Editing Diana, Princess of Wales (section)

===Public image===
[[File:Lady Diana Madame Tussauds.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Wax statue of Diana at [[Madame Tussauds]] in London]]
Diana remains one of the most popular members of the royal family throughout history, and she continues to influence the younger generations of royals.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/princess-diana-remains-uks-most-beloved-royal/|title=Princess Diana remains UK's most beloved royal|work=CBS News|date=20 August 2012|accessdate=27 April 2021|archive-date=27 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427191054/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/princess-diana-remains-uks-most-beloved-royal/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Telegraph-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/diana/8597118/We-will-never-forget-how-Princess-Diana-made-us-feel.html|title=We will never forget how Princess Diana made us feel|work=The Telegraph|date=25 June 2011|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Patrick|last=Jephson|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163505/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/diana/8597118/We-will-never-forget-how-Princess-Diana-made-us-feel.html|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref name="Legacy-Influence"/> She was a major presence on the world stage from her engagement to Charles until her death, and was often described as the "world's most photographed woman".<ref name="robinson"/><ref>{{cite journal|last=Faulkner|first=Larissa J.|title=Shades of Discipline: Princess Diana, The U.S. Media, and Whiteness|journal=Iowa Journal of Cultural Studies|year=1997|volume=16|issue=1|pages=16–31|url=https://pubs.lib.uiowa.edu/ijcs/article/29839/galley/138184/view/|access-date=15 November 2022|doi=10.17077/2168-569X.1224|s2cid=190075942|doi-access=free|archive-date=15 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221115195707/https://pubs.lib.uiowa.edu/ijcs/article/29839/galley/138184/view/|url-status=live}}</ref> She was noted for her compassion, style, charisma, and high-profile charity work, as well as her ill-fated marriage.{{sfn|Bradford|2006|pp=307–308}}<ref name="Guardian-Legacy"/><ref name=ualberta>{{cite web|url=https://sites.ualberta.ca/~publicas/folio/35/03/05.HTM|title=The power of Diana's charisma|last=Ciccocioppo|first=Lucianna|work=University of Alberta|date=26 September 1997|access-date=24 May 2020|url-status=live|archive-date=24 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200524120903/https://sites.ualberta.ca/~publicas/folio/35/03/05.HTM}}</ref> Biographer Sarah Bradford commented, "The only cure for her suffering would have been the love of the Prince of Wales ... the way in which he consistently denigrated her reduced her to despair."{{sfn|Bradford|2006|p=189}} Despite all the marital issues and scandals, Diana continued to enjoy a high level of popularity in the polls while her husband was suffering from low levels of public approval.<ref name="robinson"/> Diana's former private secretary Patrick Jephson described her as an organised and hardworking person, and pointed out Charles was not able to "reconcile with his wife's extraordinary popularity",<ref name="Independent-Secretary">{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.mk/articles/36006/Patrick+Jephson+Prince+Charles+Was+Unable+to+Reconcile+with+Princess+Diana's+Extraordinary+Popularity|title=Patrick Jephson: Prince Charles Was Unable to Reconcile with Princess Diana's Extraordinary Popularity|work=The Independent|date=31 August 2016|access-date=2 February 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170221010930/http://www.independent.mk/articles/36006/Patrick+Jephson+Prince+Charles+Was+Unable+to+Reconcile+with+Princess+Diana%27s+Extraordinary+Popularity|archive-date=21 February 2017}}</ref> a viewpoint supported by the biographer Tina Brown.<ref name="ABCN-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/princess-dianas-life-legacy/story?id=3534198|title=Princess Diana's Life and Legacy|work=ABC News|date=29 August 2007|access-date=2 February 2017|first1=Cynthia|last1=McFadden|first2=Melinda|last2=Arons|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204002941/https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/princess-dianas-life-legacy/story?id=3534198|archive-date=4 February 2017}}</ref> He also said she was a tough boss who was "equally quick to appreciate hard work" but could also be defiant "if she felt she had been the victim of injustice".<ref name="Independent-Secretary"/> Diana's mother also defined her as a "loving" figure who could occasionally be "tempestuous".