Prince Harry of Wales, was stationed in the southern Helmand province of Afghanistan from December 2007 to March 2008. Most people knew nothing of this until the story was leaked in late February. His service was to last until April but when the word got out, he was rushed home. The British media struck a deal with the military when Harry went to war. They kept all information on the subject to themselves because they were promised interviews and first hand photos of him in action.
The whole purpose of the media; journalists, newspapers, news broadcasters, news radio stations; is to keep the people informed. In Bill Kovach & Tom Rosenstiel's The Elements of Journalism, the first principle that all journalists go by is "Journalism's first obligation is to the truth." The second is, "It's first loyalty is to citizens." What the British press did by keeping the story a secret, until someone leaked it, does not follow those principles.
Prince Harry is a public figure. His personal life has never been hidden. It can be said that keeping the story may have kept him safe, but his safety isn't the media's concern. Not to sound cold but the citizens should come before a Prince's whim to serve in secrecy knowing that he can endanger his comrades. That would have made for a great story. The story that we have now is, Prince Harry the hero who fought along British citiens as an equal. That sounds like the press did his image a service and that is not their job. They are hired to tell the citizens the truth and all of it.
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