Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, made a public appearance post-surgery, sharing a family portrait on Instagram. However, major news agencies removed the image, citing alleged manipulation. In the photo, Kate, recovering from abdominal surgery, smiles with her children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. The controversy surrounding the image’s authenticity prompted press agencies to halt its distribution.
Why was Kate Middleton’s first photo since surgery withdrawn?
Multiple news organizations have withdrawn the photograph featuring Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, following an analysis indicating it “failed to meet their editorial criteria,” Reuters reported. Kensington Palace had released the picture on social media platforms. It was released alongside a message of gratitude from the Duchess, marking her first public comments since undergoing abdominal surgery in January.
The image, distributed on Sunday to commemorate Mother’s Day in Britain, depicts the Duchess of Cambridge seated on a garden chair, dressed in jeans, a sweater, and a dark jacket, accompanied by her three children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5.
A message on X read, “Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months. Wishing everyone a Happy Mother’s Day.” The message was signed ‘C’ for Catherine. The palace released a statement noting that Kate’s husband, Prince William, had taken the photograph “in Windsor earlier this week.” However, concerns regarding potential manipulation prompted several news agencies to retract the image afterward.
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Why was the image taken down?
On Sunday night, several news outlets that had initially posted the photo released by the palace to announce the return of the princess removed it. The image, depicting the 42-year-old smiling at the camera during an outdoor photoshoot with her three children, raised suspicions of manipulation or potential artificial intelligence generation. Observers quickly noticed an anomaly; in the photo, Charlotte appeared to have lost a portion of her hand.
Upon closer examination by internet image specialists and picture experts, a hole was identified in the inside of Charlotte’s left arm, near her wrist. Instead of the expected section of her pink cardigan, there was just empty space before the knitted garment resumed covering her arm.
Major international news agencies, including Associated Press, Getty Images, Reuters, and AFP, promptly removed the picture from their archives, citing concerns of image tampering. Despite this, Kensington Palace has not issued any statements regarding the matter.
In response, the Associated Press reportedly sent a notification to journalists, stating, “After closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image. No replacement photo will be sent.”
Journalist Chris Ship of ITV Royal noted the absence of a comment from Kensington Palace, highlighting the refusal of at least three international picture agencies to distribute the photo.
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