Jeremy Clarkson's Meghan Markle column censored by UK regulator for 'harmful reference to Duchess of Sussex' sex'

The controversial Jeremy Clarkson Sun column last year that slammed Meghan Markle was censured for "a pejorative and damaging reference to the sex of the Duchess of Sussex", but escaped punishment for harassing her or being harmful because of her race.

UK newspaper regulator IPSO immediately ordered Rupert Murdoch's UK newspaper to publish a summary of the findings on the same page when the column appears with the home page and on its website.

IPSO has ruled that the former Top Gear host, titled " Someday, Harold the Glove Puppet Will Speak the Truth on A Woman Talking B*****ks", contained a "pejorative and detrimental reference to the sex of the Duchess".

The column, which was published in December 2022, said Markle should be "made to scroll naked through the streets of every town in Britain as crowds chant "Shame!" and throw pieces of excrement at him" - a reference to a famous atonement march scene involving Queen Cersei (Lena Headey) in season 5 of Game of Thrones.

This caused immense fallout, with Amazon's Prime Video likely dropping the < em>Clarkson's Farm host in the future and ITV, which airs Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? hosted by Clarkson, face some tricky questions. ITV boss Carolyn McCall previously said there was 'no room' for comment on her channel and question marks remain over whether her contract Who Wants To Win millions? will be renewed.

"This was a serious violation of the editors' code of ethics", wrote said IPSO President Lord Faulks. "We found the imagery employed by the columnist in this article to be humiliating and demeaning to the Duchess."

Expanding on the ruling, IPSO said there were a number of references, including "that the Duchess wielded power through her sexual hold over her husband,” as well as comparisons to former Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon and convicted serial killer Rose West.

"The only clear common characteristic between the three was their gender and the writer's 'hatred' “, added the judgment. "It highlighted her position as a specifically female negative role model by referring to the Duchess' influence on 'young people, especially girls'."

IPSO, however, has not confirmed separate elements of the thousands of complaints about the column that she was inaccurate, harassed Markle, or included references that discriminated against her because of her race.

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