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Prisoner Monkeys
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British Politics thread - Page 6 Empty
PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Dec 08, 2012 11:58 am

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:
Okay, I finally just listened to the prank call. I'm going to take up for, and defend, these two radio show hosts. I CANNOT BELIEVE anyone took this call seriously. It was so obviously an over-the-top phone call that I believe the nurse was humiliated and embarrassed for having fallen for something so transparently bad in the first place.
The call was placed at 5am local time. As obviously-fake as it was, it's conceivable that the nurse was at the end of an all-night shift and her mental faculties were simply worn down. My sister works in a hospital and she says it's not uncommon for nurses to double- and even triple-shift (though the latter only happens in the under-staffed and over-worked hospitals).

Furthermore, because the call was placed at 5am in London, it was made at 4pm in Sydney. That puts it square in the middle of the lucrative and very competitive drive-home timeslot, which typically runs from about 3pm to 7pm (though it depends on the station and their programming). That timeslot has undergone a shakeup of late, with some of the line-ups retiring and others winding down their programming commitments; for instance, popular duo Hamish & Andy are going from five days to one day. This has created a vaccuum in the prime-time programming slot, and stations are rushing to get their line-ups into the ratings figures. the two radio hosts in question had only been working together for three or four days before making that call, so this has all the hallmarks of a comedy publicity stunt designed to get ratings up early in their partnership, to try and cut out a segment of the market.

On top of that, the station they work for - 2Day FM - has been at the centre of a lot of media ethics debates, primarily because they give Vile Kyle Sandilands air to breathe. Sandilands, who is basically the skidmark on the underpants worn by humanity, is well known as a shock jock who has done some pretty appalling things; he once convinced a twelve year-old to take a lie detector test on live radio with her mother present in the studio, and then bullied her into confessing that she had been raped, at which point he asked if that had been her only sexual experience as if she hadn't just said "I was raped" on the air; he also told a Polish-Australian media personality - who had just become the face of a national weight management company - that if she really wanted to lose weight, she should have gone to a concentration camp (and it didn't help that her father was an active member of the Polish Resistance); he also threatened to hunt down a journalist who condemned his television show as "a disaster" and "awkward" (both of which were true); and then there were the frequent complaints to media ethics commissions because he'd ignore the watersher and advertise condoms - often with suggestive (if not downright explicit) commercials - to twelve year olds. I remember his co-host being a cmoplete airhead who had no idea that there were rules like that.

Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. The point is that while there was no malice intended from the hosts when they placed that call, and absolutely no way anybody could have predicted that it would have - however directly or indirectly - led to the death of the nurse who took the call, there is still some degree of culpability here. They conceived and aired a publicity stunt designed to muscle their way into a competitive market, working on behalf of a station with a documented history of tasteless programming (admittedly, mostly from one man), and they decided to perform said stunt in the UK a week after the one of the biggest public inquiries into media behaviour in history handed down its findings, which placed the subject at the forefront of everyones' minds.

At the very least, someone should have stopped and asked themselves what would have happened if they got through to the hospital and met a staff member who was absolutely worn out from working the night shift. The death of that staff member - whatever the cause - was not really an outcome that could be predicted, but causing significant personal embarrassment to someone was, and for that reason alone, they should have taken a minute and thought about what they were doing. But in my mind's eye, I have a vision of the production meeting where the prank call idea was first pitched, and everyone congratulating themselves on how clever and funny they all were.
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Gravity's Silhouette
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Dec 08, 2012 8:45 pm

Prisoner Monkeys wrote:

On top of that, the station they work for - 2Day FM - has been at the centre of a lot of media ethics debates, primarily because they... Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked.

2Day's past actions as a whole may have some relevance in the discussion, but I'll wait to pass judgement on the two hosts behind this specific incident until I hear more. As it stands, they both remind me of a male/female morning show program that ran for many years in Atlanta: Steve McCoy and Vicki Locke. And by "remind me" I mean: basically harmless, fluff-driven, pop-culture, celebrity-friendly interviewers who would occasionally do crank phone calls. The difference with them, though, is I believe all of their calls were eventually vetted by the company and the "victims" signed off on allowing the call to be aired. I could be wrong.

But their "crank calls" were never mischievous or meant to harm anyone, and I don't see any malice involved in this prank phone call to the nurse on duty. I do feel like this nurse must have broken some sort of protocols in talking over the phone about the Princess' condition, nor having the good sense to realize not only was the accent for Charles and The Queen all wrong, but the lines of dialogue being fed her were atrociously over-the-top. Fatigued at the end of a shift or not, I just don't understand how anybody could have taken that phone call for anything other than what it was. But then again, some people simply don't have sarcasm or bull-shizz detectors, or their sense of humor isn't the same as someone else's. The British are reknowned for their dark, offbeat sense of humor; if anyone could have understood that that call was a wind-up, I would have expected it to be a Brit.

