Sign Up
..... Connect Australia with the world.
Categories

Posted: 2023-07-01 21:01:18

A column in The Sun tabloid that fantasised about seeing Prince Harry's wife, Meghan, being pelted with faeces as she was paraded naked through the streets was sexist, Britain's press watchdog has found. 

The column by TV personality Jeremy Clarkson in December described how he hated the Duchess of Sussex "on a cellular level".

He said she used "vivid bedroom promises" to turn Harry into a "warrior of woke" and controlled him like a sock puppet.

"The imagery employed by the columnist in this article was humiliating and degrading toward the duchess," said Edward Faulks, chairman of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO).

"IPSO's purpose is to protect the public and freedom of expression by upholding high editorial standards. In this case, The Sun failed to meet these standards."

The independent organisation, which most UK newspapers, magazines and digital news outlets voluntarily commit to be regulated by, found that multiple "pejorative and prejudicial" references to Meghan's sex breached its editors' code.

The opinion piece by TV personality Jeremy Clarkson inspired a record number of complaints to the UK press watchdog.()

"Stereotypes about women using their sexuality to exert influence … implied that it was the duchess's sexuality — rather than any other attribute or accomplishment — which was the source of her power," the findings said.

The article inspired a record number of complaints to the regulator, which required the newspaper to inform its readers of the findings released late on Friday.

The newspaper printed a headline "Jeremy Clarkson: IPSO Upholds Complaint" at the bottom of its front page Saturday and directed readers to a summary of the report where Clarkson's column typically appears on page 17.

The newspaper had removed the column and apologised in December.

Clarkson, who made his name as the combative host of the BBC car show Top Gear and hosts motoring show The Grand Tour on Amazon, previously said he was "horrified" after the blowback.

He apologised and promised to be more careful.

Clarkson's daughter had been among those who blasted the column.

"I stand against everything that my dad wrote about Meghan Markle and I remain standing in support of those that are targeted with online hatred," Emily Clarkson posted on Instagram.

Jeremy Clarkson said the image of him dreaming of Meghan being publicly shamed was a "clumsy reference" to a scene in Game of Thrones.

The column followed the release of a six-part Netflix documentary about Harry and Meghan's acrimonious split from the British royal family.

View More
  • 0 Comment(s)
Captcha Challenge
Reload Image
Type in the verification code above