1 billion, with legal costs included. How much they paid Harry remains unclear - some sources say the amount exceeds £10 million.