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Photos of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, who had disappeared from public view after abdominal surgery last January and was plagued by conspiracy theories including rumors of serious illness, have been released, but conspiracy theories such as 'body double' and 'photo manipulation' continue unabated.

On the 12th (local time), a person at a London Underground station in the UK is holding a newspaper featuring a photo of Catherine, Princess of Wales.
[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

On the 19th (local time), British media reported that conspiracy theories surrounding the Duchess continue. The British tabloid The Sun published photos and videos taken on the 17th showing the Duchess visiting a farm shop near Adelaide Cottage in Windsor with Prince William. The video, reportedly taken by members of the public present at the scene, showed the Duchess walking and talking with Prince William with a bright expression. The Duchess appeared in casual attire and walked relatively energetically, suggesting that her health had significantly improved. The outlet explained, "This video is published to put an end to weeks of online speculation and unfounded conspiracy theories surrounding Catherine."

However, contrary to the media’s intention, the video was insufficient to quell the conspiracy theories about Catherine. On social media platforms (SNS), posts claiming that the person in the video was not the real Duchess but a professional body double acting as a 'fake Kate' quickly spread. About 24 hours after the video was released, posts asserting that the person in the video was a professional body double rather than the real Duchess garnered 12 million views on X (formerly Twitter) and 11 million views on TikTok.

Despite there being no evidence that the video showing the royal couple walking with shopping bags was artificially edited or manipulated, posts containing such false claims were rapidly shared and went viral. Mariana Spring, BBC’s social media correspondent, pointed out, "Even though SNS companies like TikTok and X have policies against allowing posts containing misinformation that could cause serious harm to individuals or society, such incidents still occur," adding, "These conspiracy theories rampant on social media can damage not only the personal and family reputation of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, but also public trust."

In particular, while ordinary people would expect the Duchess to return to her studies after Easter (March 31), as announced by the royal family, some have raised the body double theory, claiming that Catherine "looks too healthy," according to British media. Some conspiracy theorists even expressed suspicion that the rustic decorations outside the farm shop indicated the video was filmed at Christmas. Jack Royston, Newsweek’s royal correspondent, criticized, "Even if the Duchess underwent a DNA test, people would not believe it was her."

However, The Telegraph suggested that in the face of persistent online conspiracy theories, the royal family needs to reconsider its public relations strategy suitable for the internet age. Just as the British royal family had to adapt to the emergence of radio and television and the explosive spread of paparazzi culture targeting celebrities in the 1980s and 1990s, a new approach to publicity is necessary in the SNS era. The Daily Mail also noted, "Kate’s advisers seem unable to decide what course of action to take regarding the conspiracy theories," and warned, "If information continues to be controlled in this way, the relationship between the royal family and the public will end badly."

Earlier, the royal family announced that the Duchess underwent scheduled abdominal surgery on January 17 and would be hospitalized for about two weeks, stating she would not return to official duties until Easter (March 31). After the Duchess, who had appeared publicly soon after childbirth, did not reveal her condition following surgery, various conspiracy theories including rumors of serious illness spread. The rumors escalated when the British Army posted that the Duchess would attend the military division ceremony in early June but later deleted the post. As a result, on the 10th, the couple shared a photo on their official X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram accounts showing the Duchess smiling with their three children as a 'status update,' but controversy grew as accusations of photo manipulation arose, leading major foreign media to withdraw the photo publication.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.