<ref name="Frances-Comments"/> She was often described as a devoted mother to her children,<ref name="robinson"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/rebel-royal-mum-dianas-legacy-parent/story?id=19241646|title='Rebel Royal Mum': Diana's Legacy as Parent|work=NBC News|date=26 May 2013|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Rob|last=Wallace|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204003212/https://abcnews.go.com/International/rebel-royal-mum-dianas-legacy-parent/story?id=19241646|archive-date=4 February 2017}}</ref> who are believed to be influenced by her personality and way of life.<ref name="reganbbc">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-41018143|title=Diana's embrace: The legacy she left her sons|work=BBC News|first=Alex|last=Regan|date=31 August 2017|access-date=3 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180223181355/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-41018143|archive-date=23 February 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the early years, Diana was often noted for her shy nature.<ref name="Telegraph-Legacy"/><ref name="NBC-Legacy">{{cite news|url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20213789/ns/world_news-diana_10_years_later/t/why-princess-diana-still-fascinates-us/|title=Why Princess Diana still fascinates us|work=NBC News|date=28 August 2007|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Chris|last=Hampson|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204003119/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20213789/ns/world_news-diana_10_years_later/t/why-princess-diana-still-fascinates-us/|archive-date=4 February 2017}}</ref> Journalist [[Michael White (journalist)|Michael White]] perceived her as being "smart", "shrewd and funny".<ref name="Legacy-Influence"/> Those who communicated with her closely described her as a person who was led by "her heart".<ref name="robinson"/> In an article for ''The Guardian'', [[Monica Ali]] believed that, despite being inexperienced and uneducated, Diana could handle the expectations of the royal family and overcome the difficulties and sufferings of her marital life. Ali also believed that she "had a lasting influence on the public discourse, particularly in matters of mental health" by discussing her eating disorder publicly.<ref name="Guardian-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2011/mar/30/diana-princess-wales-royal-rebel-legacy|title=Royal rebel: the legacy of Diana|work=The Guardian|date=30 March 2011|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Monica|last=Ali|author-link=Monica Ali|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203172827/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2011/mar/30/diana-princess-wales-royal-rebel-legacy|archive-date=3 February 2017}}</ref> According to Tina Brown, in her early years Diana possessed a "passive power", a quality that in her opinion she shared with the Queen Mother and a trait that would enable her to instinctively use her appeal to achieve her goals.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2013/09/princess-diana-prince-charles-early-marriage|title=The Mouse That Roared|magazine=Vanity Fair|first=Tina|last=Brown|date=October 1985|access-date=2 December 2020}}</ref>

Diana was known for her encounters with sick and dying patients, and the poor and unwanted whom she used to comfort, an action that earned her more popularity.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,986977-3,00.html|title=Farewell, Diana|magazine=Time|date=15 September 1997|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Paul|last=Gray|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163111/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,986977-3,00.html|archive-date=3 February 2017}}</ref> Known for her easygoing attitude, she reportedly hated formality in her inner circle, asking "people not to jump up every time she enters the room".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/1988/09/princess-diana-prince-charles-marriage|title=Making the Best of It|first=Georgina|last=Howell|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=September 1988|access-date=2 December 2020}}</ref> Diana is often credited with widening the range of charity works carried out by the royal family in a more modern style.<ref name="Guardian-Legacy"/> [[Eugene Robinson (journalist)|Eugene Robinson]] of ''The Washington Post'' wrote in an article that "Diana imbued her role as royal princess with vitality, activism and, above all, glamour."<ref name="robinson"/> Alicia Carroll of ''[[The New York Times]]'' described Diana as "a breath of fresh air" who was the main reason the royal family was known in the United States.