Quote :
The death of that staff member - whatever the cause - was not really an outcome that could be predicted, but causing significant personal embarrassment to someone was, and for that reason alone, they should have taken a minute and thought about what they were doing. But in my mind's eye, I have a vision of the production meeting where the prank call idea was first pitched, and everyone congratulating themselves on how clever and funny they all were.

Well, if they stopped and thought about what they were doing, they might not have done the stunt, because it wasn't particularly funny. Then again, maybe they did stop to think about what they were doing and they simply came to the conclusion that it was funny. But funny or not is irrelevant. The death wouldn't be any less important if the stunt had been funny. I think the stunt isn't as funny as it could have been precisely because the accents and dialogue are so terrible, that you're not really giving the audience and the nurse a fighting chance to buy into the gag.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Dec 08, 2012 11:55 pm

The DJ's only removed themselves from the air out of respect for the deceased. The radio station couldn't have reasonably anticipated such an extreme reaction. It was an appropriate move by the station though to pull the team temporarily. The station probably insisted.


Otherwise this was just a morning DJ stunt. Most cities have a pair like these two, that do punk calls. There is a pair in Quebec that are famous for their international punking.

The fact that this woman killed herself is right out of left field though. I think it reflects more on whatever her personal situation was than it does on morning radio jocks doing prank calls. Even Prince Charles made light of the prank call until it was learned that the woman killed herself. And suddenly something harmless is suddenly tragic. Who knew.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySun Dec 09, 2012 4:07 am

tiffanywint wrote:
The radio station couldn't have reasonably anticipated such an extreme reaction.
They could have anticipated a reaction, though. Especially because of the publication of Leveson's findings on media behaviour.

It's like this: the UK is one big university campus where excessive drinking has gotten out of control and has been an ongoing problem for years. After an embarrassing incident, the dean has finally gotten everyone sober enough for long enough to discuss with respected members of the community what can be done to address the problem. And just as everyone sits down to discuss it, 2Day FM bursts in, stark naked, drink in hand and so completely off their faces that the only reason why they're still standing is because they're too drunk to remember to lie down before shouting "Whooooo party on, my biatches!" and thrusting their bait and tackle around the room a few times before tearing out of the room and bragging to the world about what they just did. And then they're surprised to learn that there are consequences to their actions.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 5:44 am

Prisoner Monkeys wrote:
tiffanywint wrote:
The radio station couldn't have reasonably anticipated such an extreme reaction.
They could have anticipated a reaction, though. Especially because of the publication of Leveson's findings on media behaviour.
But that's not going to stop them from punking people. For goofball radio morning shows, this is meat and potatoes stuff.

Morning jocks though might be a little gun-shy about punking now. If a stunt this seemingless harmless results in tragedy, nothing is safe. Bizarre.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 7:14 am

The two DJs have finally spoken out on camera:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-10/under-fire-djs-discuss-prank-call-tragedy/4419488

I find the move suspicious. Of all the formats they could have chosen, they decided to appear on "Today Tonight" and "A Current Affair" - two programmes that are known for, sensationalism as well as tabloid and chequebook journalism. Think The Daily Mail and News of the World, but in broadcast format. They are perhaps the second least-credible programmes they could have appeared on.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 8:57 am

How pathetic that we, as a lily-livered society, need to force these two to weep over something they weren't responsible for. No normal person would off themselves over a harmless prank call. If that was genuinely her excuse for leaving her children motherless, well then I think it's time we put the crocodile tears back in their vials.

But I guess this circus gives the excuse that those guardians of ethics on Fleet Street need to go into "Lizard of Oz" attack mode against colonial miscreants.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 9:44 am

Prisoner Monkeys wrote:
The two DJs have finally spoken out on camera:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-10/under-fire-djs-discuss-prank-call-tragedy/4419488

I find the move suspicious. Of all the formats they could have chosen, they decided to appear on "Today Tonight" and "A Current Affair" - two programmes that are known for, sensationalism as well as tabloid and chequebook journalism. Think The Daily Mail and News of the World, but in broadcast format. They are perhaps the second least-credible programmes they could have appeared on.

What? Do you think Leigh Sales was itching for this interview over at the 7.30 Report? laugh
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 4:29 pm

CJB wrote:
How pathetic that we, as a lily-livered society, need to force these two to weep over something they weren't responsible for.

Bingo! If every person that was ever on the receiving end of a joke killed themselves there would be nobody left on the planet. Her reaction was disproportionate to the actual joke.

