Meghan Markle speaks out against media misinformation about her political views

Since returning to the U.S., Meghan Markle has been outspoken about topics related to the presidential election this November, chiefly, the importance of exercising the right to vote. When looked at plainly, telling people to go vote without backing one party or another is a pretty neutral statement, and yet every time the Duchess of Sussex mentions it (most recently at a Time magazine virtual event), the world reacts as though Markle is salaciously flirting with scandal. The Duchess finds that frustrating—and worries that reliable sources of information are being drowned out by bots and trolls.“If you look back at anything I’ve said, what ends up being inflammatory is people’s interpretation of it. But if you listen to what I actually say it’s not controversial,” she told attendees at Fortune’s online Most Powerful Women conference earlier this week.

 

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"If you listen to what I actually say, it’s not controversial." Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, joined the #FortuneMPW Summit and shared her advice for speaking out on important issues.

A post shared by FORTUNE (@fortunemag) on Sep 29, 2020 at 11:30am PDT

“Actually, some of it is reactive to things that haven’t happened,” she continued. “I think you have to have a sense of humour about [it] even though there is quite a bit of gravity and there could be a lot of danger in a misinterpretation of something that was never there to begin with. But that again is a byproduct of what is happening right now for all of us.”Markle was referring to the misinformation that spreads so quickly (intentionally or not) across social media these days, sometimes even being picked up and reported by traditional media outlets as though it were news.“It’s like we live in the future when you’re talking about bots and trolls and all of these things. It seems so fantastical, but that’s actually the current state of affairs and that is shaping how we interact with each other online and off—and that’s the piece that’s important,” Markle said. “It is not just an isolated experience. It transcends into how you interact with anyone around you.”[video_embed id='2042252']RELATED: Donald Trump slams Harry and Meghan [/video_embed]The solution, suggests the Duchess, is to invest our energy and attention in honest, trusted, and fact-checked news sources. "We have got to all put our stock in something that is true and we need to have reliable media and news sources that are telling us the truth… when you know something is wrong, report it, talk about it," she advised.As for the less-than-accurate reporting that she herself has been the subject of, the Duchess let the words of artist Georgia O’Keefe convey her feelings: "I have already settled it for myself,” quoted Markle, “so flattery and criticism go down the same drain and I am quite free."[video_embed id='-1']BEFORE YOU GO: Dog can't hide guilt after destroying toy taco [/video_embed]