Her two cents. Gayle King chimed in on the debate surrounding Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s car chase in New York City.
“I think it was a very unfortunate incident,” the CBS News host, 68, told Page Six on Saturday, May 20, while attending the 148th Preakness Stakes in Maryland. “It’s troubling to me that anybody would try to downplay what that would mean to them. That’s very troubling to me.”
King noted that it didn’t feel fair for people to “minimize” how Harry, 38, and the Suits alum, 41, reacted to the situation. “I’m just really sorry it happened and very sorry they had to go through it,” she added. “Everybody can have all of their opinions, but I always go back to, ‘How did they feel in that moment?'”
News broke on Wednesday, May 17, that the royal couple were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” in Manhattan after attending the Ms. Foundation’s 2023 Women of Vision Awards one day prior. According to a rep for the Archewell cofounders, “a ring of highly aggressive” photographers followed Harry, Meghan and her mother, Doria Ragland.
“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers,” the spokesperson continued. “While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety. Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all involved.”
The Sussexes proceeded to allegedly “demand” that they be given any photos that were taken during the ordeal from the Backgrid agency, who told the BBC in a statement on Friday, May 19: “In America, as I’m sure you know, property belongs to the owner of it: Third parties cannot just demand it be given to them, as perhaps Kings can do.”
Chris Sanchez, who was on hand as part of the pair’s security detail, described the “very chaotic” scene to CNN on Wednesday, claiming the photographers were “jumping curbs and red lights.” The NYPD, however, provided a different perspective on what occurred.
“The NYPD assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex,” read a statement from the department. “There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging. There were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries or arrests in regard.”
As more details emerged about the incident, Whoopi Goldberg called Harry and Meghan’s experience into question. “Their spokesperson called it a near catastrophic car chase. Others said it wasn’t bad, but I think people in New York know if it was possible to have car chases in New York, we’d all make it to the theater on time,” she claimed on an episode of The View.
The EGOT winner, 67, went on to compare the difference between NYC traffic and that on the West Coast. “I think their spokesperson referenced something that you generally would reference in Los Angeles. That’s where you have chases, that’s where you can move at high speeds,” she said. “I think they were dealing with aggressive paparazzi, but I don’t think it was where, you know, you’re watching on TV … just watching the cars go … because it just doesn’t work in New York.”
Sunny Hostin, meanwhile, reminded her fellow panelists that Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a car chase in Paris. “No one ever claimed that there was a high-speed chase. … If they felt scared, I will grant them that,” she argued. “When you look at a situation like this, where his mother died of a catastrophic car chase and he knows that and [Meghan] knows that, I wouldn’t wanna be in a situation where e-bikes and Sedans are sort of following me aggressively around the city.”
