It was supposed to be a double booking: Cenk Uygur and his nephew Hasan Piker, two of the bigger names in progressive online media, on the SXSW London bill. Then Uygur was refused entry to the United Kingdom, the speaking slot evaporated, and the festival's response — or the relative absence of one — drew its own attention.
That attention arrived, in part, from Piers Morgan. The broadcaster said publicly that SXSW London “could have stood up” more on Uygur's behalf after the ban was enforced, adding that he was “a bit disappointed” in how the organisation handled the situation. Morgan made the remarks in connection with coverage reported by Variety on the episode.
Uygur is the founder of The Young Turks, the long-running progressive news and commentary network that predates most of the podcast-and-stream ecosystem it now inhabits. Piker, his nephew, has built his own substantial streaming audience independently. The two were among the higher-profile digital-media names on the SXSW London programme before the entry ban removed Uygur from the equation.
SXSW London, the UK offshoot of the long-running Austin festival, has positioned itself as a platform for exactly this kind of cross-Atlantic media conversation. Whether the festival issues any further statement on the entry ban or its handling of Uygur's slot remains to be seen.