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Piers Morgan To Produce Starz Drama About The Rise Of Tabloid Journalism In England

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday May 8, 2013 @ 11:22am PDTTags: Piers Morgan, Starz
Nellie Andreeva

Piers Morgan Tabloid ShowStarz has put in development Fleet Street, a drama project executive produced by British journalist and CNN anchor Piers Morgan, which is set in 1970’s England and chronicles the rise of tabloid journalism, the sexual revolution and class warfare, all seen through the eyes of an American journalist.

The drama will be produced by Lionsgate in association with Richard Branson’s Virgin Produced, Octagon Entertainment and Piers Morgan’s Ferret Prods. and executive produced by Morgan, Octagon’s Managing Director John Ferriter, who reps Morgan, and Jason Felts, Justin Berfield and Michael Forman of Virgin Produced.  BAFTA Award- winning screenwriter Danny Brocklehurst (Shameless UK) will write the pilot episode and also serve as executive producer. “Imagine an industry where every single opponent worked in the same street, competing with each other by day – drinking, brawling, fornicating, nightclubbing and cocaine-snorting with each other by night,” said Morgan, who has intimate knowledge of the British tabloid industry, having worked for The Sun and served as editor of News Of The World and Daily Mirror in the 1990s and early 2000s. “A street full of the most ruthless and amoral people in the world existed, and it was called Fleet Street. In the early ’70s, it became the breeding ground for modern popular journalism, as foreign media tycoons stomped over the British establishment to re-define ‘news,’suddenly exposing the rich, powerful and famous in spectacular front-page scoops. It was the dawn of the celebrity era, in all its gruesome detail – a revolution that changed pop culture, and the relationship between the press and politicians, royals, and stars. Fleet Street in the ’70s was a hotbed of scoops, shagging, flairs and devastating world that was also unbelievably exciting.”

The project reunites Starz with Lionsgate, which produced recently cancelled drama Boss. “STARZ is looking forward to working with Lionsgate again on a project we have a tremendous amount of faith in,” said Starz CEO Chris Albrecht.  “Fleet Street in the 70’s was the Madison Avenue of the media world.” Morgan’s tenure at the Daily Mirror was mired in controversy, not only because of his public firing over publishing fake photos but also because of the paper’s alleged involvement in the phone hacking scandal.

 

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CNN’s ‘Piers Morgan Tonight’ Now ‘Piers Morgan Live’

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Monday March 11, 2013 @ 6:27pm PDTTags: CNN, Jeff Zucker, Piers Morgan, Piers Morgan Live

There’s a new show on Jeff Zucker’s work in progress, aka CNN, tonight. Or rather, a 2-year-old show on CNN actually has a new name as of today. “Tonight the show … Read More »

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‘Piers Morgan Tonight’ Sinks To 2013 Low: Only 87K Viewers In Key Demo

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday March 1, 2013 @ 4:04pm PSTTags: CNN, Piers Morgan, Piers Morgan Tonight, TV Ratings

Following what many saw as a preview of what CNN’s mornings might look like with Chris Cuomo and presumptive co-host Erin Burnett, Jeff Zucker’s network-in-progress got more bad ratings news. For the second day in a row, … Read More »

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Chelsea Handler Vs. Piers Morgan: Video

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday January 31, 2013 @ 7:54pm PSTTags: Chelsea Handler, Chelsea Lately, Piers Morgan

Sometimes latenight TV hosts have all the fun. Last night on E!’s Chelsea Lately, CNN’s Piers Morgan was a guest on Chelsea Handler’s show. It began something like this. Handler asked Morgan “What are you looking at?” To which Morgan replied “Well, you’ve either had plastic surgery or makeup because … Read More »

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SNL’s Lance Armstrong Cold Open

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Sunday January 20, 2013 @ 12:12am PSTTags: Lance Armstrong, Piers Morgan, Saturday Night Live

But in Saturday Night Live‘s alternate universe it was Piers Morgan interviewing the not-particularly-contrite athlete plus talking to Manti Te’o concerning his girlfriend issues and to Jodie Foster about her Golden Globes speech.

