London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Jul 26, 2025

The troubling treatment of Piers Morgan

The troubling treatment of Piers Morgan

It is the duty of journalists and broadcasters to be sceptical, particularly to claims made by the rich and powerful. Before yesterday that wasn’t a controversial point.
But the pushing out of Piers Morgan from Good Morning Britain, purely because he says he doesn’t believe a word that comes out of Meghan Markle’s mouth, suggests we are in a brave new world. When certain claims are made, even by the most privileged, it is apparently now our duty to swallow them or to shut up.

In the wake of that explosive Oprah interview, in which the Sussexes said they were hounded out of the royal family by racism and Markle shared her struggles with mental health, Morgan was having none of it. He said he ‘wouldn’t believe her if she read me a weather report’. Later, after outcry from mental-health charities, he clarified that mental health is ‘extremely serious’ and that anyone suffering should seek help, but that he still questioned the ‘veracity’ of Markle’s account. This is an entirely legitimate position to hold.

But not if you want to be employed by ITV, it seems. The channel's CEO Carolyn McCall made clear yesterday that she believed Meghan Markle’s claims about her mental health – and that ITV takes mental health seriously. Morgan walked off set after clashing with co-presenter Alex Beresford over Markle’s allegations of racist treatment. Ofcom announced it had launched an investigation into GMB under its ‘harm and offence rules’. Morgan was reportedly asked to recant or to apologise by ITV. When he refused the two parted ways.

What we are seeing here is the rise of a new journalistic standard. Apparently there are certain claims that should not be questioned or challenged. When it comes to allegations of racism or stories about poor mental health, they must be believed in their entirety. Everyone knows that people’s accounts can be partial, misremembered, and that (whisper it) some people just lie. But for the sake of appearing virtuous about these difficult issues we are apparently expected to just pretend otherwise in certain circumstances.

Everything Harry and Meghan said about their treatment by the royal family might turn out to be true. But that doesn’t mean we should just take their word for it. Key parts of their story have already been disproven or called into question. No name or details have been provided for the ‘smoking gun’ allegation – that a royal voiced ‘concern’ about the skin colour of their children. And the idea that the British tabloid press engaged in a hate campaign against Meghan is based on a handful of recycled examples, wrenched out of context.

But the accuser is holy now. Questioning someone who claims the mantle of victimhood today is to disregard their ‘lived experience’. This is a dangerous precedent to set, particularly when dealing with powerful people. For all the barmy notions of ‘privilege’ that pervade these days, we seem to have forgotten that we are talking about a duke and a duchess here. Identity politics has become a cloak used to protect the genuinely privileged. That it has now been confirmed that Markle complained to ITV herself makes this case all the more alarming.

Piers Morgan is not the victim here. He has not been cancelled, and he could well end up with a plum job at GB News. But the atmosphere around Megxit could cast a long shadow over media freedom. The Society of Editors has been forced to soften an earlier statement defending the industry against the Sussexes’ allegations of racism. Labour MPs are piggybacking off this story to push again for press regulation. And the fact that the broadcast regulator is investigating GMB over ‘offence’ offers a chilling insight into what a regulated press might look like.

Press freedom was built on exposing, criticising and offending the monarchy. The 18th-century radical John Wilkes, at a time when criticising the crown could get you locked up, ridiculed the royal court and made crude insinuations about the prime minister’s activities with the king’s mother. He made Piers Morgan look like Alan Titchmarsh. Today even scepticism about our new woke royals is enough to cast you out. Then as now, chilling the media only ever helps the powerful.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
×