this post was submitted on 11 Mar 2024
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The Associated Press, Reuters, and Agence France-Presse all released kill notifications to media outlets over the photo — released by Kensington Palace on Sunday — announcing that they would no longer be distributing the image.

The AP wrote, "it appears that the source has manipulated the image." AFP cited an "editorial issue," while Reuters said the photo was withdrawn after a "post-publication review."

Following its release, social media was abuzz with sleuths questioning whether the photo was photoshopped or AI-generated. Many were focused on the cuff of Princess Charlotte's pink cardigan, which appears to disappear in the photo.

Other users pointed out that Middleton was not wearing her wedding ring.

"no rings, kids all have their fingers crossed, weird blurring on charlotte's cuffs, leaves on the trees despite it being early mach - i'm sorry but they're just asking for us to go full katespiracy at this point," one user on X wrote.

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[–] [email protected] 89 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Okay, I thought the conspiracy theories were kinda silly at first. But now, even though I don't care about Kate Middleton or any of the royal family, I gotta admit I'm kinda curious now.

[–] [email protected] 48 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (8 children)

There is nothing to the conspiracy theories, she's had abdominal surgery and wants to keep her health problems private. The UK press are intrusive and horrible, and the social media conspiracy theories are just gossiping.

There are plenty of operations that would need a couple weeks of hospital recovery and about 6 weeks recovery at hone (Easter is only the end of March). People speculating are ignorant about basic medical matters and can't let someone have their privacy. There is no conspiracy.

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 8 months ago

Yeah, this is getting pretty weird.

[–] [email protected] 49 points 8 months ago (1 children)

How are they so bad at this?!

[–] [email protected] 40 points 8 months ago (1 children)

It's so bad it's like they're trying to inflate the attention on the royal family. I can't think of what they would gain from this type of attention, though... Other than to keep them relevant in the minds of the public and media, in the cheapest way possible?

[–] [email protected] 40 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (5 children)

I think they were trying to shut down the rumour mill as to why Kate hasn't been seen in months. Probably figured releasing a "photo" would do the trick. Little did they know there's a worldwide network of researchers checking photos for just this kind of thing.

Palace staff f'ed up.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

"What do me mean what can we do? Just hire a photoshop expert from fiver.com. Do I have to do everything for you?"

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[–] [email protected] 39 points 8 months ago (1 children)

What's happening? I don't keep up on British conspiracy theories.

[–] [email protected] 62 points 8 months ago (1 children)

From reading the article, she hasn't been seen since Christmas and there were theories that she was in a coma or something.

Then a photo of her gets finally released, and it appears to be digitally pieced together.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago

The kids have also not been seen afaik and are not attending school.

[–] [email protected] 37 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (8 children)

Look at the boys hand on the left too.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I’ve seen Dune 2, this is just him telling the housekeeper to bring more biscuits.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago (1 children)

the voice BRING ME MORE TEA

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I'm going to be the pedantic person I guess.

The voice isn't really the same as the force, making people do something. It's a kind of emotional manipulation. The Bene Gesserit are highly in tune with emotions, and they have learned to examine people and say things in a way that they can't refuse. Jessica (and Paul to an extent) in the movie just have magic powers it seems, but the others it's more clear what's going on. Like when Paul is doing his speech to turn the Fremen into his followers, he's reading them emotionally and manipulating them. (Paul is also a Mentat in the books, so he's really good with logic too and that plays a role as well.)

Sorry to be the book person. I hope this was interesting enough to justify ruining the joke.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Complete other aside, but is that where mentats in Fallout get their name? Its just a Dune reference? Neat.

