Oprah, Harry, Meghan and the Art of the Interview: What We Learned

On Sunday night, 17 million Americans tuned in live to watch Oprah’s explosive interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan.  

At a time when mass media is more dispersed than ever, Oprah’s interview with the erstwhile royals dominated the news cycle for several days and continues to do so. What drives the global fascination with this story? At its core, it has everything we desire in a narrative:  universal themes of love, family, climax and tension - and of course -  heroes and villains. 

The high-stakes interview can ultimately be seen as a success and reminds us of the power of broadcast media -- the ability to watch something simultaneously in our homes brings a sense of shared connection that streaming simply can’t. The biggest lesson is that there is still a place in our world for earned broadcast media when it comes to shaping your own narrative. It remains one of the best options to convey authenticity and earn credibility. In this video, I sit down with Inkhouse Executive Vice President and Seattle General Manager Kate Riley to talk about the communications strategy behind the interview, whether the Sussexes successfully reframed their narrative for their target audience, and what we all can learn from it.