Abc

Sunday morning television can be a riot of fun.

First we had Ross Garnaut on Meet the Press confirming that his modelling for climate change predictions was done on the balance of probabilities, surely when one is giving support to the ETS, the big tax on everything, it should be on the basis of beyond reasonable doubt. But with all the fudged modelling of the IPCC, I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised, just alarmed.

Next we had the spectacle of David Marr – who writes for Fairfax beating up on Piers Akerman who writes for News Limited because Marr did not like the way ‘the Australian’ reports the news.

Continue reading "Sunday morning slugfest" »

I don’t know how it happened. It could be higher levels of blue-rinse in the water. Maybe it’s a spike in the sales of model trains. Or a sudden surge in the demand for lamingtons. But 2009 is unofficially shaping up to be The Year Of The Wowser.

With almost German precision (if I am permitted to use nationality as the basis of my point), the chorus of shrill voices responding to controversy in comedy has been oscillating at a rock solid bi-weekly frequency in recent months.

While you have to admire the sheer energy these biddies have - you can’t grant them any real depth of understanding when it comes to the art form. (And yes. It is an art form.)

Continue reading "Are cantankerous codgers winning the war on comedy?" »

It’s less than a fortnight since Mark Scott made his annual trip to Canberra for his annual dust-up with conservative politicians at Senate Estimates hearings. This gives him a full 50 weeks to prepare for next year’s breathless interrogation as to why the national broadcaster used taxpayer funds to fly John Safran to Israel so he could masturbate on television.

This at least will be the puritanical take on what unfolded on our screens at 9.30 last night in the debut of Safran’s mega-hyped new series Race Relations.

As part of his exploration of interracial relationships and attraction, Safran flew to Israel where he arranged for a Palestinian man to donate sperm which he then took to an Israeli fertility clinic. In return, the Jewish Safran donated sperm to a Palestinian fertility clinic, using a photograph of Barack Obama to arouse himself.

Continue reading "Is John Safran the funniest wanker on television?" »

It’s been one of the most hyped shows of the year, sparking complaints before it even aired, and an extraordinary pre-emptive plea on The Punch today by ABC director of television Kim Dalton for conservative viewers to switch off. Join our live blog here at 9.30pm tonight to discuss John Safran’s new show, and tell us what you think.

Live tonight: The Punch team will blog here tonight during John Safran’s show. Join us from 9.30pm

I have some blunt advice for some of the people who will be reading this article on The Punch. And it is not the kind of advice you would expect from the ABC’s Director of Television.

My message is this: think carefully before you settle into the couch tonight for the 9.30pm premiere of John Safran’s comedy-documentary Race Relations. If you think you are going to be offended or outraged (or want to be offended or outraged) then don’t tune in.

This ABC program is not for everyone. It was not designed to be. By scheduling the series at 9.30pm and attaching an M warning the ABC is signalling that this is challenging fare. John Safran’s Race Relations contains material that some viewers will disagree with or find distasteful.

Continue reading "ABC’s Safran warning: if you don’t like it, don’t tune in" »

Note: ABC Breakfast host Virginia Trioli made this “you’re crazy” hand twirling gesture after interviewing Senator Barnaby Joyce on the issue of the ETS. Trioli obviously didn’t realise the cameras were still on. She later rang Senator Joyce to apologise, he quipped to the Punch that he couldn’t quite hear because he had been placed in an asylum.

Apparently some television commentators think that I’m the insane one.

Maybe that explains the place where I work.

Obviously, if I’m not me who am I?

Continue reading "If you think I’m crazy, have a look at the ETS" »

When viewers offer feedback about interviews on Lateline, easily the most common complaint is about politicians not answering questions. Nothing irritates people more.

So that I don’t embarrass any particular Member of Parliament – since many are offenders – here’s a little manufactured dialogue to illustrate what I mean.

Me: Minister, what did you have for breakfast?
Minister: For lunch, I had a salad sandwich and then for dinner …
Me: I’m afraid that’s not the question, the question is what you had for breakfast.

Continue reading "Well read-head: Just answer the question" »

“News on the Radio”, said the American consultant breezily, “can never be more than a headline service”.

The speaker was billed as a radio ‘guru’ – a description which reminded me of the writer Francis Wheen’s definition of ‘guru’: a useful short word for people who can’t spell ‘charlatan’.

This guru had introduced herself to the seminar room by saying that she really appreciated the editions of AM, The World Today and PM that she had listened to.

But could she have listened to them at all?

Continue reading "Why radio current affairs has a long, bright future" »

Until last week, I thought the silliest casualty of modern warfare was the word “bomb”, which in many news reports had become known by the acronym IED, or improvised explosive device.

IED might be a handy term for military strategists needing to distinguish between a mortar fired from a well-equipped conventional unit of soldiers and a bucket full of fertiliser and nails left by an anonymous freelancer in a car on a crowded street in Baghdad, but to the media, any explosive device whose detonation imperils those in the immediate vicinity should, provided it’s not Barry Hall after giving away a couple of 50s, be simply referred to as what it is: a bomb.

To do otherwise simply buries the true horror of the incident under a comforting layer of jargon.

Continue reading "ABC drops the F-bomb" »

UPDATE: The ABC has just issued an apology to the Make a Wish Foundation

The worst thing about The Chaser’s sick kids skit last night was that it was the only funny thing on the show. If you missed the team’s “Make a Realistic Wish Foundation” parody you can see the whole show here.

I thought Chris Taylor’s hospital sketch was hilarious. Either I’m alone in this or am the only one prepared to admit it.

While this morning radio is going off about how “sick” the skit was, no doubt making the Chaser boys’ marketing department very very pleased with themselves, last night online the team got a far more damning reaction - luke warm, half-hearted indifference.

Continue reading "The Chaser’s War on Funny" »