Megan Barnard Responds To Former Colleague Tom Morris’ ‘Degrading’ Comments
Image: Megan Barnard and Tom Morris
On Thursday last week, Fox Sports presenter Megan Barnard’s personal life was made devastatingly public following a leaked WhasApp audio, which allegedly contained sexist and homophobic slurs made against her by former colleague Tom Morris.
The incident showed that homophobia and sexism is still extremely rampant in the sports industry and in the broader mainstream culture.
Morris was sacked on Friday from Fox Sports due to the “unacceptable” remarks which were shared widely on social media. Morris took to Twitter to apologise, admitting he had demonstrated “disgusting and disgraceful” behaviour.
Morris’ comments began a wave of support for Barnard both from the media and public, including influential sporting figures such as AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan.
‘Coming Out Should Never Be Taken Out Of Someone’s Hands’
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“I have been overwhelmed by the amount of support I have received over the past few days in response to the comments about me in the media,” Barnard, who is currently in New Zealand anchoring coverage of the ICC Women’s World Cup, wrote on Instagram.
She wrote “to everyone who has reached out, thank you. Fortunately, I am at a place in my life where I am comfortable with who I am and I can handle something deeply personal becoming public. But had this happened as recently as a few years ago, it would not have been the case. Coming out is a process and should never be taken out of someone’s hands. Nor should anyone be spoke about in such a degrading manner. I hope my experience can be a catalyst for change in not just the sports industry, but in every industry.”
Tom Morris Sacked
Fox Sports terminated Morris’s contract, claiming a “zero tolerance” policy. “Our culture at Fox Sports is based on a respectful, inclusive environment and a fair go for all,” Fox Sports executive director Steve Crawley wrote.
“While Tom’s Journalism has made a valuable contribution to Fox Sports over the past seven years, the message we became aware of yesterday crossed the line,” the statement said.
Morris apologised on Friday via Twitter. However, one was left to wonder whether the remorse was genuine or it came due to being caught red handed and having his vile and homophobic and sexist comments become public.
