By Ashley Young
Rupert Murdoch’s News UK has announced plans to hire Piers Morgan when it launches a national television station called talkTV.
The company said talkTV will go on air early next year and be available as a stream for Smart TVs and as a traditional television channel, with the company intending to spend the large sum required to secure slots on Freeview, FreeSat, Virgin Media and Sky.
News UK said it would hire some “exceptional talent” for the station. Morgan is also expected scheduled to write a column for the Sun, a book for the Murdoch-owned HarperCollins, and have his show produced on Murdoch-owned channels around the world.
Murdoch said: “Piers is the broadcaster every channel wants but is too afraid to hire. Piers is a brilliant presenter, a talented journalist and says what people are thinking and feeling.”
TV presenter , Susanna Reid posted on Twitter “Congratulations @piersmorgan” followed by a clapping hands emoji.
Last night Susanna and Piers were reunited for the first time since he sensationally quit GMB in March.
Piers Morgan was forced out of ITV’s Good Morning Britain, after Piers refused to apologise for comments made about Meghan Markle ’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, which drew over 50,000 complaints . He insisted it would be wrong for him to apologise for expressing his views
Celebrating his new role, Morgan said: “I’m thrilled to be returning to News Corp, which is where I began my media career more than 30 years ago.
“Rupert Murdoch has been a constant and fearless champion of free speech and we are going to be building something new and very exciting together.
“I want my global show to be a fearless forum for lively debate and agenda-setting interviews, and a place that celebrates the right of everyone to have an opinion, and for those opinions to be vigorously examined and challenged.
Once it is launched, the former GMB presenter will host a new show on TalkTV on weeknights in the UK, US and Australia.
Rupert Murdoch was instrumental in Piers Morgans career success by originally positioning as editor of News Of The World in 1994 when the journalist was just 29, making him the youngest editor of a national newspaper in over half a century at the time.
He became editor of the Daily Mirror, the next year in 1995 where he lasted 9 years before he was sacked in 2004. He moved on to working for CNN from 2011 to 2014 before getting the sack there too over his vocal views against gun licensing 8n the U.S.
The next year he was hired on Good Morning Britain , where he was a presenter for 6 years before he shot himself on the foot after he totally dismissed the Duchess Of Sussex’s account of mental health issues during an interview she and her husband Prince Harry had with Oprah Winfrey.
A report by Ofcom cleared the broadcaster after complaints by over 50000 people , as the regulator said adequate challenges against some of Poers Morgans views were presented by guests of the show and the co- presenters.
Piers Morgan took the ruling as a victory for freedom of speech, but Ofcom says its ruling was assessing the broadcaster s compliance with its code.
Viewers will be able to watch TalkTV on all platforms, including online, as well as receive updates on social media and a new website and app.
In addition, Morgan will be working as a columnist for The Sun and the New York Post, both of which are owned by News Corp.
The channel is being built out of the company’s radio stations which include talkRadio, talkSport, Times Radio and Virgin Radio. They already produce a substantial amount of video content at relatively low cost featuring presenters and guests talking in the studio.
TalkRadioTV has already soft-launched on Smart TV featuring Julia Hartley-Brewer, Mike Graham, Trisha Goddard, Rob Rinder and Jeremy Kyle.
News UK has been aggressively hiring big-name talent on large wages, having poached Chris Evans and Graham Norton from the BBC. The company often ties them into “360 deals”, where staff work across multiple News UK outlets – such as a column i