INTERNATIONAL NEWS - In the early hours of August 31, 1997, the media began reporting that Diana, Princess of Wales, had been injured in a car crash in the Pont l'Alma tunnel in Paris.
By 4:45 am, news channels were citing sources who claimed Diana had died.
Members of Britain's royal family were on their annual summer break at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. They issued a statement at 5:25: "The Queen and Prince Philip are deeply shocked and distressed by this terrible news. Other members of the royal family are being informed of the Princess's death."
They thought this would be enough.
But the royals made a grave error in how they reacted to the news of Diana's death - one that lost them public respect at the time and has taken nearly two decades to regain.
As the news spread, a wave of grief swept across the world, taking everyone by surprise - most of all the royals. Politicians struggled for the words to describe her death. Her brother, Earl Spencer, paid tribute from South Africa and talked about how it seemed as though the press had taken "a direct hand in her death." And Prime Minister Tony Blair began referring to her as the "People's Princess."
