Piers Morgan set to be sacked by ITV for his vile attacks on Meghan Markle

iers Morgan should be sacked from ITV. Really, he should have been fired from his job as a co-host on Hello Great Britain long ago. But the events of this week seem to be the final straw. His regular attacks on Meghan Markle – a woman he barely knows but seems obsessed with – grew increasingly vile ahead of Markle and Prince Harry’s interview with Oprah. Now he has accused Markle of lying about her experience of having suicidal thoughts while pregnant with her son, Archie, as she was overwhelmed by the press intrusion into her personal life.

“I don’t believe a word she says,” Morgan said in response to Markle’s comments. “I wouldn’t believe her if she read me a weather report. He then proceeded to condemn her for having unleashed an “assault” of criticism against the royal family.

To dismiss anyone’s struggles with mental health is appalling, but doing so on national television – for a woman the world has seen suffering from an unprecedented level of scrutiny, vitriol, and racism – is downright dangerous. After Morgan’s claim that he didn’t believe Markle, a viral tweet read: “Meghan isn’t going to see you tweeting, you don’t think she was suicidal – but your friends who were suicidal will.” Almost a year to the day since the suicide of Love island host Caroline Flack, it’s indefensible that ITV – which runs a mental health campaign Get Britain Talking – was so slow to respond.

Today (Tuesday, March 9), Carolyn McCall, CEO of ITV, was asked about Morgan’s behavior during a media call for ITV’s 2020 results. She revealed that Kevin Lygo, ITV’s chief media and entertainment director, “is dealing with this as we speak,” but will not comment further on whether Morgan will be punished or supported for his outbursts. “The most important thing in mental health that ITV does and is fully committed to is that we support, we get people talking, we listen, we say everyone has to listen and that everyone has to believe because that’s how you get people to believe it. talk, ”she said. “So we are very attached to this.”

In this morning’s episode of GMBMorgan did not apologize, instead saying, “I still have serious concerns about the veracity of much of what she said. But let me say for the record my position on mental illness and suicide.

“Mental illness and suicide are clearly very serious things and should be taken very seriously and if anyone feels this way they should get the treatment and help they need every time. If they belong to an institution like the royal family and they are going to seek this help, they should absolutely receive it. It’s not for me to wonder if she was feeling suicidal, I wasn’t on her mind and it’s for her to say it.

He then doubled down on his previous review of Markle and said: ‘My real concern was frankly disbelief and I’m willing to be wrong about that and if I’m wrong it’s a scandal that she went to see a Old person. member of the royal household, told them that she was suicidal and was told that she could not get help because it would be a bad image for the family.

The journalist is not supposed to be the one making the headlines. But Morgan always envisioned himself a celebrity, despite spending a lot of time attacking pop culture. In an interview with this publication over 20 years ago, Morgan was hailed as a master of self-advertising. “I became the friend of the stars, a rampant selfish, photographed all the time with famous people – Madonna, Stallone, Bowie, Paul McCartney, hundreds of them,” he boasted of his debut in the report. showbiz.

That ego – along with the kind of delusional self-confidence that comes with being a privately educated, straight, rich white man – helped Morgan rise through the ranks to one of television’s biggest spots. From there, he was given free rein to attack, insult, and berate his guests, rarely giving them a chance to speak. Because it’s not really Hello Great Britain, that’s it? It is The Piers Morgan Show.

During the pandemic, Morgan went to great lengths to reinvent himself as a ‘man of the people’, one who speaks out against hypocrisy and selfish behavior at a time when we should ‘all be together’. He told Laurence Fox to “shut up” after the actor and now mayoral candidate bragged about having a “large group” of friends over for lunch, in an apparent violation of lockdown rules. He called Rita Ora “selfish” for throwing a birthday party for her and her famous friends when she was supposed to self-isolate after a trip to Egypt. When it comes to his campaign against Markle, however, he can’t help but let the mask slip off. And boy, it’s ugly underneath.

Five years ago, he went for a drink with Markle the day before he met Harry. Apparently, she decided she didn’t want to partner with Morgan anymore (I can’t imagine why she wouldn’t want to be best friends with a notoriously publicity-hungry reporter). Morgan’s reaction to this rejection was to spend the next five years attacking and shaming her in public. It is amazing that he is allowed to dump such toxic bile at her from such a huge and authoritative platform given his clear personal bias. How does this not constitute public harassment?

Most women have met a man like Piers Morgan. Maybe you had a first date and didn’t feel a connection. But when you politely refused to see each other again, he turned mean. “You didn’t seem to feel that way when you let me buy you drinks.” “You drove me.” “Female dog.” It’s hard to put words to the panic women feel when they have to try to reject a man’s advances. Sometimes the fear is so great that you spend the next few weeks going home with your keys between your fingers, in case they show up. You are considering the possibility that they are trying to shame you on social media or reach out to your friends to tell them how horrible you are. The latter happened to a close friend last month. This right, which men somehow owe the continued attention of women because they were kind to them, is what viewers see every morning from 6.30am to 7am on national television.

BBC Radio 1 presenter Clara Amfo stressed that ‘it must be good’ for Morgan to be able to come out of a live TV show because her Métis colleague, Alex Beresford, called her – measured and intellectual. – on his attacks on Markle. Knowing that his work would still be there when he deigned to return.

What does Morgan actually offer viewers? He does not inform. He does not engage. It does not encourage intelligent discussion. He’s only there for the lowest kind of entertainment – a loud, talkative man who has precisely no interest in anyone other than himself. Maybe he was really annoyed to be called by Beresford. But he is also keenly aware that such stunts are noted. And while there is some truth to us – the public and the media – being guilty of giving it the attention it needs, it doesn’t absolve the people who pay it to do it.

If you or someone you know has mental health issues, you can get confidential support and advice from Samaritans, 24/7, by calling 116 123 or sending an email to [email protected].