Piers Morgan has responded to an open letter to ITV accusing him of “bullying and harassment”.
The Good Morning Britain star, 55, was recently embroiled in a Twitter spat with former Life Stories researcher Adeel Amini.
Their dispute began after Adeel revealed that he would “say no” to working with Piers again.
Since then, over 1,000 signatories have signed an open letter to ITV, which accuses the star of “bullying”.
An anonymous group of freelancers organised the letter, which became presented to ITV executives.
What did Piers Morgan say about the letter?
Earlier today (February 22), Piers responded: “Beyond parody. Mr Amini targeted me, saying he wanted to ‘poke the beast.’ I am therefore the victim.
These signatories are now victim-shaming me.
“These signatories are now victim-shaming me. I have no choice but to now report my own ordeal at the hands of these 1,200 victim-shaming bullies to ITV.”
Beyond parody.
a) Mr Amini targeted me, saying he wanted to ‘poke the beast.’
b) I am therefore the victim.
c) These signatories are now victim-shaming me.
d) I have no choice but to now report my own ordeal at the hands of these 1,200 victim-shaming bullies to ITV. https://t.co/udF5MZp2Cz— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) February 22, 2021
What has ITV said?
According to Deadline, the letter has reportedly been supported by a number of freelancers, commissioners and executive producers.
ITV has said: “ITV takes any allegations of bullying and harassment in the workplace very seriously indeed, and we are clear there is absolutely no place for it in ITV.
“We have an independent whistleblowing helpline which we communicate through our induction process and which we monitor on an on-going basis, in addition to our internal grievance procedures channels, which are open to both permanent members of staff and freelancers.
“Our firm understanding is that in this instance, the tweet in question was not accusing Piers of bullying and harassment whilst working on Life Stories.
“Having spoken to both parties, there is therefore no internal investigation.
“In terms of the separate issue of social media exchanges, we understand some producers wish to express their views on their personal platforms.
“We also think it is widely understood that Piers is a prolific and long-standing user of social media where he is well known for engaging in robust, heated exchanges, when criticism is levelled against him.
“However, twitter accounts and the decision to comment on each other are their personal choices.
“Piers is a freelance presenter and we do not control his output on social media, or the other media platforms he writes for.
“To reiterate, we are clear there is no room for bullying at ITV and it is not tolerated.
“We are supportive and engaged members of Coalition for Change, and we will continue to work productively with colleagues across the industry.”
ED! has contacted Piers’ rep for comment.
Read more: Piers Morgan hits back at Prince Charles’ critics as he visits ‘seriously ill’ father in hospital
Who is Adeel Amini?
Meanwhile, Adeel previously worked with Piers on his ITV show Life Stories.
Hitting out at Piers, he previously tweeted: “I’m gonna poke the beast here.
“TV freelancers: would you turn down a job based on a company’s previous output / who the presenter was / what message the show sends?”
Furthermore, Adeel shared: “(Full disclosure: I worked on P*ers M*rgan’s Life Stories as a researcher but now I’d very much say no).”
Piers receives death threats
The news come days after Piers revealed he has been the subject of online death threats.
Announcing the news on Instagram, he said: “Another day, another death threat…”
He then revealed the name of the troll and asked his followers: “Anyone know who he is? Let’s see how big and tough he feels when I give him the exposure he deserves.”
The online user had earlier told Piers: “Your [sic] a marked man. Calling the police, big tech or beefing up your security isn’t going to stop us getting to you.
Read more: Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan backs Kate Garraway over COVID vaccine passport row
“This isn’t a threat Piers, it’s a promise. You [sic] getting killed.”
Piers later contacted the police over the matter.
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