60 Minutes
It’s no secret that 60 Minutes ‘aint what it used to be but there was something really off about Tara Brown sitting down with Charlotte Dawson just hours after her admission to the psychiatric wing of St Vincents and asking her to read through the tweets that pushed her to the brink.

This was a woman under emergency psychiatric care, who in the early hours of the day of the interview was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, and here she was, phone in hand, reliving on camera the vicious and vile internet campaign that had preceded the emergency. Perhaps the producers thought publishing the Lifeline number at the end of the segment gave them a free pass.
Since the drama surrounding Dawson broke last Thursday there’s been a division between people who think you should ignore internet trolls and people who think it’s best to name and shame. But even 60 Minutes last night concluded that the best thing to do when you find yourself on the receiving end of a vicious online attack, is to turn your phone or computer off and step away.
Continue reading "Dawson’s Tweet: a saga with a multitude of villains" »
We’re a bit squiffy about media outlets paying for stories in this country. Unlike in the UK, where any single mum with a third nipple can get a pay cheque from a newspaper, here we like our paid media appearances to be reserved for heroes or, at least, worthy folk.

No one begrudged the huge sums paid to Brant Webb and Todd Russell, who spent two weeks trapped down the Beaconsfield mine. They’d earned one of the biggest media cheques ever.
But going to air this Sunday night is a paid-for 60 Minutes interview with Gordon Wood, whose conviction for the murder of his girlfriend Caroline Byrne was recently quashed on appeal.
Continue reading "Should only people we like be paid for their stories?" »
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http://menuggs.elitetestingconsultants.com/ says:
What we read influences our thinking.Yes£¬I suppose So.His looks are always funny.Tom and Mary congratulated us on the birth of our daughter.So do I.I do not care whether it rains or not.I do not care whether it rains or not.May I use your pen? I am afraid that l have… Read more »
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taxpayer says:
Tony ‘Byrne was photographed drinking and laughing with the arresting Police this was man alleged to be upset about his daughter. I would like to know if the Police paid taxpayer money to Tony Byrne to lie about Gordon Wood as they already stated in Court he was known to… Read more »
It’s the worst part of being a working journalist. Those times you approach people for their story, when they’ve been through the most terrible time of their lives.

I’d love it if every story was just the opposite. And mostly they are on 60 Minutes. This week I’ve finished writing stories on adorable animals, a very successful businessman, a surprising health advance, and a man who risked his life in a war.
But last week, my focus was on the Keep family who lost their 2 year old daughter, and both her Grandmothers, when their house literally was ripped open in the Grantham flood.
Continue reading "Grantham story was definitely no ambush" »
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ethilaBraiste says:
This national moment is a good reminder to parents that there are simple solutions that will protect their children’s hearing. Most parents would be surprised to learn that the sounds associated with everyday family activities like going to a sporting event (95-105 decibels), mowing the lawn (90 decibels), driving (up… Read more »
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gw2 gold says:
Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it. Look advanced to more added agreeable from you! However, how could we communicate? Read more »
The dramatic return of 60 Minutes on the weekend raises new questions about so-called “death knocks”.

In the first story, reporter Michael Usher interviews the Keep family, who last month lost baby Jessica and both grandmothers in the Grantham flooding.
The 23-month-old was torn from her pregnant mother’s arms. It is difficult to imagine a greater tragedy.
Continue reading "A fine line between reporting and milking a family’s grief" »
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Tracy Lindley says:
Thanks Wendy. I am not actually a resident , just someone who has become very close to many of them whilst doing a support project for them and will continue to do so for a long time. Cheers. Read more »
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Ginnie Carroll -Wilson says:
Well said Nury and I so agree.As media dies down people just carry on with their normal lives as though nothing ever happened. And yet they have no idea of what the people of Grantham and the Lockyer valley are still and will be going through to rebuild their lives.… Read more »
Channel Nine’s decision yesterday to cave in to the bullying of the Victorian Government and Beyond Blue is deeply depressing. No doubt the network could see it was in a lose-lose situation.

Even if it were to win in the courts and have the injunction lifted which prevented it from broadcasting a 60 Minutes piece on the suicides of four teenagers in Geelong, it would be forever hostage to the accusation it had blood on its hands if any others from the school were to take the final solution.
Continue reading "60 Minutes should have run the suicide story" »
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Concerned says:
I would be interested to know exactly how many of these young people are on medication or taking drugs like marijuana and their drug history prior to taking their own lives or attempting. We should have mandatory toxicology tests for those who take their lives to see if there is… Read more »
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Debbie says:
I’m so sorry this happened to you. I can’t imagine the grief of losing one’s child tied up with the whole array of complicated feelings that are left to those whose loved ones take their own life. I agree with you that these parents should be allowed to grieve without… Read more »
It’s a complicated formula, how much a TV network is prepared to pay for ratings.

60 Minutes has just sealed a rumoured $200,000 deal with British back packer Jamie Neale, to do an interview to air this Sunday night, up against the Masterchef final.
Someone at Willougby obviously thinks its worth paying that much for Jamie’s version of how he survived lost in the Blue Mountains for 12 days.
Continue reading "Will you watch 60 Minutes on Sunday? Me neither." »
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pteropod says:
As i told you guys many times , IT WAS A RIGGED SHOW!!!!! It had to be crying Julie, Poh is Asian the australian public would not accept a asian for AUSTRALIA MASTER CHEF simple is that. it had to be a lambchop cooker to win thr title, This show… Read more »
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davido says:
As they say… if you dont watch it - they wont put it on. Read more »
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