AUDIO
 |
Archbishop Peter Jensen's Christmas Message 2011 on the centrality of Jesus to human history
|
Kyle and Jackie O were suspended indefinitely from 2DAY-FM yesterday after last week’s lie detector stunt.
John Birmingham rightly asks on his Brisbane Times Blog:
In what moral universe does interrogating an underage girl about her sexual history, while she’s hooked up to a polygraph and sitting in front of a live microphone, strike anyone as anything other the basest, most grotesque and abusive form of media exploitation imaginable?
There were so many things wrong about the stunt that it is hard to know where to begin. So I read secular articles, opinion pieces, and blog comments from the Australian public to see what they said.
There are at least ten things about the stunt that smells like Hell, even to the public:
1. Placing an underage girl on the radio and interrogating her about her sexual history.
2. Doing this for the purpose of entertaining the public.
3. That her plea "I’m scared ... it’s not fair" was not enough to pull the stunt in the first instance.
4. That a mother brings her daughter to a radio station to ask her about sex and drugs.
5. That lies exist. (Why do we live in a world that has lie detectors?)
6. That this kind of stunt has happened before, and Kyle and Jackie O did not learn from it then.
7. The glib response of Kyle when after the revelation of rape: "Right, is that the only experience you’ve had?”
8. The rape itself (Police are investigating the claims.)
9. That the mother knew about the allegation a month before and still brought her in.
10. That this stunt is like so many other sordid ones that Kyle and Jackie O have done with the lie detector.
But perhaps the greatest smell of hell is what all this says about the listening public. One Blog Comment by 'Dirk':
YOU got what you wanted - now what? WE are the ones who endorse a gradual degradation of sensitivities.. This is what we asked for: a constant erosion of moral behaviour by clowns that push the boundaries of ethics. Everyday. . As I said - we elected a pig like him to represent our need for entertainment.
Tough words.
When it's obvious, sin, injustice and bullying are named. And then shamed. And I'm glad that this is the case on obvious things. Like this stunt.
But Jesus said that this is true of all sin in Matthew 10:26-28:
There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
May God show mercy.
i was wondering if anyone was going to comment on this website as I was wondering what we as Christians are responsible to.
I think it is great that they are being accountable to what they presented (even though personally I don't think much will happen to them). I agree that it is sad what the mother would do.
The thing that I think you opened our/my eyes to most is that we are just as accountable. Even though they have presented this sort of garbage before we the public (or maybe Church body?) did nothing to stop them from doing it again. I personally don't listen to the radio station but I too follow the news.
What I am interested in is - as believers are we meant sit back and let the world decoy in sin or do we make a stand and say "this should not be put on radio for our children to listen too"?
As a body devoted to God we can make a stand for Christ and maybe be a little more accountable to the local/state/Australian community.
Any information on this I would love to here about. God bless
However, I'd note that 2Day-FM has actually disciplined their star presenters or the show's producers who ultimately bear responsibility.
It's a shame she can't be sacked.
I am still curious - as Christians are we st fault for letting it get this far? Radio producers/announcers are policed by us when we make complaints to the ACMA (my apologies if I have the agency incorrect). They have only been allowed to push boundaries this far because previously nothing has been done.
The choice is simple: switch to ABC Classic FM. You get great music, intelligent conversation and none of this disgusting rubbish.
And you don't have to listen to incessant advertising.
in some ways I agree with your idea - especially seeing as I listen to FM 103.2 but does turning a "blind eye" make it better?
Unfortunately these guys will be heard by children and we cannot stop that when they are at school or simply listening to the radio when walking somewhere.
When people complain, it puts them on the front page.
Fancy being a parent who would have it on when the children are listening.
Ron -- you raise a good point. I have a private ethic ('I will not listen'), and a Church ethic (Encouraging a community to do the right thing). But how do we bring this one out into the public square?
On one level, we don't need to. The Newspapers have taken them to task. But what positive ways can we contribute to a society that does not abuse kids in this way for entertainment? What can we do to to make this city and the airwaves safer?
Not immediately sure. Any ideas?
There are a number of high-profile Christians at the news end of secular media (e.g. Leigh Hatcher, Evan Batten), but I can't think of too many at the entertainment end.
1. Write to ACMA with the complaint (imagine all of the churches in Sydney doing this?). This would surely have a sufficient impact to make them listen even if most of us don't listen to the station. This can have a negative effect though - power rush and stop stations for petty reasons and Churches end up looking like a place of Pharisees.
or
2. Create a website where we do a "radio station watch" type idea where we post what the incident was and go from there - have a forum where it is discussed if it is something that we should act on or not.
I do believe that as Christians we cannot simply "change" stations because this has no effect on what is produced and our children (one on the way for me). If we change the station we act like people who hide in a hole hoping that "it won't happen to me".
I know there is plenty of other ways this can be handled and this is one of a couple of them. It has disturbed me that as a community of believers we did nothing and the masses did. We as christians are meant to be a community of people who stand up for a set of beliefs and moral and are meant to have an effect on our community. That effect is of someone that is driven by Christ.
"Steps down from the soap box".
It's time we men woke up and stood up against the rubbish on TV, for one thing.
For another, why are X-rated videos legal in the ACT and NT? If they are so bad that they are illegal in the States, why are they legal in the territories, readily posted to the States? A good start would be to write to Mr Rudd and ask that they be banned across the board.