Megan Barnard has broken her silence on ‘degrading’ comments from ex-colleague Tom Morris

Fox Sports broadcaster Megan Barnard has opened up on “degrading” comments made by ex-colleague Tom Morris and says she hopes the incident is a “catalyst” for change.

Megan Barnard has spoken out on ‘degrading’ comments by an ex-colleague

Sports broadcaster Megan Barnard has broken her silence on her former Fox Sports colleague Tom Morris’s “degrading” comments about her.

In a statement given to The Australian and released on her social media account, Barnard said she hoped not just the sports industry but “every industry” would change for the better in light of what she has been through.

Morris was swiftly sacked by Fox Sports after a recording was leaked where the reporter made degrading, homophobic and sexist comments about Barnard and publicly revealed her sexuality.

Barnard said “coming out is a process that should never be taken out of someone’s hands”.

“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,” Barnard wrote.

“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 hand. 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.”

On Thursday last week a WhatsApp recording of Morris was made public, where the former Fox Footy reporter in an unfiltered rant about Barnard.

In a separately leaked recording — unrelated to Barnard — Morris says: “I am not Asian, I am not black, I am not a woman, I am not gay, so don’t treat me like shit … I am a man with a heart and I’ve got feelings. Love youse all.”

Barnard has since drawn enormous support from within the sports community, including from Fox Footy’s biggest star Garry Lyon.

“We support the decision arrived at (to sack Morris),” Lyon said on Fox Footy on Friday. “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.”

Former AFL commissioner Sam Mostyn, who is also a co-founder of the Minerva Network and the CEO of Chief Executive Women, praised the swift move from Fox Sports on the Morris situation.

“This is an important moment, the Fox Footy leadership chose to immediately deal with the bad behaviour of a senior, well-known figure at the company, and made it consequential, that was a strong move,” Mostyn said.

“The world has changed. Good employers act quickly and those who behave badly suffer consequences. That has not always been the case — but more recently, fortunately, we have seen chairs and CEOs of large companies depart on the grounds of bad behaviour.”

“It was also heartening to see Melbourne great and Fox Footy sports broadcaster Garry Lyon’s on-air, unqualified support for the decision. When Gary spoke about ‘doing better’ — we have to also ask what will that look like — there needs to be more conversations with men and their colleagues about what cultural norms need to change and their role in that process.

“They need to be respectful and active listeners to those who have been subjected to exclusion and ridicule throughout their careers.

“Given the role sport plays in Australia, it’s even more important that those in the industry understand the leadership required to create respectful and decent workplaces for all.

“This kind of leadership was one of the key findings of Kate Jenkins Respect At Work report, which found endemic sexual harassment in workplaces across Australia.”

On Friday Fox Sports executive director Steve Crawley released a statement saying the work environment at the network was based on inclusion and a “fair go” for all.

“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,” Crawley said. “We have zero tolerance for anything less than that.”

Morris on Friday apologised for his remarks, calling them “disgusting and disgraceful”.