I have enjoyed reading, and appreciate, everyone's response on this topic.
I must say that researching the British RF has been an enjoyable hobby of mine for about 10 years now. I am from the U.S. and don't really recall seeing or retaining any of the press coverage on the RF before Diana's death. On top of that, I was studying the U.S. history, so I just never noticed coverage on them. I obviously knew of the RF, but only by name and status. I remember where I was, as does everyone else, when Diana tragically died. The press coverage on the events thereafter were immense and the death of Diana had a large effect on me which completely changed my outlook on the monarchy. Just to give you a clarification of my knowledge in coverage (specifically tv/news related, not internet) that I viewed about the British RF (and others for that matter) in the 90s, I honestly knew so little about them as individuals that I didn't know very much about anyone besides Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Princess Diana, Prince William and Prince Harry. Press coverage shifted those royals to the front pages and it dictated how much I really knew about any of the other royal members.
Now, I could have read books about British History, but I was at the age where I was worried more about getting my literary research papers in on time. Upon expanding my horizons, I discovered that I was so intrigued (and I still am) by how the monarchy was established and still carries on traditions, formality and so on. It's a system so different from what I am used to here in the states and my research has proved to be worth every hour spent in libraries, buried in books. I owe so much to the enormous variety and supply of books on foreign affairs and history that my university had and I consider myself very lucky to have come across them. I don't really pay attention to tabloids, as their credibility is so low most of the time, but whatever is on the front page catches your attention and I guess I am guilty from time to time of only picking up on the headlines instead of doing my own research.
I don't know of any significant changes in the way the RF has handled the press, but I must say that I agree with some of the previous posts that have mentioned the way that reality shows affect the way we look into the privacy of others, especially those that have been made into public celebrities. This effect tends to single out and magnify the negative aspects of their actions, and as a result we are momentarily focused on that aspect instead of recognizing what they have accomplished 'under the radar', so to speak. An example comes to mind of The Princess Royal--I believe it was 2002 or so when the media was suspecting trouble in her and Tim's marriage. It was pure speculation and it seems that coverage on The PR and other members of the RF are few and far between, but their accomplishments for charities and public relations are rarely the main focus (which is a majority of what I commend them for).
I have enjoyed studying and researching the events of the Royal Family, as well as seeing what others think and how they are influenced by them. We are all human, but what we make of life sets us apart from others.
