Meghan Markle is at the center of an ever-growing controversy that has left many fans and critics of the Duchess of Sussex questioning the validity of her podcast “Archetypes.”
Recent reports allege Markle faked her own podcast and never conducted interviews for her podcast guests. They suggest that Markle’s staff conducted the interviews and clipped in the audio of her asking questions prior to streaming.
Podnews further reported that Markle had no direct involvement in the interviews and that podcasts had been discontinued once Spotify and Archewell decided to part ways with Markle.
Speculation of Markle’s involvement began circulating in August when writer Allison Yarrow promoted her segment on the show in a post to her account with a photograph of her standing in front of Gimlet Media, a well-known audio production house which is not the home of Markle’s podcast.
“Cheers to producer @farrahsafari (an excellent interviewer) and the folks at @Gimlet @spotify who get it done!” Yarrow wrote to her caption.
The Daily Mail, noticing the discrepancy, published an article in November suggesting Markle’s comments were prerecorded and inserted into the podcast audio.
The allegations have sparked a fierce debate on social media as many users take to discuss the debacle. The majority of those commenting believe Markle should have been more forthcoming about her lack of involvement in the podcast and about what podcasts interviewees should expect when they appear on “Archetypes.”
The lack of transparency regarding the situation has left those critical of the Duchess of Sussex very skeptical of the podcast and her reliability in the future. This in turn has caused many to side with the skeptics and agree that Markle was misleading in her promotion of “Archetypes.”
As of now, the Duchess has yet to comment on the matter. And, as of now, it is unclear if Markle has any role in the podcast or if this incident has caused Spotify to back away from the partnership. We will keep you updated as this story develops.