Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's ‘silence' added ‘fuel' to ‘Endgame' race row

Amid the fallout from Omid Scobie’s Endgame controversy, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are being advised to break their silence.

Royal expert Scobie sparked the race row by name dropping King Charles and Princess Kate as the royals who were concerned about Prince Archie’s skin color.

Despite the backlash, the Sussexes maintained their silence, giving the impression that "they had something to hide," per PR expert Laura Perkes.

Perkes said: "Choosing to remain silent is often as telling, and more damaging than choosing to reply."

Read more: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle urged to focus on ‘leadership and service'

"Actions speak louder than words and in the case of Harry and Meghan, their silence made them look even more guilty."

Perkes insisted that a statement from Harry and Meghan denying involvement in the book would have been the right thing to do.

She said: "You could argue that a response would have looked like a retaliation and perhaps seen as a defense mechanism to mask their guilt."

"However, issuing a statement would have sent a strong signal from their camp that they weren't involved and wouldn't be discussing it further," she continued.

She further explained: "In this instance though, their silence did make it look like they had something to hide and added fuel to the fire."

She noted that the right way to deal with a controversy is to “to respond to incidents as soon as possible in a bid to take control of the narrative and stop it from gaining traction and getting out of control.”

"That's how rumours start and spread and how your reputation can be ruined in seconds," she added.