Piers Morgan is under fire after posting a tribute to Larry King on Twitter that fans of the late host found tasteless.
King’s death was announced on Saturday after being hospitalized in late December with COVID-19, CNN reports.
Although celebrities began to flock to Twitter to tweet farewells to the legendary host, Morgan’s tribute about King rubbed fans the wrong way.
“Larry King was a hero of mine until we fell out after I replaced him at CNN & he said my show was ‘like watching your mother-in-law go over a cliff in your new Bentley.’ (He married 8 times so a mother-in-law expert) But he was a brilliant broadcaster & masterful TV interviewer” Morgan tweeted.
Shortly after his post, Morgan’s name began trending on Twitter with King’s fans slamming the controversial host for making the tribute more about himself rather than the deceased.
“The fact that you had to wait till Larry king passed, to post this drivel speaks volumes of your character. You’ll NEVER pull his numbers.... you’re the closest thing we have to Graham Norton here in the U.S.... only Graham has a personality... and interviewing skills,” one person wrote.
Another person added, “OMG! What is wrong with you? You couldn't leave your ego out of this or not throw shade for 280 measly characters? Not only was he a brilliant broadcaster and masterful interviewer, he also had class. I hope you aspire to possess that quality before you leave this earth too.”
Meanwhile, one person suggested Morgan should refrain from bragging about his time working for CNN.
“Larry King described your show perfectly. Your show was painful to watch. You had terrible ratings and you were fired from CNN. You forgot to mention that part,” the individual wrote.
King’s death was confirmed in a statement on his official Facebook page.
“With profound sadness, Ora Media announces the death of our co-founder, host, and friend Larry King, who passed away this morning at age 87 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles,” the statement read.
“For 63 years and across the platforms of radio, television and digital media, Larry’s many thousands of interviews, awards, and global acclaim stand as a testament to his unique and lasting talent as a broadcaster.”
Despite the backlash, Morgan has stood by his post about King. He responded to a fan who praised him for being “honest” and “respectful” rather than sharing a phony post.
“Larry hated me replacing him at CNN and never made any secret of it, which I found very sad because he was one of my heroes - but I still think he was a superb broadcaster & one of the all-time TV greats,” Morgan replied.
Piers Morgan joins the Daily Mail online as its editor-at-large, his first gig since CNN. Photo: Reuters
