Meghan Markle Defended After Being Branded Narcissist: 'Proves Her Point'

Meghan Markle's supporters jumped to her defense Tuesday after amagazine article lumped the Duchess of Sussex in with names like Donald Trump, Elon Musk and Kanye West.

Markle, who is married to Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has been the subject of criticism and praise this year, with some of the criticism coming in advance of and after Markle's documentary with Prince Harry called Meghan & Harry released on Netflix. POLITICO Magazine published an opinion piece titled 2022 Is the Year We All Finally Got Tired of Narcissists by contributing writer Joanna Weiss on Monday.

The image associated with the article added Markle to a list of names that included Musk, Tesla CEO and new owner of Twitter; Sam Bankman-Fried, who recently was charged with fraud; West, a hip-hop artist who announced a 2024 presidential run and has made antisemitic remarks on social media; Elizabeth Holmes, an entrepreneur sentenced to prison for fraud; and Trump, former president and 2024 presidential candidate.

"All of them used attention as currency and ego as fuel, and were rewarded, for a time, with what they craved," Weiss wrote. "We're drawn to people who love themselves."

It didn't take long for Markle's supporters to leap to her defense after seeing the article. Many criticized the article as unfairly targeting Markle because of her race and called the piece "irresponsible."

"Listing Meghan Markle in the same category of narcissist as Elon Musk and Donald Trump is a wildly irresponsible and truly white choice," tweeted Rebecca Carroll, a writer and cultural critic.

"Donald Trump = Stole classified materials. Elizabeth Holmes = Convicted fraudster. Sam Bankman-Fried = Stole Billions. Kanye West = Antisemite. Elon Musk = Fired employees and suspended journalists on a whim. Meghan Markle = Defended herself while being Black," entrepreneur and engineer Christopher Bouzy tweeted.

In a later tweet, Bouzy described the hate for Markle as "palpable."

"A woman of color protecting her family and defending herself isn't narcissism; it's survival," he tweeted before tagging Weiss and Politico, saying both should apologize for the "garbage take."

POLITICO Vice President of Marketing & Communications Brad Dayspring told Newsweek that the magazine encourages "diversity of thought" when it publishes opinion pieces.

"The purpose of opinion writing and commentary is to engage readers and provoke thought. The writer shares a belief, the reader reacts with their own—sometimes agreement, sometimes not," he said in an email. "Regardless, diversity of thought is not only welcome, but encouraged. That's how opinions are fostered, sharpened, and occasionally changed or persuaded."

For years, the word "narcissist" has inaccurately been used to describe someone acting in a self-centered way, but narcissism is a psychological diagnosis that affects 5 percent of people or less, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Markle's supporters felt the diagnosis inaccurately labeled the Duchess of Sussex and criticized Weiss for her word choice.

"A Black woman standing up for herself does not equal 'narcissist,'" author Kirsten Powers tweeted. "The unhinged hatred directed at her really does kind of prove her point doesn't it."

In her piece, Weiss singled out Markle and Prince Harry at the beginning of the article and wrote negatively about the couple for several paragraphs before moving on to the other people she labeled narcissists. Weiss said her sympathy for the couple turned to irritation after watching Harry and Meghan on Netflix. She went on to write that the couple stands apart from people showcasing self-love and present themselves as "grandiose narcissists."

"They believe they're the absolute best at what they do," she wrote. "They go to great lengths to protect and defend their egos. They strive to be unique and promote themselves energetically. That's the story, in a nutshell, of Harry and Meghan."

The piece caused an uproar on Twitter after it was published.

"Looks like someone forgot we all have a bit of narcissism in us BUT ALSO how many of us have done even half as much philanthropy and volunteer work? so embarrassing. she doesn't belong on this," Today reporter Alex Portée tweeted.

Some Twitter users even shared the article with the hashtag #JoannaWeissIsARacist and superimposed the writer's face over Markle's in the illustration, implying she was a narcissist instead of Markle.

Update 12/28/22, 9:33 a.m. ET: This story was updated with comment from Brad Dayspring.