Outrage in the UK over a column about Meghan Markle that was described as “disgusting”

Known for his controversial comments, which have even caused diplomatic protests in the past, the British television presenter Jeremy Clarkson is once again at the center of controversy.

This time it has been for a column that he signed in the British tabloid the sun last Friday in which he talked about what he feels about Meghan Marklethe wife of prince harry.

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In it, he stated that the “hated with every cell” and added, in a reference to the “Game of Thrones” series, that he would like to see her beaten in public.

“That she paraded naked through the streets of every town in Britain, while the crowds yelled ‘Shame!’ and they throw piles of excrement at her,” Clarkson wrote in her text, referring to the character of Cersei Lannnister who, in the fifth episode of the tenth season of the series, faces a “walk of shame.”

The column has caused widespread outrage in the UK among the public and some of the media.

LBC radio host James O’Brien called Clarkson’s words “utterly disgusting”, while journalist Leona O’Neill said “vile comments like this are never okay, they are not black humor or jokes“.

“They are sick and disgusting and should never have been printed in a newspaper,” O’Neill wrote on Twitter.

Even the presenter’s daughter, the communicator Emily Clarkson, expressed her rejection.

The UK press regulator Ipso, had received until this Monday more than 12,000 complaints from the public. The newspaper the sun removed the column from his website, while Clarkson issued what has been called “an attempted apology.”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been critical of the coverage they have had from the British press. (MEDIUM PA).

In 2011, when Clarkson was working for the BBC, the BBC had to issue an apology after the presenter on Top Gear said that Mexicans are “lazy, irresponsible, flatulent, and overweight.”

And in 2014 he caused a controversy in Argentina for driving around the country in a car with a license plate that seemed to refer to the Malvinas/Falklands war.

Throughout the years Clarkson has been strongly criticized for his “racist” comments.

What did he say about Markle?

Clarkson’s comments about the Duchess of Sussex were published the day after the second part of the documentary series premiered on Netflix. harry & meghan.

In it, the couple tells the complicated relationship they had with the British media before and after they got married, especially because of the impact that the coverage they received had on their life and mental health.

Markle He assures in the series that the “hate messages” on social networks against him made him fear for his life and even made him have suicidal thoughts.

In the “Harry and Meghan” documentary series, the Duchess of Sussex says she came to fear for her life. (NETFLIX).

In his column on the sunJeremy Clarkson wrote: “At night I can’t sleep as I lie there gnashing my teeth and dreaming of the day she [Markle] she will parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain, while crowds shout ‘Shame on you!’ and throw piles of excrement at him.”

“Everybody my age thinks the same way,” he added.

“But what drives me crazy is that younger people, especially girls, think that she’s cool. They think she was a prisoner at Buckingham Palace, forced to talk only about embroidery and kittens.”

Elsewhere in the text, Clarkson compared his hatred for Markle with his hatred for her. the first minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, or the serial killer Rose West.

“Meghan, though, is a different story. I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her with every cell.”

West was a serial killer who, along with her husband Fred, killed at least 12 girls over 20 years in the UK in the 1970s and 1980s.

The rejection of his words

Following numerous criticisms over the weekend, Clarkson posted a message on Twitter calling his reference to the “Game of Thrones” scene “clumsy,” which, he said, “resonated with a lot of people.” .

“I am horrified that I have caused so much damage and I will be more careful in the future,” he added.

Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it. In a column I wrote about Meghan, I made a clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones and this has gone down badly with a great many people. I’m horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in the future.

— Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) December 19, 2022

Ipso told the BBC that the complaints – which were almost equal to those received in all of 2021 (14,355) against all outlets – were being assessed in accordance with their standard procedure.

On Sunday, Clarkson’s own daughter said: “I want to make it very clear that I oppose everything my father wrote about Meghan Markle.”

“My views are and always have been clear when it comes to misogyny, harassment and the treatment of women by the media,” wrote Emily Clarkson, who is a well-known UK podcast host.

Emily Clarkson expressed her rejection of her father’s words about Markle. (GETTY IMAGES).

Scotland’s first minister told the BBC that he felt “pity” for the presenter.

“I can’t imagine what it must be like to be so consumed and distorted by hate against other people, and, in her case it seems, against women in particular, that you end up writing a vile and toxic insult,” said Nicola Sturgeon.

“The freedom of expression it is really important and one of the values ​​that we all cherish. But all of us, in exercising those important rights, we have to behave with a degree of responsibility”.

Source: Elcomercio