CBS is still promoting The Talk with a clip of Sharon Osbourne defending Meghan Markle against the ‘racist’ royal family – after firing the TV host when she stood up for Piers Morgan in a racism feud the next day.
The network has been accused of ‘hypocrisy’ about the incident by industry insiders – and a source close to Osbourne claims CBS is ‘exploiting the controversy for ratings’.
The feud started when Piers Morgan stormed out of the British chat show This Morning on March 9 after saying he didn’t believe Meghan’s story of alleged bullying and racist treatment by the royal family in a bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
The next day, Osbourne, 69, took a stand on The Talk, saying that while she disagreed with Piers, she supported his right to make the controversial comments on TV.
“I supported my friend with his freedom of speech and his opinion of what he felt about the interview with Meghan and Harry,” she said.
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Sharon Osbourne denounced the Royal Family and Queen, describing their alleged treatment of Meghan Markle as “ absolute racism at its peak ” in an episode of The Talk (pictured) that aired two days before her on-air racism feud
The four-minute clip remains on The Talk’s YouTube page, with ads attached, despite CBS firing Osbourne after defending Piers Morgan’s criticism of Markle.
Did I like everything he said, did I agree with what he said? No. Because it is his opinion, it is not my opinion. ‘
In the following days, anonymous allegations were posted by a blogger who accused Osbourne of calling her Chinese-American co-host Julie Chen ‘Wonton’ and ‘Slanty Eyes’ – allegations Osbourne loudly denied.
Two weeks later, CBS fired her from the show.
But despite giving Osbourne the cart, the channel still uses clips of her to promote the show.
In a four-minute section of the show that aired March 8, the day before Piers’ controversial comments, Osbourne denounced the Royal Family and Queen, describing their alleged mistreatment of Meghan Markle as “ absolute racism at its height. ” .
She also proclaimed Prince Andrew for not having his military medals stripped of child crime allegations through his friendship with the infamous late billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
On a March 10 episode of The Talk (above), Osbourne defended Morgan in an on-air debate with co-host Sheryl Underwood, who suggested he was racist for saying he was Markle’s story of alleged bullying and racist treatment by the royal. family did not believe. family
CBS said Osbourne’s March 10 bust-up was “ not in line with our values for a respectful workplace, ” but the episode remains available to watch online with ads attached.
Underwood and Osbourne are portrayed at the 41st annual Daytime Emmy Awards in 2014. Osbourne took a stand on The Talk and said that while she disagreed with Piers, she supported his right to make the controversial comments on TV.
The clip was posted on The Talk’s official YouTube channel to promote the chat show, with over 222,000 views.
And while CBS said Osbourne’s March 10 on-air bust-up was “ not in line with our values for a respectful workplace, ” the episode remains available to watch online – with ads attached.
A source close to Osbourne told DailyMail.com that the ongoing promotion was “on par with CBS, exploiting the controversy for ratings without understanding how to handle it from a content perspective.”
A Los Angeles TV insider who works as a consultant for CBS says Sharon is unhappy with what are “ essentially double standards. ”
“Obviously something isn’t right,” the source said. One minute, CBS says Sharon’s comments aren’t in line with their values, but then they’re keeping the entire show online in its entirety to get opinions.
And those shows have built ad segments around them too, so they make money from these views.
Osbourne (far right) and Underwood (second from left) got into a heated argument over Osbourne’s support for her boyfriend Piers Morgan (third from left), who has come under fire for comments he made about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Morgan posted this photo in February 2020 of the former panel from last year’s show. Left to right: Carrie Ann Inaba, Underwood, Morgan, Marie Osmond and Osbourne
The commercial arm of CBS seems inconsistent with the moral stance it publicly takes, given its statement about Sharon. It is clear why she would feel disadvantaged here. ‘
The source added: ‘Interestingly, the fact that a day earlier on the show Sharon Meghan vehemently defended and heavily criticized the Royals for their racism is also being used for commercial value.
‘Leaving that clip there seems like a kick in the teeth. CBS has overlooked its measured support for Meghan in the past. ‘
In her March 8 criticism of the Queen, Osbourne said the royal family had been ‘regrettable’.
‘How can you be the head of an empire, and if someone of color enters the royal family, he will not be paid, you are not a member of the royal family, your child will not become a prince, because he may have a different skin color? ‘ she said.
“Now that’s regrettable – that’s absolute racism at its peak.”
DailyMail.com has contacted CBS for comment.