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Incoming CNN President Jeff Zucker Backs Piers Morgan’s Stance On Gun Control

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Tuesday January 15, 2013 @ 3:00pm PSTTags: CNN, Jeff Zucker, Piers Morgan

The issue came up today during a CNN town hall staff meeting when soon-to-be-network president Jeff Zucker was asked his thoughts about the network expressing opinion. Zucker said he supported it where appropriate, noting Piers Morgan’s … Read More »

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White House Politely Disses Piers Morgan Deportation Petition

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Wednesday January 9, 2013 @ 1:27pm PSTTags: CNN, Piers Morgan

The White House today surprised no one by saying it won’t be sending Piers Morgan back to the UK for his opinion on guns — despite a petition that has garnered more than 109,330 signatures. “Americans may disagree on matters of public policy and express those disagreements vigorously, but no one should be punished by the government simply because he or she expressed a view on the Second Amendment — or any other matter of public concern,” wrote Press Secretary Jay Carney today on the White House blog. “President Obama has officially decided I am NOT being deported,” wrote Morgan Wednesday on Twitter after the White House posted its response. Late last year, the Piers Morgan Tonight host sparked the wrath of radio host Alex Jones and others with his response to the December 14 Sandy Hook shooting and call for stricter gun control in America. Seeking UK-born Morgan’s deportation in an online petition, gun rights supporters accused the CNN host of launching “a hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution by targeting the Second Amendment.”

Related: ‘Deport Piers Morgan’ Petition Creator Goes Ballistic In Faceoff With Morgan On CNN Read More »

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‘Deport Piers Morgan’ Petition Creator Goes Ballistic In Faceoff With Morgan On CNN

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday January 7, 2013 @ 8:19pm PSTTags: Piers Morgan
Nellie Andreeva

The much hyped debate tonight between CNN’s Piers Morgan and radio host Alex Jones, one of the men behind the White House petition to deport the British host, wasn’t much of a debate but lived up to its billing as riveting television of the trainwreck variety. Morgan could barely ask a question over Jones who came armed with statistics and blew up two minutes into the interview, pointing his finger at Morgan. “I’m here to tell you — 1776 will commence again if you try to take our firearms! It doesn’t matter how many lemmings you have out there on the street begging for them to have their guns taken. We will not relinquish them. Do you understand?” Jones later went on a personal attack against Morgan and his alleged involvement in the Britain’s phone hacking scandal. “Why don’t you get back and face the charges for the hacking scandal? Why did you get fired from the Daily Mirror for putting out fake stories? You’re a hatchet man of the New World Order. You’re a hatchet man!” It is worth noting that the official CNN video cuts right before Jones’ comments about Morgan. A non-edited YouTube version of the first part of the interview is at the bottom of the post.

After realizing that there was a zero chance for debate, Morgan changed tactics, prompting Jones to air his controversial conspiracy theory believes that the U.S. government is giving citizens “suicide mass murder pills” and that the military industrial complex was behind the 9/11 attack. “He perfectly exemplifies the problem,” Morgan said of Jones later on the show.

As for the petition, which has garnered 104,000 signatures to date, it was addressed today by White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. “The White House responds to all petitions that cross the threshold and we will respond to this one,” he said. “In the meantime, it is worth remembering that the freedom of expression is a bedrock principle in our democracy.” Read More »

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CNN’s Piers Morgan Hits Back At Critics, Threatens To Leave US Over Lax Gun Laws

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Sunday December 30, 2012 @ 11:58am PSTTags: Piers Morgan
Nellie Andreeva

Defiant CNN host Piers Morgan added more fire to his public fight with gun supporters in a column published in the Daily Mail.

