A Princely Price To Pay
In my last post, I wrote about how Prince Andrew’s 2019 BBC interview with Emily Maitlis always makes me feel better when the job search drags me down. He managed to set a world record for self-destruction without anyone’s help. But there’s another side to that story—the way Emily Maitlis herself was treated afterward.
Maitlis had been with the BBC since 2005, working her way up to become lead presenter on Newsnight in 2018. By the time she sat down across from Andrew, she was one of the most respected journalists in the country. After the interview aired, she won Interview of the Year and Scoop of the Year at the 2020 RTS Television Journalism Awards. It was a masterclass in preparation and composure.
And yet, what happened next was telling. Instead of the full spotlight remaining on Andrew’s arrogance, excuses, and bizarre “Pizza Express” defense, the narrative shifted. Commentators framed Maitlis as the woman who “brought down a prince.” Politicians and public figures quietly avoided her, worried about being “Prince Andrew’d.” What should have been her crowning professional moment became a cautionary tale—because she had the nerve to ask questions a powerful man couldn’t answer. She resigned from the BBC a couple of years later.
This is a pattern we’ve seen over and over again. Women are blamed not just for their own actions, but for exposing the failures of men:
Anita Hill told the truth about Clarence Thomas and became the problem, not him.
Monica Lewinsky was branded a national scandal while Bill Clinton kept the presidency.
Sherron Watkins exposed Enron’s rot and was treated with suspicion, while the men who engineered the collapse cashed out.
It’s the double burden: first, being forced to stand next to the fire, and then being accused of striking the match.
The irony is staggering. Prince Andrew has never had to sit for a job interview in his life. Emily Maitlis, meanwhile, prepared meticulously for hers with him—and was punished for doing it too well.
That is the lesson. In the aftermath, Andrew could retreat to his palace. Maitlis was left to carry the narrative that she had toppled a royal, when all she had done was her job. The man’s behavior was indefensible, but the woman was made responsible for its consequences.