Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The French newspaper Le Monde said today its November 11 edition was not delivered to news stands across Britain as it carried an article about rumours of a sex scandal involving Prince Charles.
Jean-Pierre Langellier, the London correspondent for Le Monde who wrote the article in question, said the ‘‘decision, of a preventive nature’’ was taken by distributors fearful of legal action over the piece.
The allegations have been repeated outside Britain, and on Sunday a newspaper in Scotland, which enjoys a different legal system than England and Wales, reported the claims.
London-based newspapers have only gone so far as to reveal that the allegations concern an incident of a sexual nature, and that Charles was in some way involved.
Meanwhile, Britain’s Prince Charles huddled with his inner circle yesterday to try to put a lid on the media frenzy over the rumours.
The heir to the British throne was reported to be at his Highgrove home talking damage control. His spokesman at Clarence House sought to play down the sense of crisis enveloping the royal family once again.
‘‘The Prince is holding meetings as he usually does,’’ he said. The Times newspaper said Charles was consulting his associates. Charles is at the centre of a furore triggered by a high court injunction barring the British press from reporting allegations, which originated from a former royal valet.
The article in today’s edition of Le Monde, which hit French news kiosks yesterday, recounted the various twists and turns in the current scandal.
