Hey Hey, It's A Sad Day - from Amaya Booker

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Hey Hey, It's A Sad Day - from Amaya Booker

Now I generally don't watch commercial television and today I am reminded of why.

Hey Hey, It's Saturday was a TV family variety show that aired on Australian TV for 27 years. Recently there have been some reunion shows, their first since the show was cancelled in 1999. As youthful nostalgia to many Australians the reunions have rated very well.

One of the segments on "Hey Hey" was a "Gong Show" style talent segment called Red Faces. Supposedly as part of the reunion they re-enacted a Red Faces skit from 1985 called "Jackson Jive” featuring men in black and white face. It’s bad enough that such items were allowed to go to air in 1985, I like to think in 24 years we have evolved somewhat, apparently not. Sadly it took a foreign judge of the segment to express his disgust before an apology was given, and now a significant proportion of the Australian population are sadly saying he should “lighten up.” I also think in light of Jackson’s recent passing that even without racial overtones the piece was in extremely poor taste.

Given that I don’t watch such programs I’ve not seen the piece and I am loathe to give it attention by watching it online. However!

Social media is an important tool for dissemination of information and the motivation of people to act. It is not however an effective tool against media giants such as the Nine Network and the Packer family. If you have seen the piece in question and are genuinely offended as many appear to be I implore you make a complaint to the relevant authorities and not just the blogosphere.

Click more for methods of complaint regarding television content in Australia

Media Watch take tips off and are sure to run a piece on the matter at their earliest possible convenience. You can add to comments to them via the ABC website or via the following means

Email: \n mediawatch@your.abc.net.au

Mail:
Media Watch
GPO Box 9994
In your Capital City

Telephone:
02 8333 4454

Fax:
02 8333 4962

FreeTV Australia is the online presence for the Federation of Australian Commercial Television Stations. The Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice is held on their website.

According to the code of conduct you should contact the station of any channel whose content you are complaining about. They provide a convenient form for faxing or mailing on their viewer feedback page. The code of conduct recommends the station to respond to you within 30 days, if you have not received a reply within 60 days you should raise the matter to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

How to contact Channel Nine
For general inquiries about television shows or broadcasting you can contact Channel Nine directly:

By phone:
Channel Nine Sydney (02) 9906-9999
Channel Nine Melbourne (03) 9420-3111
Channel Nine Brisbane (07) 3214-9999
Channel Nine Adelaide (08) 8267 0111
Channel Nine Perth (08) 9449 9999

or by writing to:
NSW Viewers: PO Box 27 Willoughby, NSW 2068
Vic Viewers: PO Box 100 Richmond, Vic 3121
QLD Viewers: PO Box 72 Brisbane, QLD 4001

If you are unhappy with the response from Channel 9 and you choose to take the matter up with ACMA. They offer a complaints form on their site for TV content complaints.

You may also contact ACMA directly for further information; note that this is a regulatory board and consumers should not waste their time the expectation is that you have attempted to contact the station in question prior to contacting ACMA.

Contacting ACMA

Canberra

Purple Building, Benjamin Offices, Chan Street, Belconnen ACT 2617
PO Box 78, Belconnen ACT 2616
Tel: 02 6219 5555
Fax: 02 6219 5353
Melbourne

Level 44 Melbourne Central Tower, 360 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne Vic. 3000
PO Box 13112 Law Courts, Melbourne Vic 8010
Tel: 03 9963 6800
Fax: 03 9963 6899
TTY: 03 9963 6948
Sydney

Level 15, Tower 1 Darling Park, 201 Sussex Street, Sydney NSW 2000
PO Box Q500, Queen Victoria Building NSW 1230
Tel: 02 9334 7700
Fax 02 9334 7799

[Article via Nerd Girl Army]

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australia

racism

29 oct | Last night's episode of 'Race Relations' was amazingly thought-provoking, entertaining and offensive. It showed a blacked up John Safran travelling around Chicago visiting a black only speed dating club, a restaurant where black employees and white customers swore at each other and a militant black-islamic club.

The show climaxed with Safran travelling to an Episcopal church, telling his life story like an African-American preacher and shouting 'I am a proud black man'.

For me this was the most cringeworthy, the most offensive and the most memorable moment of a show that will surely illicit controversy here, and in the US when it eventually breeches our shores.

For me, I was moderately offended, but I know that this uncomfortable feeling came about because like Safran, I'm still not sure what I think about race and its importance to identity.

However, we all know that tomorrow there will be people out there who sincerely (and others who want to stoke the sensationalist media) that will see this as a harking back to our terrible racist pasts.

