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Piers Morgan hits out at Brexit ‘breaking news’ that does not warrant news alert
Piers Morgan with Good Morning Britain co-presenter Charlotte Hawkins. Photograph: ITV. - Credit: Archant
Piers Morgan has criticised the use of 'breaking news' alerts to give pointless updates on the Brexit negotiations.
Charlotte Hawkins updates Good Morning Britain viewers on breaking news. Photograph: ITV. - Credit: Archant
The Good Morning Britain presenter was interrupted by co-presenter Charlotte Hawkins who wanted to deliver some "breaking news" on Brexit, as the banner flashed across the screen.
But the news was just to inform viewers that prime minister Boris Johnson had just met with DUP leader Arlene Foster to discuss Brexit.
Hawkins added that the details of any agreed deal would be announced later.
Morgan objected to this being worth moving away from the news schedule as an update, given there was no further information.
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"Well, what are they? What's the breaking news?" he asked his co-presenter.
Hawkins responded: "The breaking news is Boris Johnson has met Arlene Foster and the consequences of that, we're going to be hearing new proposals this morning."
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"Well, the breaking news is you don't know what the news is," snapped Morgan. "No-one knows what it is apart from the prime minster and Arlene Foster at the moment."
He continued: "It's like taking a camel to an oasis and saying you can't have a drink."
Defending her update, however, Hawkins continued: "We are alerting people to the fact there has been a development and there will be further details coming later this morning."
But Morgan still remained unimpressed: "There's some really big breaking news everybody we just can't tell you what it is, we don't know."
Mocking the alert, he continued: "A major incident has happened in the world and I can't tell you what it is but I'm alerting you to it."
Getting heated, Hawkins said: "I tell you what there'll be a major incident in the Good Morning Britain studios in a minute. Zip it, okay? I'm trying to tell people breaking news! Stop butting in, it's breaking news, people at home will probably want to hear that."
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