Plus, these two radio dj's are good looking and attractive; I hope they won't do any jail time. The beautiful and sexy among us don't belong in jail; they'd never make it out of there alive.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 9:48 pm

CJB wrote:
How pathetic that we, as a lily-livered society, need to force these two to weep over something they weren't responsible for. No normal person would off themselves over a harmless prank call. If that was genuinely her excuse for leaving her children motherless, well then I think it's time we put the crocodile tears back in their vials.
Yes thank you. This is what needs to be said, once all the posturing is done.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyMon Dec 10, 2012 10:26 pm

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

Plus, these two radio dj's are good looking and attractive; I hope they won't do any jail time. :roll:

The beautiful and sexy among us don't belong in jail; they'd never make it out of there alive. :roll:

They do not deserve jailtime for he woman killing herself, I am not sure if there is any law on the matter of impersonating royalty

But then again the hospital staff did kind of messed up responding to the telephone inqueries, something I was taught not to give out over the phone at all.
I would say that if anything the hospital carries some blame as well, and what exactly was their part in the suicide of their employee?
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyTue Dec 11, 2012 8:13 am

CJB wrote:
How pathetic that we, as a lily-livered society, need to force these two to weep over something they weren't responsible for.
From the way it's being reported down here, the two DJs are, quite literally, being forced into that position by the company that employs them. They claim that there is a chain of command within the station, and that after they recorded the call, they lost all control over what happened next. Someone else made the decision to air it, someone higher up, but some in the company is denying it and trying to make out that the prank call was the presenters' idea and that they were the ones to air it.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyTue Dec 11, 2012 4:45 pm

saint mark wrote:


They do not deserve jailtime for he woman killing herself, I am not sure if there is any law on the matter of impersonating royalty

Which begs the question: did they really impersonate royalty? Neither one of them even came close to sounding like The Queen or Prince Charles. And even if the accent got lost a bit over the phone, the dialogue was a dead give-away that someone was having a bit o'fun with the nurse.

Quote :
But then again the hospital staff did kind of messed up responding to the telephone inqueries, something I was taught not to give out over the phone at all.
I would say that if anything the hospital carries some blame as well, and what exactly was their part in the suicide of their employee?

The only person who carries any blame for suicide is the woman who killed herself. But yes, someone on the hospital staff did not follow protocol by giving out (fairly innocuous) information about the Princess over the telephone. Who was it that was not smart enough to realize that The Queen, nor Prince Charles, would be calling from what sounded like a phone booth to inquire about Kate?
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyWed Dec 12, 2012 1:14 am

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:
saint mark wrote:


They do not deserve jailtime for he woman killing herself, I am not sure if there is any law on the matter of impersonating royalty

Which begs the question: did they really impersonate royalty? Neither one of them even came close to sounding like The Queen or Prince Charles. And even if the accent got lost a bit over the phone, the dialogue was a dead give-away that someone was having a bit o'fun with the nurse.

Yeah, from memory the "Queen" just asked to speak to "my grandaughter, Katy." Neither of them identified themselves as QEII or Prince Charles, nor did they properly identify the Duchess of Cambridge by her title or full name.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyWed Jan 23, 2013 9:27 am

Great, we've been given the meaningless promise of an in/out referendum after an impossible Tory victory in 2015. The only way I can see this going ahead is if the media hounds Labour to such an extent that they're forced to commit to one too.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyThu Apr 11, 2013 11:10 am

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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySun Sep 28, 2014 11:05 pm

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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyThu Oct 02, 2014 4:00 am

When is Her Majesty planning to liberate her loyal subjects in Hong Kong from Maoist tyranny?
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Oct 04, 2014 12:43 pm

Not just linked to British politics, but the West in general: what are they going to do after they have successfully destroyed the middle class? What is the end game here? Or are their strategies so short-sighted and nihilistic that they do not even care about that?
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Oct 04, 2014 12:59 pm

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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySat Oct 04, 2014 10:19 pm

CJB wrote:
When is Her Majesty planning to liberate her loyal subjects in Hong Kong from Maoist tyranny?

She's working on it. It'll be under the guise of a Top Gear Special.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySun Oct 05, 2014 10:11 am

Erica Ambler wrote:
Intriguing question, Ops. Could you elaborate?


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/11109845/Why-arent-the-British-middle-classes-staging-a-revolution.html

A bit over the top in terms of headline and he gets a bit melodramatic, but his core points are largely accurate imho.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySun Oct 05, 2014 11:17 am

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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptySun Oct 05, 2014 6:16 pm

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ambler wrote:
.... and Rave is all mouth and no trousers. Hang on, that sounds pretty good ...

I'd fight for my honour, but I really wouldn't know where to start......

Grab the balls and squeeze...or kick them.
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PostSubject: Re: British Politics thread   British Politics thread - Page 6 EmptyFri Oct 10, 2014 6:04 am

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