Piers Morgan’s Meghan Markle comments cleared
Piers Morgan has been cleared by British media regulator Ofcom, after it received a record 58,000 complaints about Morgan’s criticisms of Meghan Markle.
The former Good Morning Britain host said he didn’t believe what Meghan said during her and her husband’s controversial Oprah Winfrey interview, prompting the duchess to file complaints with the regulator and ITV.
Ofcom said restricting Morgan’s views would be a “chilling restriction” on free expression, though it criticised his “apparent disregard” for the topic of suicide.
In particular, Morgan expressed disbelief at Meghan’s claims of experiencing suicidal thoughts and struggling with her mental health while performing her royal duties.
Royal author Angela Levin claimed the duchess would be “absolutely livid” with the decision and may pursue further legal action.
“She can’t cope with someone saying she didn’t tell the truth. Because she is all about compassion and understanding and caring for people,” Ms Levin told The Sun.
Speaking outside his home, Morgan said he “wasn’t really sure why I lost [my job] in the first place”.
He added that Ofcom had “emphatically endorsed my right to not believe what the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were saying”.
Taking to Twitter, the 56-year-old journalist wrote: “I’m delighted OFCOM has endorsed my right to disbelieve the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s incendiary claims to Oprah Winfrey, many of which have proven to be untrue.
“This is a resounding victory for free speech and a resounding defeat for Princess Pinnocchios. Do I get my job back?”
In a lengthy statement about the ruling, Ofcom said the incident “became a major international news story and we acknowledged it was both legitimate and in the public interest of ITV to broadcast debates featuring presenters such as Mr Morgan scrutinising those allegations”.
“Consistent with freedom of expression, Mr Morgan was entitled to say he disbelieved the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s allegations and to hold and express strong views that rigorously challenged their account.
“The [Ofcom broadcasting] code allows for individuals to express strongly held and robustly argued views, including those that are potentially harmful or highly offensive, and for broadcasters to include these in their programming.
“The restriction of such views would, in our view, be an unwarranted and chilling restriction on freedom of expression both of the broadcaster and the audience.
“We were particularly concerned about Mr Morgan’s approach to such an important and serious issue and his apparent disregard for the seriousness of anyone expressing suicidal thoughts.”
However, the regulator noted the importance of co-hosts Susanna Reid and Chris Ship challenging his views, which provided “adequate protection for viewers”.
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