Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton has expressed remorse for his treatment of Britney Spears in the 2000s.
Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Monday (15 February), Hilton, who used to post eviscerating blogs about the singer, said, “I regret a lot or most of what I said about Britney as I'm sure Piers [Morgan] would if he were here about things he's said in the past.”
He added, “Thankfully, hopefully, many of us get older and wiser.”
Hilton also defended veteran journalist Diane Sawyer, whose 2003 interview with Spears has gone viral in the wake of Hulu and FX's Framing Britney Spears documentary. In the interview, Sawyer cross-examines a 22-year-old Spears for her role in the highly publicised breakup with then-boyfriend Justin Timberlake.
(Timberlake’s 2002 “Cry Me A River” music video leaned into a cheating narrative, appearing to blame Spears for the demise of the relationship.)
“Someone who was talked about in this documentary briefly, Diane Sawyer – a respected journalist, a good woman – but many people are painting her out to be a villain,” said Hilton.
He continued, “I think a lot of fans and folks just want to blame this person and that person, but it’s not as simple as that. There are real, mental health issues at play with Britney Spears.”
After Framing Britney Spears was released on 5 February, social media has exploded with calls for media personalities and Timberlake to apologise to the embattled performer, who has been under a legal conservatorship since 2008.
Timberlake issued an apology to Spears last Friday (12 February) via Instagram, writing, “I have seen the messages, tags, comments, and concerns and I want to respond. I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was right.”
The Independent has reached out to Piers Morgan for comment.
