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'VULNERABLE' KATE
Scandal over Kate’s edited pic proves she’s NOT protected by those closest to her when she needs it, says Royal expert
The author said people want to 'bring her down'
THE scandal over Princess Kate's edited picture suggests she's not being protected by the palace, says one royal expert.
The "manipulated" image has caused a fracas after internet sleuths spotted inconsistencies in the photograph.
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The image, with George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five, was withdrawn by picture agencies late on Sunday over fears it had been doctored.
Conspiracy theories have since flown around online published by trolls and bullies - leading Kate to apologise on Monday.
Royal author Tom Bower has told The Sun that scandal shows the Princess of Wales is not surrounded by wise people to leave the image up to her and Prince William.
Bower said that the image should have been handled with "full support" of professional palace staff.
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He said: "People around the world just want to bring her down because it gives them pleasure."
"And unfortunately the Palace had played it very badly. They should not have persuaded her even to pose for the photograph.
She's undergone the most very serious operation imaginable. She needs a long time to recover
Tom Bower, Royal author
"And then, when she did, they should have got a professional photographer in to make sure there were no hiccups like has now occurred."
Bower said that following her abdominal operation and the mismanagement from Palace staff, Kate is "vulnerable".
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He said: "She's undergone the most very serious operation imaginable. She needs a long time to recover.
"And I fear that she has been under terrible pressure to perform and instead of protecting her, her staff in Kensington Palace, failed to give her the support and protection she needs.
"I think she made an honest mistake and it's not a serious mistake at all. People have just jumped on it."
He added: "The best thing the royal family can now do, and Kate and William is not release any more pictures, and just go back to the important task of getting her fully recovered."
"There are republicans and mischief makers who want to do everything now, to destroy the monarchy, to destroy Britain as it is today, who don't share our values and see Kate as a soft target, an easy target and another target to seek to undermine British values and British tradition."
Editor of The Sun newspaper Victoria Newton says it's time to give the Princess of Wales a break from the backlash to her edited Mother's Day photo
Photo scandal
The scandal erupted on Sunday when an image of the Princess of Wales and her children was revealed to have been doctored.
Edits included a "vanishing" cuff on Charlotte's red cardigan, unaligned zips on Kate's jacket and the Princess's right hand appearing blurry.
The image was pulled by Getty Images, AFP, Reuters and Associated Press who noted "inconsistency in alignment of Princess Charlotte's left hand".
PA news agency said the image, originally posted by Kensington Palace on their social media, was provided "in good faith".
It later emerged the snap had been edited twice and Kate apologised.
In a statement on Instagram, she said: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” Kate said on social media.
“I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.
"I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day."
It was claimed Prince William took the photo in the grounds of Windsor Castle.
Royal experts weigh in
The Sun's photographer Arthur Edwards has said despite editing, the image was still "delightful".
He added: "A bodged attempt at photographic manipulation it may have been, but I still think it’s a delightful image.
"Kate looks radiant and so proud on Mother’s Day, surrounded by her loving kids. It’s full of uplifting love and emotion.
"Kate may have tinkered with other parts of the picture but there’s no faking that."
Rob Jobson, author of Our King: Charles III – The Man and the Monarch Revealed, told The Sun it wasn't Kate's fault.
Mr Jobson said "we can't really blame Kate" but added Kensington Palace should have known it "hasn't passed muster".
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He added: "Now it hasn't passed that muster, if you like, and that's because it was pretty much an amateur job on doing so.
"So really, there needed to be some advisers around doing that job, making sure that in this modern world of modern communications that you cannot tamper with photographs that are being issued as official photographs.
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WHY WERE 'KILL NOTICES' ISSUED?
News agencies ordered a "kill notice" on the picture late Sunday night.
The removal orders were sent after "manipulation" on the image was discovered.
AP's order said the reason for killing the story was: "At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image."
The order then directs those who have used the photo to remove it from all platforms, including social.
Agence France-Press ordered the "mandatory kill" due to an "editorial issue" and directed that the image may no longer be used.
Reuters said the photo “has been withdrawn following a post publication review.”
Getty Images said: “For editorial reasons, please remove the following image(s) from your system and do not use in any manner.”
Getty said its picture desk "identified a problematic image" provided by the palace and removed it from its site "in accordance with our editorial policy."
PA said: "Like other news agencies, PA Media issued the handout image provided by Kensington Palace of the Princess of Wales and her children in good faith yesterday.
"We became aware of concerns about the image and we carried a report about it last night, and made clear that we were seeking urgent clarification about the image from Kensington Palace.
"In the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service."
Each of the news agencies have their own editorial guidelines which govern how they treat images.
AP says that pictures "must always tell the truth" and that it does not alter or manipulate the content of a photograph in any way.
Its guidelines say: "The content of a photograph must not be altered in PhotoShop or by any other means. No element should be digitally added to or subtracted from any photograph."
However, AP says minor adjustments are allowed, they include cropping, colour adjustments, and light adjustments.