Advertisement

Kate Middleton's cancer video got new scrutiny this week, but there's a reason for the seemingly red flag

Kate Middleton said she has cancer.
Kate Middleton was diagnosed with cancer after undergoing a "planned abdominal surgery."Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
  • Getty Images has an editor's note on the video of Kate Middleton revealing her cancer diagnosis.

  • The editor's note says the video might not "adhere" to the agency's editorial guidelines.

  • While the note raised eyebrows on social media, Getty said it is standard for third-party content.

Getty Images attached an editor's note to the video of Kate Middleton revealing she has cancer that says the video might not comply with its editorial standards.

Getty — best known for distributing stock photos and videos to news organizations that are paid subscribers — told Business Insider that the same editor's note is attached to any content it receives from a third party. But that didn't stop social-media users from speculating that the editor's note implied that the video was somehow inauthentic.

The Princess of Wales shared her diagnosis in a video shared by Kensington Palace on March 22. The video was shot by BBC Studios at Windsor Castle a week before it was shared publicly, Kensington Palace confirmed to the Washington Post.

Kate's explanation of her health came after months of public speculation about her well-being following a planned abdominal surgery in January. Despite the palace stating in advance that she would recover until Easter, Kate being out of the public eye kicked off rumors on social media about the underlying cause.

Kate Middleton is receiving treatment for cancer.
An image of Kate Middleton from the video where she revealed that she is receiving treatment for cancer.BBC Studios

The speculation intensified after the palace shared a photo of Kate on Mother's Day that multiple media agencies removed from their websites because it was digitally manipulated. Kate later admitted she sometimes edits photographs.

In the video where she revealed her diagnosis, Kate asked for privacy as she undergoes treatment. But some social-media users are still fueling the rumor mill.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Christopher Bouzy, a tech entrepreneur who appeared in Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Netflix docuseries, called for journalists to look into an editor's note Getty included as part of its caption information for the video of Kate discussing her cancer.

The editor's note reads: "This Handout clip was provided by a third-party organization and may not adhere to Getty Images' editorial policy."

The agency didn't indicate what part of its editorial policy the video may not comply with. A Getty representative said in a Monday email to Business Insider that it is the standard editor's note appended to to content received from third-party organizations.

Nevertheless, commenters on Bouzy's post, which has over 3,000 likes, have been debating whether the note indicates anything about the video's authenticity.

Some have been more skeptical than others, saying this is the latest "weird" twist in the recent royal drama.

Others, however, countered that it isn't unusual for Getty to include editor's notes on third-party content.

One user pointed to the editor's note on a Getty video of the recent Baltimore bridge collapse, which is identical to the one on the video of Kate.

"Getty does this when they distribute footage they didn't create themselves, it doesn't mean it's fake or AI generated," the user wrote.

Because the video was shot by BBC Studios, another said that to call the video "fake" would also be accusing the prestigious news network of "conspiring against the public," which would be "utterly ridiculous.

Kensington Palace did not respond to requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider