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Prince William praised his mother, Diana, the late Princess of Wales, at an award ceremony in her name on Thursday, saying she taught him that everyone "has the potential to give something back."
The event, the 25th anniversary year of the Diana Award, also saw Prince Harry, William's brother, speak with winners via video call, making it one of the few events both princes have taken part in since the Duke of Sussex quit royal duties.
In his speech, William told the audience that he and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, have sought to focus on Diana's legacy through their own work.
"I know that she would have been honored to see a charity in her name doing such inspirational work to uplift young people from all corners of the globe," the Prince of Wales said at the London event, according to Kensington Palace.
"She taught me that everyone has the potential to give something back, that everyone in need deserves a supporting hand in life," he said, adding, "I am so proud to see this belief of my mother's manifested in the amazing young people receiving the Legacy Award tonight."
During the event, the heir to the British throne also met staff and supporters of the award as well as presenting the Legacy Award to this year's winners.
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Harry separately spoke with the 20 Legacy Award recipients via a livestream following the ceremony at London's Science Museum.
"Thank you, very much, for inspiring so many others and at the same time protecting my mother's legacy, I really appreciate that," the duke said during the 30-minute video call.
In addition to the honor, award winners are supported with personal and professional development to amplify their social work and allow them to keep inspiring other young people to do the same.
William's appearance meanwhile comes amid frenzied speculation about the status and wellbeing of his wife, which intensified after Kensington Palace released a family photo featuring her that was later revealed to have been digitally altered.
Read the full story here.
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Analysis: Kate's photo should have quelled the rumors. Editing it has done exactly the opposite. |
The image of a smiling Catherine, Princess of Wales, flanked by her three children, should have put a stop to the explosion of speculation over her health and whereabouts. Instead, it triggered a whole new controversy for Britain's royal family. Multiple global news agencies recalled the image from circulation late Sunday, hours after it had been released by Kensington Palace, citing manipulation concerns.
The photograph was put out on the couple's official social media accounts to mark Mother's Day in the United Kingdom. As is standard practice for official UK royal photographs, it was also released concurrently to news and photo agencies for distribution. After the storm broke, Kate issued a personal apology on Monday, taking responsibility for the confusion she said she had inadvertently caused.
Read more of our analysis on CNN here.
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This undated photo issued on Sunday, March 10, 2024, by Kensington Palace shows Catherine, Princess of Wales, with her children, Prince Louis, left, Prince George and Princess Charlotte. The circled areas appear to show evidence of potential manipulation. Kensington Palace |
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Photo raises concerns about tools that let everyone easily edit images. |
The edited photograph has raised a thorny question: In an age when digital editing tools are more widespread and easier than ever to use, what even is a photo anymore? From camera stabilization to advanced, AI-driven image filters and other tools, it has never been simpler to create stunning, high-quality images using basic consumer hardware. Smartphone makers and app developers increasingly promote this technology as helpful for creators and everyday users. But it also introduces fresh opportunities for even the well-intentioned to misdirect viewers. Read more here.
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Prince William warns of "critical decade" for climate action. |
Earlier this week, Prince William warned that humanity is in a "critical decade" for climate action, as he celebrated the launch of a new "match-making" platform to link up investors and philanthropists with climate innovators in need of funding. At an event in central London organized by his Earthshot Prize, William said: "We are in the critical decade right now. And that is why, to have a real impact, we must focus on supporting and developing as many solutions as possible and scale them at speed." But he added that this was "not an easy task." William launched the Earthshot Prize in 2020. Each year, five winners are given £1 million each (around $1.3 million) to help fund and scale climate solutions. The new match-making tool, called Launchpad, will give investors access to a database of environmental projects which they can fund. At present, the 25 environmental projects on the platform, which is currently in its pilot phase, have funding needs exceeding £400 million (around $510 million). William invited guests to "join our community and invite your peers to be a part of this journey" and thanked "the entire Earthshot Prize team" for their dedication.
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Belinda Jiao/WPA Pool/Getty Images |
Meghan returns to Instagram with new business venture. |
On Thursday, the Duchess of Sussex returned to the social media platform after deactivating her personal account in 2018. The former "Suits" star appears to be launching a new business venture called the American Riviera Orchard. The bio on the new page confirms the account is run by Meghan, adding "Established 2024." Photos showcase the new brand's logo, and an Instagram Stories video of Meghan shows her picking flowers and cooking in a rustic-looking kitchen. Neither the Instagram page nor the American Riviera Orchard's website include details about the brand's offerings -- retail or otherwise. However, a search of the public trademark database yielded information on a brand that matched that of Meghan's new company. Here's what we know so far.
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Suzanne Cardeiro/AFP/Getty Images |
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Speaking of the Sussexes, Harry and Meghan visited Uvalde, Texas on Saturday and met with the family of Irma Garcia, a beloved schoolteacher killed in the Robb Elementary School shooting. Garcia, who had worked as a teacher for 23 years, was one of 21 people -- two teachers and 19 children -- killed by an 18-year-old gunman who walked into the school armed with a rifle and began shooting in May 2022. Two days after her death, her husband Joe Garcia died of a heart attack.
Irma Garcia's nephew, John Martinez, told CNN Harry and Meghan have kept in contact with his family since the massacre, which the US Justice Department and other agencies agree was met with a disastrous law enforcement response. Meghan spoke at the South by Southwest festival in Austin the day before she and Harry made a stop in Uvalde to check in on the family, Martinez said.
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Prince Edward, King Charles' youngest sibling, opened up about the "weight of expectation" he felt taking on the Duke of Edinburgh title following the death of his father, Prince Philip, in 2021. The King gifted the title to his brother a year ago on his 59th birthday. "There's an awful lot of legacy that came with that title and everything that my father had done," Edward told British presenter Alan Titchmarsh in a rare TV interview to mark his 60th birthday on Sunday. Speaking candidly, Edward also paid tribute to his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, saying how "incredibly lucky" they were to have met each other and calling her his "rock."
The praise went both ways. Last Friday, ahead of the duke's birthday celebrations, Sophie made a heartfelt and emotional speech about her "darling husband" during an appearance at the Community Sport and Recreation Awards in Leeds. The duchess, who married Edward in 1999, acknowledged her husband's support of several charities and organizations.
Speaking about her husband's work ethic, Sophie said that "whatever he is doing he gives 150% of himself, and if all else fails he gives any energy he has left out to our exhausting dogs or laying waste to the garden." Sophie wrapped up her speech by calling her husband "the best of fathers" and her "best friend," before the couple embraced to a round of applause and a rendition of "Happy Birthday."
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“In recent weeks, I have been most deeply touched by your wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes for my health and, in return, can only continue to serve you, to the best of my ability, throughout the Commonwealth."
– King Charles III
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The British monarch thanked the public for their well-wishes and called for unity within the Commonwealth in a recorded address for the Westminster Abbey service marking Commonwealth Day on Monday. Watch his full message here. |
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CNN's Rob Picheta and Billy Stockwell contributed to this week's newsletter. |
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