Press watchdog launches probe into Jeremy Clarkson’s Meghan Markle article published by The Sun

Jeremy Clarkson (left) said he hated the Duchess of Sussex in the article published by The Sun. Credit: PA

The Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) has launched an investigation into the column written by Jeremy Clarkson for The Sun about the Duchess of Sussex.

The media regulator confirmed it is taking forward two groups of complaints, from The Fawcett Society and the Wilde Foundation, which claim they were affected by breaches in accuracy, harassment and discrimination.

The article, in which 62-year-old Clarkson said he hated Meghan and dreamed of her being paraded through British towns and publicly shamed, became Ipso’s most complained-about article after its publication, receiving more than 25,100 complaints.

TV presenter Clarkson later apologised for the piece, describing his language as “disgraceful” and said he was “profoundly sorry”.

The Sun also apologised and said it regretted the publication of the column, which was removed from its website.

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Clarkson received a huge backlash over his comments about Meghan Markle.

The Duke of Sussex branded the article about his wife “horrific, hurtful and cruel” during an interview with ITV News presenter Tom Bradby to discuss his autobiography Spare.

Prince Harry added that what Clarkson had written would encourage people around the world to believe it is an acceptable way to treat women.

The Fawcett Society is a charity that campaigns for gender equality and women’s rights, while the Wilde Foundation is a platform created to “promote, educate, empower and heal women and girls, victims and survivors of all kinds of abuse”, its website said.

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Ipso confirmed the conclusion of the investigation will be made public.

Former Top Gear presenter Clarkson co-hosts Amazon Prime TV series The Grand Tour, and documentary series Clarkson’s Farm follows his efforts to run an Oxfordshire farm he bought in 2008.

Clarkson also took over from Chris Tarrant as the presenter of long-running ITV gameshow Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? in 2018.

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