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[–] [email protected] 41 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Little over-energetic kids do weird finger stuff sometimes when trying to hold still. But the older two also, it does look like something kids might do to protest a sham picture that lies about their mum. The lack of a wedding ring also feels significant.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 8 months ago (8 children)

I'm an adult and I still do weird stuff with my fingers. I absolutely cross my fingers like that.

conspiracy theorists gonna conspiracy I guess

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (2 children)

It is more subtle, but it looks like both of the other two children are crossing fingers as well. The boy in the middle seems to possibly be crossing his middle and ring fingers on his left hand and the girl is definitely crossing the same two fingers on her right hand. And Kate's blurry hand on the kid's waist makes little sense when nothing around it is motion blurred, unless, I guess, maybe she was yanking it away at the moment the photo was taken? But it seems like if that was the case the wrinkle/ fold in his shirt right in front of her hand would be moving too and not be as crisp as it is.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago

The common denominator is the ring finger, and she's not wearing her ring.

If I may put on mg tinfoil hat for a moment, those kids are obviously trying to tell everyone the person in the photo is not their mother, and is in fact a cloud person from Alpha Centauri.

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[–] [email protected] 32 points 8 months ago (2 children)

This is Business Insider's front page right now including this story on the right (which it is also complaining about on the left). It's really weird. Who exactly are they trying to appeal to, bankers who read the National Inquirer?

[–] [email protected] 18 points 8 months ago (1 children)

What a fucking tabloid mess.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 8 months ago (3 children)

But a really weird one, right?

Like you wouldn't expect a tabloid to have a bunch of financial news and you wouldn't expect a financial news source to have a bunch of tabloid stuff.

They're a big company. They must have market research people. So what is the demographic they've found that makes this make sense?

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

Perhaps the customers are CEOs of AI companies who might want to sell the royals better deepfake technology?

[–] [email protected] 30 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

If you look at the picture the photo shopping is fairly obvious, ignoring all the other nonsense being thrown in.

The guardian has a zoomed up view of the area and it's pretty crude photoshopping. It's more than blurring.

I get why news agencies are withdrawing it when they have policies against manipulation beyond anything simple like removing dust specks.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I hate when there are leaves on the tres in early mach.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Definitely won't last through Mach 3

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Maybe it’s real, maybe it’s not, photography/photoshop etc aren’t my thing but maybe she really did have surgery not that long ago and wants to be left alone while she recovers? I feel like if she was dead we would know because that would be its own huge thing, so, just let the poor woman deal with whatever it is she’s going through.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 8 months ago (1 children)

They take quite a lot of money from the British public (taxes, not donations. They = British royal family). Part of the cost of that is being in the public eye. If she really thought royals deserved privacy I'm sure she would have said something when Meghan was being destroyed by the media.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ellievhall/meghan-markle-kate-middleton-double-standards-royal

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

Yeah I get that but at the end of the day she’s still just human. And what they did to Meghan was very fucked up and she most definitely didn’t deserve it.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 8 months ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 28 points 8 months ago (2 children)

She's the younger sibling of Kate Upton

[–] [email protected] 12 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I’m just waiting to see what Kate Lowerton has to say about all this.

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 8 months ago
[–] [email protected] 12 points 8 months ago

Unimportant British royal who will eventually be queen if the stories have no weight

[–] [email protected] 16 points 8 months ago

Oh no! Anyway....

[–] [email protected] 16 points 8 months ago

I looked at this and at first it looked fine, then I started seeing one uncanny after another. Wtf

[–] [email protected] 13 points 8 months ago

Another distraction from the fact that capitalism is destroying the planet.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 8 months ago (1 children)

What's wrong with them shopping an image?

Like what if the image they wanted to share was an oil painting? Would that be wrong? Even if being a painting meant that it may not in fact be an accurate portrayal?

[–] [email protected] 40 points 8 months ago (8 children)

It has been photoshopped more than these agencies allow, and the reason people are interested is because there is a lot of speculation right now about where Kate Middleton actually is.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 8 months ago

I think more specifically they're OK with edited images, but it must be declared that the image was edited. The assumption without that declaration is that the image is not edited, aside from composition changes perhaps (cropping, lighting, noise reduction etc).

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 8 months ago

This article would've made some great science fiction 20 or so years ago.

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