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/05/31/why-do-americans-love-the-british-royal-family/americas-obsession-with-royalty-started-with-princess-diana|title=America's Obsession With Royalty Started With Princess Diana|work=The New York Times|date=31 May 2012|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Alicia|last=Carroll|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163532/http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/05/31/why-do-americans-love-the-british-royal-family/americas-obsession-with-royalty-started-with-princess-diana|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref> In [[Anthony Holden]]'s opinion, Diana was "visibly reborn" after her separation from Charles, a point in her life that was described by Holden as her "moment of triumph", which put her on an independent path to success.<ref name="Holden-1993">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/1993/02/princess-diana-revenge-anthony-holden-cover|title=Diana's Revenge|magazine=Vanity Fair|first=Anthony|last=Holden|date=February 1993|access-date=2 December 2020}}</ref>

Diana's sudden death brought an unprecedented spasm of grief and mourning,<ref>{{cite book|author=Richard Weight|title=Patriots: National Identity in Britain 1940–2000|year=2002|pages=659, 681}}</ref> and subsequently a crisis arose in the Royal Household.<ref name="Manipulative-Legacy"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/diana/6234373/Criticism-of-Queen-after-death-of-Diana-hugely-upset-Queen-Mother.html|title=Criticism of Queen after death of Diana 'hugely upset' Queen Mother|work=The Telegraph|date=26 September 2009|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Andrew|last=Alderson|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202002653/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/diana/6234373/Criticism-of-Queen-after-death-of-Diana-hugely-upset-Queen-Mother.html|archive-date=2 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/04/world/royal-family-stung-by-critics-responds-to-a-grieving-nation.html|title=Royal Family, Stung by Critics, Responds to a Grieving Nation|work=The New York Times|date=4 September 1997|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Warren|last=Hoge|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163337/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/04/world/royal-family-stung-by-critics-responds-to-a-grieving-nation.html|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref> [[Andrew Marr]] said that by her death she "revived the culture of public sentiment".<ref name="Guardian-Legacy"/> Her son William has stated that the outpouring of public grief after her death "changed the British psyche, for the better", while [[Alastair Campbell]] noted that it assisted in diminishing "the [[stiff upper lip]] approach".<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Campbell |first1=Alastair |title=Prince William on Diana, Princess of Wales |url=https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/prince-william-diana-princess-of-wales |magazine=GQ |date=29 May 2017 |access-date=25 May 2021}}</ref> In 1981 and 1997 Diana was one of the runners-up for [[Time Person of the Year|''Time'' magazine's Person of the Year]],<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Others Who Stood in the Spotlight |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,953280,00.html |magazine=Time |access-date=4 April 2023 |date=4 January 1982 |archive-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404003530/https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,953280,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2020559,00.html|title=Man of the Year 1997|magazine=Time|access-date=16 February 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216214322/http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2020559,00.html|archive-date=16 February 2017}}</ref> and in 2020 the magazine included Diana's name on its list of 100 Women of the Year. She was chosen as the Woman of the Year 1987 for her efforts in destigmatising the conditions surrounding HIV/AIDS patients.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=5 March 2020 |title=1987: Diana, Princess of Wales |url=https://time.com/5793707/diana-princess-of-wales-100-women-of-the-year/ |magazine=Time |access-date=6 March 2020}}</ref> In 2002 Diana ranked third on the [[BBC]]'s poll of the ''[[100 Greatest Britons]]'', above the Queen and other British monarchs.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/greatbritons.shtml/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040204074057/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/greatbritons.shtml/|archive-date=4 February 2004|title=Great Britons 1–10|work=BBC via Wayback Machine|access-date=22 December 2012}}</ref>

