Following the release of a private conversation on Thursday where he made inappropriate comments about colleague Megan Barnard, Fox Sports sacked Tom Morris on Friday.
Fox Sports released this statement on Friday:
Fox Sports today confirmed that reporter Tom Morris will not return to his employment following an investigation into an inappropriate WhatsApp audio recording.
Fox Sports executive director Steve Crawley said: “Our culture at Fox Sports is based on a respectful, inclusive environment and a fair go for all.
“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. It was unacceptable.
“We have the best in the business working at Fox Sports. We love what we do, and we have a reputation as a great place to work. The bottom line is we are committed to a work environment where everyone can come to work in the knowledge they are safe, respected and valued. We have zero-tolerance for anything less than that.”
Fox Sports said it will make no other comment on the matter for privacy reasons.
The Herald Sun reported Tom Morris took to Twitter on Friday night to make a formal apology and say he was “deeply ashamed” of his actions.
“I would like to unconditionally apologise to everyone for my disgusting and disgraceful comments, which became public yesterday. I am especially sorry to the person involved. No one should ever, in any place, or at any time, be spoken about in that way,” he tweeted.
“I am deeply ashamed at my behaviour. My comments were hurtful to many and I will now take the time to listen, learn and work to improve myself, ensuring that I become a better person. I am truly sorry to everyone.”
On Sunday afternoon, Barnard released this statement on social media:
“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.
“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 spoken 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.”
Writing for Code, Kelli Underwood said: “Female broadcasters should not be publicly humiliated for simply doing their jobs.
“While it sometimes seems like one step forward, and then two steps backwards, I have hope for the future for our female broadcasters.”
The Sunday Telegraph reported Fox Footy’s Garry Lyon commented on Friday night:
“We support the decision arrived at [to sack Morris]. We understand and respect the standards and the values of everyone here at the Foxtel group and we – the on-air group – have a responsibility to live those values and not just pay lip service to them. We’ve got to be better, we need to be better. And most important in all of this, there’s an innocent party through no fault of this person, finds herself under enormous pressure and our thoughts are with her tonight.”