The Sun must take action against Jeremy Clarkson
A healthy debate may be necessary over Harry and Meghan's future in the Royal Family, but Clarkson's comments must be called out for what they are.
I’m all for press freedom, and columnists talking their minds. After all, that’s what I’m about to do. I also don’t need to inform you, dear readers, of the merits of buying a newspaper, particularly in this day and age of social media, technology and online life. But just as they rightly may speak their mind, there comes a time when some take it too far, on both the Left and Right. When the line is crossed, action must be taken.
That line has indeed been crossed by Jeremy Clarkson recently. The TV presenter and broadcaster has been long known for his straight-talking, often controversial views. Admittedly, this has been one of his virtues, according to fans. But even some of them must have been shocked to read, or hear from others, the writings of Clarkson on the weekend. In a column for the Sun, the 62-year-old proffered, in a foul-mouthed tirade about Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex:
“I hate her [Meghan]. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level. At night, I’m unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant, “Shame!” and throw lumps of excrement at her. Everyone who’s my age thinks the same way.”
The latter end of Clarkson’s comments references a scene from the TV hit, Game of Thrones, which he later described as “clumsy” in what was meant to be an apologetic tweet for his column. But this evidently was not enough, even for his daughter, Emily, who derided her father’s critiques on Instagram. Other key figures who decried Clarkson’s observations included fellow TV presenter Carol Vorderman, comedian John Bishop and former tennis star Martina Navratilova. The general public was not impressed either, with 6,000 complaints to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) followed after Clarkson’s column. Unsurprisingly, the Sun immediately removed Clarkson’s column from its website at his request, they said.
As I wrote earlier this month, my level of sympathy for the Sussexes has been decreasing - yet, despite this, I said I recognised how deeply intrusive some of the coverage, particularly from the Right-wing media, has been towards the couple. The way some of the commentaries have been going, one would swear the pair had inflicted nuclear warfare on the globe.
How the writings in this particular column from Clarkson received the green light from the Sun’s editors, I will never know. Who could have possibly read such a piece and thought, ‘Yes, that’s pretty good stuff, there! That’ll go down well with our readers.’
But what must now come is firm action. There, of course, should be a debate about the Sussexes; it is right for columnists and those within the media to discuss the Sussexes’ role now they have left the Royal Family’s inner circle. But there is a line - and Clarkson has well and truly crossed it.
In relation to the TV broadcaster, Members of Parliament have recognised the need for such action. 65 MPs from across the House of Commons from all parties signed a letter by Conservative MP and former cabinet minister, Caroline Nokes, who chairs the Women and Equalities select committee, to the Sun’s editor, Victoria Newton.
“This sort of language has no place in our country, and it is unacceptable that it was allowed to be published in a mainstream newspaper,” they wrote, adding, “Enough is enough. We cannot allow this type of behaviour to go unchecked any longer. We welcome The Sun’s retraction of the article, we now demand action is taken against Mr Clarkson and an unreserved apology is issued to Ms Markle immediately.”
Clarkson’s comments should be called out for what they are: vile misogyny. Until the Sun - and Newton, as its editor - release a complete statement in relation to: a) Clarkson’s position as a columnist; b) why the newspaper believed it correct to publish such an opinion piece; c) what they will subsequently do in the future, as a result of this fiasco. And until the Sun does as such, no proper action against Jeremy Clarkson will have been duly fulfilled.