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After having been out of the public eye since mid-January, Kate Middleton has fueled new speculation about her whereabouts when Kensington Palace issued a family photo for UK Mother\u2019s Day on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Kensington Palace posted the photograph of the Princess of Wales with her three children (Prince George, 10; Princess Charlotte, 8; and Prince Louis, 5). This was the first photo she had released of herself and her family since undergoing surgery in January. The photo, posted on X<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>, was also issued by the major news wire services.<\/p>\n But they all quickly yanked the image, issuing \u201ckill notices\u201d to its customers.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAP retracted it because closer inspection revealed the source had manipulated the image in a way that did not meet AP\u2019s photo standards,\u201d the Associated Press noted<\/a>. \u201cFor instance, the photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte\u2019s left hand.\u201d Getty Images, AFP and Reuters also pulled the image, noting the same left-hand alignment.\u00a0<\/p>\n While the AP didn\u2019t call it AI manipulation, it\u2019s caused concern among public relations, communications, and journalism professionals about the power this nascent technology can have.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn today\u2019s digital era where AI can seamlessly manipulate visuals, the scrutiny faced by Kate Middleton\u2019s image just highlights the complexities of maintaining authenticity and credibility in the media and what people or organizations put out to the world under scrutiny,\u201d Rebecca May, founder of London-based public relations firm RM Publicity<\/a>, tells Fortune<\/em>. It also \u201csignals a turning point in the wider public doubting what they see.\u201d<\/p>\n Especially coming from an institution recognized worldwide and \u201ctrusted family, it naturally raises concerns in the future of trusting authoritative organizations and institutions,\u201d May says.<\/p>\n On Monday, Britain\u2019s national news agency, PA, said it was also withdrawing the photo. PA said it had asked Kensington Palace for clarification about the image and \u201cin the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service.\u201d<\/p>\n On closer inspection, Princess Charlotte\u2019s left hand appears to jut out of her sleeve at an unnatural angle. Online commentators also noted some potential manipulation around the children\u2019s hair and hands, as well as Kate\u2019s lack of wedding and engagement rings.\u00a0<\/p>\n Shortly after, Kate, 42, personally apologized for the image, saying in a statement<\/a>, \u201clike many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Kensington Palace said it would not release the unedited photograph, according to the AP<\/a>.<\/p>\n The botched and supposed Photoshop job by Kate has lit a fire under photo editors amateur to professional, leading them to call out the many recognizable issues with the photo. Many have pointed out that the foliage on the trees isn\u2019t consistent with the current climate in Britain, there aren\u2019t shadows or reflections indicative of a real photo, one of Kate\u2019s hands is blurry, her legs appear to be too short to make sense proportionately\u2026 the list goes on. There was a meme tsnuami making fun of the fact that Kate had supposedly Photoshopped the photo\u2014with even the Dublin Airport jumping in on the fun.\u00a0<\/p>\n Our new social media intern Kate did a great job capturing Cillian Murphy’s return to Dublin Airport this morning after his Oscars success. pic.twitter.com\/M9rNgBEo0u<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) March 11, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Many other spectators believe that the photo was AI-generated, although there\u2019s currently no way to confirm that\u2014especially since the palace won\u2019t talk and Kate announced herself that she had been the one to do the \u201cediting.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Either way, photo manipulation is a big deal in the public relations, communications, and journalism industries\u2014and it only makes people fearful of where AI and photo manipulation could go in the future. The AP doesn\u2019t just kill photos or stories for no reason.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSo just to be clear here\u2014in the public relations industry, a \u2018kill notification\u2019 is the coup de gr\u00e2ce of the media circuit,\u201d journalist Tenille Clarke posted on X<\/a>. \u201cFor AP to issue this update, means that something is TERRIBLY wrong. Think of it as a Cat. 5 cyclone. This is literally a death blow to any press source.\u201d<\/p>\n On Monday, The Daily Mail <\/em>released a photo<\/a> of Kate and William in the car just hours after she had issued her public apology for the \u201cconfusion\u201d about the Mother\u2019s Day photo. William was on the way to Westminster Abbey for the annual Commonwealth Day service, but Kate was heading to a \u201cprivate appointment,\u201d according to The Daily Mail<\/em>. <\/p>\n But the photographic debacle on Sunday only fueled rumors about Kate\u2019s whereabouts. Since Kensington Palace issued a statement in mid-January that the princess would be on leave due to \u201cplanned abdominal surgery<\/a>\u201d until after Easter (the last weekend of March), controversies about Kate\u2019s whereabouts have swirled around the internet and social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n Although the palace set expectations that it would \u201conly provide updates on Her Royal Highness\u2019 progress when there is significant new information to share,\u201d that didn\u2019t satisfy her constituents and other curious folks around the world. Conspiracy theories<\/a> have been plentiful. About a week ago, a different photo who appeared to be Kate surfaced, albeit a very blurry one taken of her wearing sunglasses in a car with her mother, Carole Middleton. There was also unproven controversy<\/a> about whether the woman with uncanny likeness to Kate was even her.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s led royalists, fans, and haters alike to also draw comparisons to Princess Diana<\/a>\u2019s relationship with the press and her untimely death. Not only has Kate disappeared from the public eye, but there are other rumors about her relationship with William. <\/p>\n The Kate Middleton conspiracy theories also started up in conjunction with several other tragic events and unfortunate happenings within the royal family. On Feb. 5, Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles had been diagnosed with prostate cancer during a recent hospital procedure for \u201cbenign prostate enlargement.\u201d Interestingly enough, Charles chose to be forthright about his diagnosis while Kensington Palace has been reluctant to share the details of Kate\u2019s abdominal surgery.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHis Majesty has chosen to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer,\u201d Buckingham Palance said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n Also in late February, Thomas Kingston, a British financier, former boyfriend of Kate\u2019s sister Pippa Middleton, and former husband of Lady Gabriella (the daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent), died of a gunshot wound to the head<\/a> at the age of 45. <\/p>\n So far, the royal family\u2019s attempts to address the concerns of a curious public have backfired and let to even more speculation. <\/p>\n<\/div>\nIssues with the released image<\/h2>\n
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Where is Kate Middleton?<\/h2>\n
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