Morgan has been at odds with gun advocates since the Dec. 14 Sandy Hook massacre, which prompted the British journalist to launch an aggressive pro-gun control campaign on his show, clashing with gun lobbyists, including his verbal spat with Gun Owners of America head Larry Pratt whom Morgan told on the air, “You are an unbelievably stupid man.” Morgan’s gun control crusade led to a White House petition by gun advocates asking for Morgan’s deportation because of his “hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution by targeting the Second Amendment.” The petition has garnered more than 91,000 signatures to date, prompting Morgan to quip on Twitter, “Still only 90,000 Americans have signed the White House petition to deport me. That leaves 310,910,00 who presumably want me to stay.”

He went further in his column. ”I will not stop in my own efforts to keep the gun-control debate firmly in people’s minds, however much abuse I’m subjected to,” he wrote. Read More »

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Michael Moore Challenges Piers Morgan On CNN’s Hurricane Sandy Coverage

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday November 1, 2012 @ 11:54am PDTTags: Hurricane Sandy, Michael Moore, Piers Morgan

Michael Moore took on Piers Morgan last night over the media’s coverage, specifically CNN, of Hurricane Sandy, saying there needed to be fewer reporters standing outside in drenching rain and wind and more news of what was actually going on. Morgan disagreed, saying the images showed how … Read More »

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Global Showbiz Briefs: Phone Hacking; ‘Downton Abbey’; France’s CNC; Oz’s Ten

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Tuesday October 23, 2012 @ 1:56am PDTTags: Downton Abbey, Network Ten, Piers Morgan

Phone-Hacking Allegations Hit Mirror Newspapers
Until yesterday, phone-hacking claims had been limited to papers owned by News Corp.’s UK press arm. Now, Britain’s Mirror Group Newspapers may be brought into the scandal as four individuals line up cases against its titles. Among those seeking damages are former manager of the English soccer team, Sven Goran Eriksson; a former nanny to David Beckham’s children and a TV soap actress. Eriksson’s claims against the Daily Mirror are believed to stem from a period when CNN host Piers Morgan was editor. Morgan gave evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into UK media ethics late last year at which time he said he had no knowledge or reason to believe there was any phone hacking at the paper during his tenure. The claims against Mirror papers allege “breach of confidence and misuse of private information,” in relation to the “interception and/or misuse of mobile phone voicemail messages and/or the interception of telephone accounts.” The attorney for the claimants, Mark Lewis, said no particulars had been filed, but that relevant dates relating to alleged activity were submitted to the court, The Guardian reports. A spokesman for MGN parent, Trinity Mirror, said: “We have no comment. We are unaware action has been taken at the High Court.”

Downton Abbey Hits New Season High In UK Overnights, Debuts In NZ
Downton Abbey was up again Sunday night on the UK’s ITV. The sixth episode of Season 3 hit an overnight ratings high of 9.69M viewers during the 9pm hour. That score, a 36.6% share, beat the season’s previous top performer which drew 9.66M viewers in the overnights on Oct. 1. Factoring in Sunday’s delayed viewings, Downton drew just over 10M viewers. Meanwhile, in New Zealand, season 3 of the show kicked off this weekend on free-to-air web Prime drawing top ratings with just over 350K viewers. Read More »

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Phone Hacking Roundup: Mills Slams Morgan, Police Officer Arrested, Former Employee Legal Fees & ‘The Cult Of Piers’ At UK’s Daily Mirror

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday December 21, 2011 @ 9:35pm PSTTags: Andy Coulson, News of the World, Phone Hacking, Piers Morgan

UPDATE: Paul McCartney’s ex-wife Heather Mills has declared she is being made a “scapegoat” by Piers Morgan. Mills’ name popped up repeatedly at a Tuesday session of the Leveson Inquiry into UK press ethics … Read More »

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Piers Morgan Denies Any UK Phone Hacking

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday December 20, 2011 @ 9:39am PSTTags: Paul McCartney, Phone Hacking, Piers Morgan

