Piers Morgan Goes Into "Temporary Hibernation" after Good Morning Britain Exit

Former Good Morning Britain presenter Piers Morgan has stated that he has gone into "temporary hibernation" following his turbulent departure from the weekday programme.

Morgan stormed off set after fellow presenter Alex Beresford challenged his comments regarding the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, and her interview with Oprah Winfrey. Morgan has gained a reputation over the last number of years for his consistently negative commentary on Meghan Markle and her marriage to Prince Harry. That culminated this week, with UK TV watchdog Ofcom receiving over 41,000 complaints following the dismissive attitude he took to Ms. Markle's experience of suicidal thoughts. He also referred to her accusations of racism within the royal family as 'contemptible' and a 'diatribe of bilge'.

Good Morning Britain continued without the polarising figure today, with co-host Susanna Reid telling viewers: "It is certainly going to be very different. But shows go on, and so on we go."

'Shows go on and so on we go.'

'He has been a voice for many of you and a voice that many of you have railed against.'@susannareid100 speaks about Piers' resignation from GMB. pic.twitter.com/sVTcKMwx8N

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) March 10, 2021

"Piers and I have disagreed on many things, and that dynamic was one of the things viewers loved about the programme," Susanna Reid added. "He is, without doubt, an outspoken, challenging, opinionated, disruptive broadcaster. He has many critics, and he has many fans. You all know that I disagreed with him about Meghan's interview. He himself clarified his comments about her mental health on the show yesterday, but now Piers has decided to leave the programme,. Some of you may cheer and others will boo."

Speaking to PA reporters about his self-dubbed "temporary hibernation" this morning, Morgan stated:

"I don't believe almost anything that comes out of her mouth and I think the damage she's done to the British monarchy and to the Queen at a time when Prince Philip is lying in hospital is enormous and frankly contemptible. If I have to fall on my sword for expressing an honestly-held opinion about Meghan Markle, and that diatribe of bilge that she came out with in that interview, so be it."

He added: "I think it's fair to say, although the woke crowd will think that they've cancelled me, I think they will be rather disappointed when I re-emerge."

Ironically, Morgan tweeted a photo of former UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill. While Churchill was a key British war-time figure – the key figure, perhaps – he was also known historically for his racist attitudes to Jews, Black people, Indian people and other ethnicities. His role in the 1943 Bengal Famine, Kenya's Mau Mau Uprising and policies in Ireland also called his morals heavily into question.

On Monday, I said I didn’t believe Meghan Markle in her Oprah interview. I’ve had time to reflect on this opinion, and I still don’t. If you did, OK. Freedom of speech is a hill I’m happy to die on. Thanks for all the love, and hate. I’m off to spend more time with my opinions. pic.twitter.com/bv6zpz4Roe

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 10, 2021

There is little doubt that Piers Morgan still holds considerable sway within the media industry and will find employment elsewhere. While he argues that he is a defender of free speech, othere is a strong counter-view that this should not come as a right, if the effect is to strip marginalised people of their dignity, and their rights. The British media has long had a diversity issue, with a 2016 report by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance finding that hate speech among traditional media, particularly tabloid newspapers, "continues to be a serious problem."

The Society of Editors made a statement written by their executive director, Ian Murray, which argued that claims made by Meghan Markle that parts of the media were racist were “not acceptable”. More than 160 journalists of colour and the editors of the Guardian, Financial Times and HuffPost subsequently objected to the Society of Editors statement - which has since been retracted - and the group are now divided over how to proceed.

Kate Shanahan, Head of Technological University Dublin's Journalism and Communications School, spoke to Hot Press about the dangers of creating celebrity journalists in an already divided social media landscape.

“Presenters storming off is highly unusual," Kate says of Morgan's abrupt departure. "Celebrity presenters at that stage of their careers are very rarely challenged, and Morgan seemed taken by surprise after a member of his own team held him to account. The Meghan Markle discussion was rising to a personal level, given that issues around racism were being discussed. It's important to note that Beresford is mixed race himself, and had to sit there and listen to these discussions for months before this.

“I disagree with the theory that Morgan's exit was all part of a game-play," Kate adds, "as I believe that he was most likely under pressure to leave already. There would have been attempts to rein him in for various reasons, such as challenging the Government’s COVID-19 strategy. There comes a point with all celebrity presenters where you have to ask yourself if the person is worth the trouble that will undoubtedly cause.”

Ireland has had a number of its own "controversialist" presenters, as Shanahan refers to them as. From Eamon Dunphy leaving the set as a panellist in the 1990 World Cup coverage to Ivan Yates and Ciara Kelly dividing audiences with their stances, strong opinions often garner clicks and views. Shanahan believes that the consistent need to have divisive opinions on every subject pushes these presenters to extremes in order to hold their grip on an audience.

"Controversialists always die by the sword, it’s just the nature of it," she reflects. "Your fans tune in because they expect you to be opinionated. Piers Morgan is not going to go away anytime soon, unless he wants to.

"One of the most interesting things about people who call others ‘snowflakes’ is that they always end up being the most thin-skinned people," Kate laughs. "I also believe that it comes down to an age divide. Younger people are aware that de-platforming is not about shutting people up, it’s about not propagating harmful views. The likes of Piers Morgan and Andrew Neil are part of a dying breed in the media.

“When presenters become celebrities, it's never good for journalism," she adds. "They make mistakes and need teams around them who can hold them accountable and keep their feet on the ground. Alex Beresford was bringing truth to power, which is exactly what Morgan himself thinks he’s doing. That’s what real journalism is."

While Morgan was praised for his questioning of the British Government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent vaccination rollout, his targeting of a mixed-race woman for no apparent reason lost him fans – and arguably the respect of many in the industry itself, not least for the unequal power dynamic involved.

“There is no power on Meghan Markle's side, except what the media assigns her," Kate Shanahan says. "No human being could withstand the onslaught of what she had to deal with, day in and day out. It was appalling bullying by the British media. The only conclusion you can draw is that it’s misogyny and racism, because no one’s behaviour can justify those kinds of attacks. All stories move on, but Meghan’s never did. It's partly because newsroom leaders in the UK and elsewhere are mostly comprised of white, middle-aged, middle to upper class men who exist in a bubble of their own views. If you’re a young person from a diverse background, it’s very hard to go into that environment and challenge those views."

Morgan's declaration of disbelief following Markle's claims that she "didn't want to live anymore" appears to have been the last straw for many Good Morning Britain viewers. It was also reminiscent of when Tory politician Nicholas Soames appeared on Newsnight after Princess Diana’s 1995 Panorama interview with Martin Bashir to accuse her of being unbalanced and unreliable.

“We keep telling young people to talk to somebody when you experience suicidal thoughts. What message does it send out to accuse a person who speaks out of lying?" Kate adds.

"The media has been involved in so many campaigns about mental health. To watch a pregnant woman undergo those attacks as editors and do nothing about it is a failure of leadership.”