Despite being regarded as an iconic figure and a popular member of the royal family, Diana was subject to criticism during her life.<ref name="Telegraph-Legacy"/> She was criticised by philosophy professor [[Anthony O'Hear]] who in his notes argued that she was unable to fulfill her duties, her reckless behaviour was damaging the monarchy, and she was "self-indulgent" in her philanthropic efforts.<ref name="BBC-Criticism">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/79288.stm|title=Author defends Diana criticism|work=BBC News|date=17 April 1998|access-date=2 February 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160318152247/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/79288.stm|archive-date=18 March 2016}}</ref> Following his remarks, charity organisations that were supported by Diana defended her, and [[Peter Luff]] called O'Hear's comments "distasteful and inappropriate".<ref name="BBC-Criticism"/> Further criticism surfaced as she was accused of using her public profile to benefit herself,<ref name="NYT-Critics"/> which in return "demeaned her royal office".<ref name="Telegraph-Legacy"/> Diana's unique type of charity work, which sometimes included physical contact with people affected by serious diseases, occasionally had a negative reaction in the media.<ref name="Telegraph-Legacy"/>

Diana's relationship with the press and the paparazzi has been described as "ambivalent". On different occasions she would complain about the way she was being treated by the media, mentioning that their constant presence in her proximity had made life impossible for her, whereas at other times she would seek their attention and hand information to reporters herself.<ref name="BBC-press">{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/politics97/diana/press.html|title=The Princess and the Press|work=BBC News|access-date=1 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/06/world/diana-and-the-paparazzi-a-morality-tale.html|title=Diana and the Paparazzi: A Morality Tale|newspaper=The New York Times|first=Roger|last=Cohen|date=6 September 1997|access-date=2 December 2020|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Writing for ''The Guardian'', Peter Conrad suggested that it was Diana who let the journalists and paparazzi into her life as she knew they were the source of her power.<ref name="Myth-Legacy"/> This view was supported by [[Christopher Hitchens]], who believed that "in pursuit of a personal solution to an unhappy private life, she became an assiduous leaker to the press".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-01-me-27885-story.html|title=Mother Teresa or Mrs. Simpson: Which Was the Real Diana?|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|first=Christopher|last=Hitchens|date=1 September 1997|access-date=1 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200118081820/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-01-me-27885-story.html|archive-date=18 January 2020}}</ref> Tina Brown argued that Diana was in no way "a vulnerable victim of media manipulation", and she found it "offensive to present the canny, resourceful Diana as a woman of no agency".<ref name="Brown-Mar22"/> Former ''News of the World'' royal editor [[Clive Goodman]], who later [[News of the World royal phone hacking scandal|hacked]] the phones of Diana's sons on several occasions, stated in a court in 2014 that in 1992 Diana sent a confidential directory which contained numbers of senior members of the royal household to their office to get back at Prince Charles.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/britain-hacking/princess-diana-leaked-royal-directories-to-murdoch-tabloid-court-hears-idUSL6N0MA43E20140313|title=Princess Diana leaked royal directories to Murdoch tabloid, court hears|work=Reuters|first=Michael|last=Holden|date=13 March 2014|accessdate=26 April 2023}}</ref> Nevertheless, Diana also used the media's interest in her to shine light on her charitable efforts and patronages.<ref name="BBC-press"/>

Sally Bedell Smith characterised Diana as unpredictable, egocentric, and possessive.<ref name="NYT-Critics">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/99/08/22/reviews/990822.22kermot.html|title=Shrinking the Princess|work=The New York Times|date=22 August 1999|access-date=5 February 2017|first=Frank|last=Kermode|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203162942/http://www.nytimes.com/books/99/08/22/reviews/990822.22kermot.html|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Smith also argued that in her desire to do charity works, Diana was "motivated by personal considerations, rather than by an ambitious urge to take on a societal problem".<ref name="NYT-Critics"/> Eugene Robinson, however, said that "[Diana] was serious about the causes she espoused".<ref name="robinson"/> According to Sarah Bradford, Diana looked down on the [[House of Windsor]], whom she reportedly viewed "as jumped-up foreign princelings" and called them "the Germans".