Meghan McCain and the rest of The View panel discussed Meghan Markle’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey. The daughter of Senator John McCain is used to being in the limelight and constantly making headlines. McCain sympathized with the Duchess of Sussex and the mental health discussion she had during the sit-down interview.
Meghan McCain reacts to Meghan Markle’s Oprah Winfrey interview
McCain’s takeaway from Markle’s bombshell interview was different from the rest of the panel on The View. The political analyst thought about the brutal attacks she gets on social media and the rumors tabloids publish surrounding her future on the show. McCain sympathized with Markle’s struggle being under the spotlight and constantly reading gossip around you.
“One of the other points that I thought was particularly heartbreaking and poignant was her talking about how she wasn’t protected,” McCain said. “And that the leaks internally from Buckingham Palace that were used to, specifically, paint her out to be a villain and make her look bad.”
The daytime talk show host made it clear that she was not comparing any of her life experiences with what Markle lived in Buckingham Palace.
“She experienced something that had egregious racism and happened on a global stage,” she explained. “And she was a complete cultural paradigm shift for the UK, but I do know what it feels like to be on a TV show or a political campaign where people are leaking stories about you with the sole intention to make you look bad.”
Meghan McCain calls for a reassessment
When one person is constantly talked about in the media, knowing some of the articles are not real, it can take a toll on someone’s mental health. McCain sympathized with Markle in that statement of mind one is in when pressure from the media heats up.
“It will do a number on your mental health like you can’t believe,” she said of reading gossip in the media about herself. “It will make you feel isolated [and] it will make you feel paranoid. And I think it’s a specific way that women are abused in the media.”
McCain called out for a reassessment on “what is considered abuse” as she recalled that the Duchess of Sussex was “driven” to have suicidal thoughts.
“I was not, I’ve never been in a place where I’ve contemplated suicide, thank God,” she added. “But I do think when you’re in places (…) and you’re not protected, and people are trafficking in gossip with the intention to make you look bad and hurt your reputation, I can see how they felt like there was no other option for them and their family to put them in a safe space, specifically when she was pregnant.”
Meghan Markle had suicidal thoughts
What McCain was talking about was a moment when Markle revealed she had suicidal thoughts. Markle was constantly talked about in the British tabloids that it took a toll on her mental health.
“I was really ashamed to have to say it at the time and ashamed to have to admit it to Harry, especially because I know how much loss he’s suffered,” Meghan revealed. “But I knew that if I didn’t say that I would do it. I just didn’t want to be alive anymore. And that was a very clear and real and frightening constant thought.”
The Duchess of Sussex reached out for help but she was denied as it would be negatively perceived.
“I said that I needed to go somewhere to get help. And I said that I’d never felt this way before. I need to go somewhere. And I was told that I couldn’t, because it wouldn’t be good for the institution,” she added.
She followed up with human resources, but they were not able to help her either.
“They said, ‘My heart goes out to you because I see how bad it is. But there’s nothing we can do to protect you because you’re not a paid employee,’” she said.
The View airs weekday mornings at 11 a.m. ET and 10 a.m. PT/CT on ABC.
How to get help: In the U.S., call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Or text HOME to 741-741 to speak with a trained crisis counselor at the free Crisis Text Line.
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