Meghan Markle Responds To Jeremy Clarkson’s Controversial Column Apology – “PR Stunt”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have condemned The Sun newspaper for issuing an apology over the controversial column written by Jeremy Clarkson in which he expressed his hatred for Meghan Markle. The couple’s spokesperson described the apology as “nothing more than a PR stunt,” highlighting that the newspaper wasn’t interested in actually making a true apology.
The controversial column annoyed readers so much, The Grand Tour presenter eventually asked The Sun to un-publish it from their website. It received a significant number of complaints, with the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) reporting over 17,500 complaints by 9am on Tuesday, December 20, and over 20,800 by 5pm the same day. In the column, Clarkson, the former host of Top Gear, admitted to hating Meghan “on a cellular level” and expressed his desire for her to be “paraded naked through the streets.”
Clarkson took to Twitter to apologise for his writing, but fans weren’t happy with this attempt.
He wrote:
“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 future.”
The Sun also issued an apology where his article used to stand on the website:
“In last Saturday’sSun, Jeremy Clarkson wrote a comment article about the Duchess of Sussex.
“It provoked a strong response and led to a large number of complaints to IPSO, the independent press regulator.
“In a tweet earlier this week, Jeremy said he had made a “clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones”, which had “gone down badly with a great many people” and he was “horrified to have caused so much hurt”. He also said he will be more careful in future.
“Columnists’ opinions are their own, but as a publisher, we realise that with free expression comes responsibility.
“We at The Sun regret the publication of this article and we are sincerely sorry. The article has been removed from our website and archives.”
Now, Meghan Markle’s spokesperson has responded:
“The fact that the Sun has not contacted The Duchess of Sussex to apologise shows their intent.
“This is nothing more than a PR stunt. While the public absolutely deserves the publication’s regrets for their dangerous comments, we wouldn’t be in this situation if The Sun did not continue to profit off of and exploit hate, violence and misogyny.
“A true apology would be a shift in their coverage and ethical standards for all.
“Unfortunately, we’re not holding our breath.”