<ref name="Myth-Legacy"/> Tony Blair characterised Diana as a manipulative person and "extraordinarily captivating".<ref name="Legacy-Influence">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/blog/2012/aug/31/princess-dianas-influence-royal-family|title=Princess Diana's influence on the royal family lives on|work=The Guardian|date=31 August 2012|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Michael|last=White|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203174423/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/blog/2012/aug/31/princess-dianas-influence-royal-family|archive-date=3 February 2017}}</ref><ref name="Manipulative-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/tony-blair/7974269/Tony-Blair-Diana-was-a-manipulator-like-me.html|title=Tony Blair: Diana was a manipulator like me|work=The Telegraph|date=31 August 2010|access-date=2 February 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163456/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/tony-blair/7974269/Tony-Blair-Diana-was-a-manipulator-like-me.html|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-11152177|title=Princess Diana's death was 'global event' says Blair|work=BBC News|date=1 September 2010|access-date=27 November 2020}}</ref>

In an article written for ''[[The Independent]]'' in 1998, journalist [[Yvonne Roberts]] observed the sudden change in people's opinion of Diana after her death from critical to complimentary, a viewpoint supported by [[Theodore Dalrymple]], who also noticed the "sudden shift".<ref name="Dalrymple-1997">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.city-journal.org/html/goddess-domestic-tribulations-12280.html|title=The Goddess of Domestic Tribulations|magazine=City Journal|first=Theodore|last=Dalrymple|year=1997|access-date=5 December 2020}}</ref> Roberts also added that Diana was neither "a saint" nor "a revolutionary" figure, but "may have encouraged some people" to tackle issues such as landmines, AIDS and leprosy.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/one-year-on-dry-your-eyes-she-was-no-saint-and-her-death-changed-nothing-says-yvonne-roberts-1174708.html|title=One Year On: Dry your eyes! She was no saint and her death changed nothing|work=The Independent|first=Yvonne|last=Roberts|date=29 August 1998|access-date=1 December 2020}}</ref> While analysing the impact of Diana's death and her popularity from a gendered point of view, the British historian [[Ludmilla Jordanova]] said "no human being can survive the complex forces that impact upon charismatic women." Jordanova also observed that it is "Better to remember her by trying to decipher how emotions overshadow analysis and why women are the safeguards of humanitarian feelings."<ref name=ualberta/> The author [[Anne Applebaum]] believed that Diana had not had any impact on public opinions posthumously;<ref name="Guardian-Legacy"/> an idea supported by [[Jonathan Freedland]] of ''[[The Guardian]]'' who believed that Diana's memory and influence started to fade away in the years after her death,<ref name="Fade-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/aug/13/britishidentity.monarchy|title=A moment of madness?|work=The Guardian|date=12 August 2007|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Jonathan|last=Freedland|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203172846/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/aug/13/britishidentity.monarchy|archive-date=3 February 2017}}</ref> while Peter Conrad, another ''Guardian'' contributor, argued that even in "a decade after her death, she is still not silent",<ref name="Myth-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/jun/17/biography.monarchy|title=Diana: the myth, 10 years on|work=The Guardian|date=16 June 2007|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Peter|last=Conrad|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203174427/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/jun/17/biography.monarchy|archive-date=3 February 2017}}</ref> and [[Allan Massie]] of ''The Telegraph'' believed that Diana's sentiments "continue to shape our society".<ref name="Celebrity-Legacy">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1584774/Why-Diana-is-still-the-spirit-of-the-age.html|title=Why Diana is still the spirit of the age|work=The Telegraph|date=12 April 2008|access-date=2 February 2017|first=Allan|last=Massie|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203163446/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1584774/Why-Diana-is-still-the-spirit-of-the-age.html|archive-date=3 February 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Writing for ''The Guardian'', Monica Ali described Diana as "fascinating and flawed. Her legacy might be mixed, but it's not insubstantial. Her life was brief, but she left her mark".<ref name="Guardian-Legacy"/>