CNN talk show host Piers Morgan denied any wrongdoing in the current phone-hacking scandal that has rocked the British media. At the end of a very tough session of the Leveson Inquiry into UK press ethics, Morgan told the panel he felt “like a rock star having an album of his worst ever hits” thrust at him as the former News Of The World and Daily Mirror editor. Sitting under a halo of soft light in an unadorned room back in Los Angeles, Morgan spent over two hours giving evidence on such topics as rumor mongering, phone hacking, and Paul McCartney’s voicemails. His testimony was piped into the inquiry room in London, where the exchanges were decidedly strained. It all got off to a rocky start when Robert Jay, counsel for the inquiry, asked Morgan to confirm he was currently employed by CNN. “Yes, it’s clearly passed you by, Mr. Jay,” Morgan quipped when Jay said he’d heard the cable news network’s Piers Morgan Tonight was “apparently” very popular in America. Jay then consistently brought up past interviews and passages from Morgan’s own books to challenge the CNN host. Morgan said he’d never to his knowledge listened to what he believed to be illegally obtained messages, and said he had no knowledge or reason to believe there was phone hacking at the Daily Mirror during his tenure. At one point, Jay exclaimed: “Oh, come on Mr Morgan, [the Mirror] was at the top of the list of the perpetrators. And you well know that.” Morgan shot back: “You also know not a single person has made a formal complaint against the Daily Mirror. So why would you say that?” Read More »

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Howard Stern Answers Critics Of His New Job As ‘America’s Got Talent’ Judge

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Sunday December 18, 2011 @ 7:13am PSTTags: America's Got Talent, Clint Eastwood, Howard Stern, Piers Morgan
Mike Fleming

When Howard Stern finally made a deal to join Howie Mandel and Sharon Osbourne as a judge on America’s Got Talent, the radio icon was immediately criticized by morality groups like the Parents Television Council. Stern in the … Read More »

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Piers Morgan To Answer Hacking Questions At UK Inquiry Next Week

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday December 15, 2011 @ 2:19pm PSTTags: Daily Mirror, Phone Hacking, Piers Morgan

Piers Morgan, the CNN host who was editor of News Corp’s now-shuttered News of the World between 1994-95, will appear next week before a UK inquiry investigating media ethics in the wake of the tabloid’s phone-hacking scandal. The Piers Morgan … Read More »

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Piers Morgan Logs His Lowest-Rated Month

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday November 29, 2011 @ 4:49pm PSTTags: Cable News Ratings, CNN, Fox News, Lawrence O'Donnell, Piers Morgan
Nellie Andreeva

A month shy of his one-year anniversary at CNN, Piers Morgan just posted his lowest-rated month to date in the key adults 25-54 demographic. His Piers Morgan Tonight averaged 154,000 viewers in the demo in November. That was down 4% … Read More »

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Howard Stern For ‘America’s Got Talent’?

By MIKE FLEMING JR | Thursday November 10, 2011 @ 2:16pm PSTTags: America's Got Talent, Howard Stern, NBC, Piers Morgan
Mike Fleming

Piers Morgan Leaves ‘America’s Got Talent’

A report in the Wall Street Journal has Howard Stern in talks with NBC to succeed Piers Morgan as host of America’s Got Talent, working alongside Howie Mandel and Sharon Osbourne. Stern is … Read More »

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Piers Morgan Leaves ‘America’s Got Talent’

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday November 9, 2011 @ 7:13pm PSTTags: America's Got Talent, Piers Morgan
Nellie Andreeva

NBC brass’ blessing was key in Piers Morgan landing his talk show host gig on CNN because he was under contract at the broadcast network as a judge on America’s Got Talent. Now Morgan is leaving NBC, which allowed him … Read More »

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‘Dolphin Tale’ Producer Says About Morgan Freeman’s Anti-Tea Party Remarks: “I Do Not Believe It Affected Even One Dollar!”

By NIKKI FINKE, Editor in Chief | Sunday September 25, 2011 @ 10:34am PDTTags: Alcon Entertainment, Andrew Kosove, Dolphin Tale, Morgan Freeman, Piers Morgan, Tea Party, Warner Bros

Between now and the 2012 presidential election, Hollywood filmmakers will be put under even more scrutiny for every political statement they make. The latest twist is whether the movie moguls think politically outspoken actors shouldn’t be cast because 50% of the country who … Read More »

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