Sri Lanka, July 14 -- There is a particular kind of reputational crisis that happens when powerful people start to believe the whole world is against them. It can be emotionally persuasive. It can rally supporters. It can turn scrutiny into persecution and defeat into proof that the system was rigged all along. But it is also a difficult card to play well, because the public tends to have a sharp ear for self-pity from people who already have money, status and influence. This week on our BBC Radio 4 show, When It Hits the Fan, David Yelland and I looked at the communications strategy behind two very different men facing scrutiny in very different circumstances.

Prince Harry, after losing his High Court case against the publisher of the ...