I think the difference between US politicians and the Royal Family is that the politicians got voted in by the public and don't scrounge off the public for their living. Therefore, they're less accountable to the public for their private lives, because the only part of them that is public is their professional roles.
The Royal Family get paid by us for basically doing nothing; we fund their lifestyle. We pay for them, so they're our property, in a sense, and so they're always prime fodder for criticism. I know when it breaks down person to person individually it's a matter of pence that goes towards the royal family from our taxes, but still, they get to live the life of riley while we don't. So, when they spend £1 million on taking helicopter rides between homes or say something racist, we are less indulgent and more critical of them because really they have no RIGHT to be where they are beyond who they happened to be born to. Average Sun reader loves to get their knickers in a twist when they read the provocative headline: 'QUEEN SPENDS 1 MILLION OF OUR MONEY ON NEW ROLLS ROYCE' etc. It's sensationalism and we love it. The Brits love to moan, and if we're not moaning about the weather, we're moaning about the royals wasting our hard earned cash!
I would be sorry to see the monarchy go, but I think anyone but the Queen/King should start getting jobs and funding their lifestyle themselves, especially royals such as Prince Andrew and Prince Edward; what do they do to justify their allowances? If they spend our money, they have to be accountable for their actions, hence why they get raked over in the press.
However, the British press is notorious all over the world for its vindictiveness towards all celebrities. In certain parts of London you can't walk down the street without falling over a pap waiting to take a photo of someone 'famous' (usually the latest Big Brother winner). It's madness. Someone just has to step out of a taxi with their knickers showing and it's front page news. What the world has come to, eh?

Rachel
xx