15:38 PST 3/10/2021
in
Alex Ritman
The actor also claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “broke the golden rule” by daring to face the British press.
Steve Coogan strongly criticized Piers Morgan on Wednesday night, accusing the TV presenter and former Daily mirror the newspaper’s editor as “symptomatic of the problem” with British tabloids, pointing to his “aggressive behavior” as a perfect example.
Actor and press reform activist, speaking with policy editor Robert Peston on the ITV evening show Peston, made the claims just a day after Morgan left drastically as co-host of ITV’s Good morning Great Britain amid growing condemnation for comments he made about Meghan Markle following the explosive real interview with Oprah Winfrey. Morgan faced widespread criticism for his taunts against Markle in Monday’s episode of the breakfast news, in particular for saying he didn’t believe the Duchess’s story about feeling suicidal and asking for help from Buckingham Palace, only to be rejected.
“Who were you? What did they say to you? I’m sorry, I don’t believe a word of what she said, Meghan Markle,” he said. “I wouldn’t believe it if she read me a weather report.”
Coogan cited the investigation into Morgan’s comments by British regulator Ofcom, triggered after he received more than 41,000 complaints.
“Ofcom is investigating Piers Morgan for not believing Meghan’s mental health claims,” he said. “But they should be investigating whether the man cited by dozens of claimants in the Mirror hacking dispute was certain to have permission for a platform to attack one of his accusers.”
The actor was referring to the infamous phone hacking scandal that broke out in the late 2000s, in which it was revealed that UK tabloid newspapers had illegally intercepted voicemail messages from hundreds of celebrities, politicians and even murder victims. for information. for stories. In 2019, Prince Harry initiated legal proceedings against The sun and The Daily Mirror “about the illegal interception of voicemail messages” dating back to the early 2000s, when Morgan edited the newspaper.
In 2017, Coogan won a six-figure deal for The Daily Mirrorafter it was discovered that his phone was also among those who were hacked, again under the direction of Morgan.
At the time, he claimed that Morgan and his fellow editors and executives at The Mirror Group were not “subjected to proper scrutiny” after the revelations of the Leveson Inquiry, the public inquiry into the ethics of UK media practices – particularly on allegations phone hacking – which ultimately led to the closure of Rupert Murdoch The world news. Morgan has regularly stated that he was unaware of hacking incidents in The Daily Mirror.
Speaking to Peston, who repeatedly tried to stop Coogan from discussing the hacker scandal and Morgan’s alleged involvement, Coogan cast doubt on the exit. Good morning Great Britain host claims.
“Piers Morgan, for several years in front of the Leveson Inquiry, swore under oath that he was unaware of hacking Mirror Group newspapers. And The Mirror Group newspapers paid tens of millions [of pounds] in damages to litigants. “
Coogan repeatedly requested a second part of the investigation, with the aim of finding out the individuals who were involved in the hacking and those who knew it was taking place.
Speaking of Prince Harry and Markle, Coogan stated that the two became the subject of the relentless tabloid scrutiny they described in Oprah’s interview because they dared to criticize the British press, and that “things got really nasty” after they sued The sun, The mirror and The Daily Mail.
“The fact that Meghan Markle and Harry were attacked has nothing to do with the hypocrisy of the jet set,” he said. “It’s because they broke the golden rule, which is to leave us alone and we’ll take it easy with you next time.”
Coogan added: “The sensationalist press is controlled by a handful of shy fiscal billionaires with an agenda. Anyone who opposes the press is attacked by them because they are bullies.”