Susanna Reid has confessed to feeling in an 'awkward' position following the Ofcom ruling that cleared her former Good Morning Britain co-host Piers Morgan over his comments about Meghan Markle's mental health. The broadcasting regulator received 41,000 complaints after Morgan said he did not believe Meghan's claims that she felt suicidal while pregnant with her son Archie.
Ofcom ruled that while Morgan's remarks were 'potentially harmful and offensive', Good Morning Britain did not breach the broadcasting code, and Morgan was entitled to share his opinions. The 97-page ruling noted that Morgan had been challenged at the time by Reid and weather presenter Alex Beresford.
On Thursday's Good Morning Britain, Reid discussed the situation with co-host Ben Shephard and panelists Kevin Maguire and Andrew Pierce. She said: 'It's a slightly awkward moment right now. It's a very interesting decision. Ofcom included this very significant freedom of speech declaration.'
Kevin Maguire added: 'I think the tone was wrong, but anybody has to be free to discuss a very powerful public figure. It was the debate. If he hadn't been challenged the ruling could have been very different.' Ben Shephard agreed, saying: 'If we're in the news we have to hold our hands up and discuss it.'
Morgan, who quit Good Morning Britain after storming off set when Beresford challenged him, has since asked for his job back. He tweeted: 'I'm delighted OFCOM has endorsed my right to disbelieve the Duke & Duchess of Sussex's incendiary claims... This is a resounding victory for free speech.' He also claimed job offers have 'accelerated' since the ruling.
