If you have already watched all six episodes of Harry & Meghan on Netflix, you will have heard about a guy named Jason who causes a great deal of trouble in Meghan Markle’s lawsuit against the Mail on Sunday. Markle filed a lawsuit against the British tabloid for stealing and publishing a private letter she had sent to her estranged father. In Episode 6, attorney Jenny Afia recounts that just before they were to appear before the Court of Appeals, a senior member of The Duke of Cambridge’s team volunteered an unnecessary witness statement. Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, is, of course, the current Prince of Wales. The senior member was Jason Knauf, whose witness statement suggested Markle was aware that her private letter could be disclosed. Therefore, it was public and the Mail on Sunday was free of liability.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are troubled by Jason Knauf’s involvement in the issue because he would not have testified without the approval of his then-boss and current colleague, Prince William. Markle delivers the most scathing remark of the entire series by raising her hands and shouting, “It’s your brother. It’s so clear, but I won’t say anything about your brother.”
Knauf’s testimony did not ultimately destroy Markle’s case. In December 2021, she won her lawsuit against Associated Newspapers Limited, the parent company of the Mail on Sunday. But who is Jason Knauf exactly? What was his proximity to Meghan Markle? Why would he voluntarily enter the lawsuit? Is there a chance he intended to assist? And, well, has he previously attempted to sink Meghan Markle?
Here’s everything you need to know about Harry & Meghan’s mysterious Jason Knauf…
In 2018, Jason Knauf was still Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle’s Communications Secretary.
Jason Knauf is a former communications secretary for Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Prince William, and Kate Middleton. He was born in Texas and reared in Virginia. Emily McCullar of Texas Monthly states that he entered the royal system after completing college in New Zealand, earning a master’s degree from the London School of Economics, and working in communications for the Royal Treasury. He joined the “Royal Household” in 2015.
In 2018, Knauf served as “Fab Four” communications secretary. As The Duke and Duchess of Sussex note in Harry & Meghan, Prince Harry and his brother initially shared a small communications team (in the hopes they would keep a united front). After Prince William wed Kate Middleton, Prince Harry continued to work alongside them. The arrangement was grandfathered in for Meghan Markle.
Due to his position, Knauf was tasked with handling public relations for four incredibly popular senior members of the royal family. It appears that he did not get along with Markle. In 2018, Knauf was the employee who submitted an anonymous complaint to HR regarding Markle’s alleged “bullying.” As Harry & Meghan demonstrates, this allegation was cleverly released prior to her 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, and Markle believes it was a fabrication.
According to rumors, Knauf briefly departed the Palace, but in 2019 he returned and became Prince William’s assistant. In 2021, he resigned to become the Chief Executive Officer of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Royal Foundation. Now he serves on the board of The Earthshot Prize, Prince William’s personal charitable initiative. Remember that award ceremony for ideas to preserve the earth that just had a ritzy reception at Fenway Park? (That strangely many celebrities traveled in for, but none of the winners attended in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint?) Jason Knauf has remained quite close with Prince William until the present day.
Knauf’s decision to testify against Meghan Markle in 2021 seemed to indicate to some, including Prince Harry, Meghan, and their friends, that Prince William wanted Meghan to lose her lawsuit.
Harry & Meghan concludes with a postscript in which Knauf executives refute the accusation.
“These assertions are completely wrong. Both The Duchess of Sussex and Associated Newspapers requested that Mr. Knauf submit testimony.
Counsel informed him that evidence in his possession could be important, and he then delivered it to the court while remaining impartial.”
The attorneys representing Meghan Markle then respond as follows:
“The legal team for the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan, contests this claim. Mr. Knauf was not asked by The Duchess or her team to make a witness statement.
Nor do her attorneys feel that Mr. Knauf remained ‘impartial’ by delivering a witness testimony upon which Associated Newspapers relied while he was employed by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.”
It’s up to you what you think, but the fact that Jason Knauf remains tightly associated with Prince William and has put himself in a position to cause Meghan Markle sorrow not once, but twice, paints a quite compelling image.
»Who is Jason Knauf, the Former Royal Staffer Who Constantly Causes Drama for “Harry and Meghan”?«