Overview
- On Thursday, the Good Morning Britain presenter posted on X that New York’s newly elected mayor Zohran Mamdani "may implement Sharia law" while praising what he called its values of social justice, welfare, fairness, charity and cohesion, with the Daily Mail noting Mamdani is the city’s first Muslim mayor.
- On Friday, Ray issued a clarification saying he was not suggesting Mamdani would implement Sharia law and that he was referring to overlapping social values.
- ITV and GMB executives called Ray in for a meeting on Friday, according to reports attributed to The Sun and carried by Birmingham Live, the Daily Mail and GB News.
- Coverage highlighted that senior figures were sensitive to reputational risk because ITV has disclosed preliminary talks to sell its broadcasting arm to Sky in a deal reported at about £1.6 billion.
- The post drew strong criticism from some viewers and rival commentators, with GB News presenters denouncing his remarks during on-air segments.