A Royal problem for Piers Morgan
Is ITV going to end up punishing, even firing, Piers Morgan for some unkind remarks about Meghan Markle?
The CEO Carolyn McCall was placed in the awkward position of having to defend Morgan today, after the journalist said he didn’t believe a word Markle had told Oprah Winfrey.
Since this included that she at times felt suicidal, that’s going to be controversial.
McCall said: “I completely believe what she says…and importantly everyone should.”
What happens next? Well, it might get lost in the general noise. But if mental health charities pile on, Morgan, and ITV have got a problem.
This sort of stuff is so toxic at the moment that McCall didn’t feel able to back Morgan when asked. He might be good for ratings, but the shock-jock shtick was bound to land him in trouble at some point.
Morgan has been fired before of course, over fake pictures of British soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners.
And he faced accusations of bullying in an open letter from TV workers.
Some of us think his bigger crime was the City Slickers share tipping scandal of 2000, which saw him buy shares in companies that the Daily Mirror, which he then edited, was going to tip in the next day’s paper.
The other journalists involved got punished – one of the even went to jail.
He sort of got away with that one. He wouldn’t now.