But the questions I want to ask are:

How can a social satirist ever balance edginess against the feelings of an hypothetical audience?

And, is there a ratio that exists where the amount of people offended compared to those that weren't makes something objectively racist?

And finally, does it matter if you were offended if the subject matter caused you to think about something?

. . read more

Aboriginal Art and Australia

30 apr | Australian Aboriginal Art is much sought after internationally, but Australians overall and Aborigines themselves benefit little from it. By John August . . read more

False flags - From The Alchemist

24 feb | Like most lands
Australia is full of good people
and bad politicians

The infiltration of
American values
has not extinguished mateship
or blinded us to the folly of
greed unabated

we are still able to help each other
without producing invoice
or lawyer
as seen in our response
to national emergencies

Yet on the edge of awareness
a ghostly predator gnaws
at our self confidence
and tradition of tolerance

On Australia Day
too many citizens
flew too many flags

"We're full!" was a slogan on t-shirts,
meaning, "Muslims piss off".

A high profile social commentator
And climate-change denier
said "greenies" were responsible
for the ferocity of the bushfires
and deserved to be
"strung up on lamp posts".

What is it that makes
hate-mongers
and war mongers so angry?

A subliminal awareness
that their enthusiasm for invasions,
aerial bombardment,
assassinations and torture ....

has helped to accelerate
the decline of the West. . . read more

Skin Tint and Aboriginality - From Hexpletive

25 mar | Reconciliation Australia have a great new advertising campaign. It's simple and gets the point across perfectly. I love that they've provided full bios of each of the people in the ads, rather than just a response to the question posed.

I'm sure it doesn't surprise anyone that this one is especially significant to me. While the work of Reconciliation Australia has always been something I've seen as incredibly important, and something that matters to me both as an Australian and a Koori, this is the first time they've produced something that I've looked at and thought "That's about me." This advertisement addresses something many pale skinned Indigenous people deal with daily, where non-Indigenous people judge or reject our racial identity based on the colour of our skin.

The truth is, you cannot tell if someone is of Indigenous heritage by looking at them, and I'm absolutely stoked to see Reconciliation Australia addressing our invisibility as an issue, and one that stands in the way of true reconciliation.

Hexpletive is an Australian female blogger. You can read more from her at Hexpletive by clicking the view button below . . read more

Bill Maher on Bill O'Reilly's Bigotry

29 sep | Comedian and political commentator Bill Maher shares his satirical take on Fox News loudmouth Bill O'Reilly's racially charged African American statements. . . read more

Racism, Racialism And Multiculturalism From The Outsider

12 oct | The Hoo-Hah over Hey Hey’s re-enactment of the Michael Jackson Black & White Minstrel Show misses the point about racism in Australia. Our culture is unambiguously multicultural. We tolerate racial diversity like no other country in the world, even if its positive affirmation is often lacking. And as such we are racialist. That is we do recognise differences between the concomitant cultures that make us Australian and can parody these differences sometimes with great effect (as in ‘Salam Café’) and sometimes really badly (as in ‘Hey Hey’).

But that doesn’t make us racist. The poverty of the Hey Hey sketch is the price we pay for our healthy multiculturalism. We must be careful not to throw out the baby with the bath water . . read more

The First Australians - We Hardly Knew You

23 oct | An extraordinary process of public education is unfolding in Australia, the like of which has not been seen since the British sailed into Botany Bay and claimed this continent as its own. Finally, after 220 years, the official history of colonization is being turned on its head, and it's not a pretty sight. It's the history that the unlamented Howard Government tried to kill, dismissing it as a cultural "black armband". It is the history that we sensed in our bones, the history that was hinted at in the more adventurous museums, the history that was suffered by indigenous Australians, and now, finally, laid bare under the glare of a national documentary series, The First Australians. By RICHARD NEVILLE . . read more

Black and White - From 'The Outsider'

6 oct | Further to yesterday’s 100 words, here is the ‘evidence’ provided by Kevin ‘Whitey’ Andrews for his stance on the drastic reduction of African migrants into Australia.

Concerns about race-based gangs.
Reports of altercations between Africans at nightclubs.
Conflict and assaults between some African families.
Reports of a developing trend of young African males drinking alcohol in parks at night.
African community organisations arguing about who received favoured treatment.

The racism test is easy. If you can delete or replace the italicized words with the word ‘people’ or ‘people’s’ and find that the statements are still applicable in Australia, without intervention by the Minister, then the unedited version is racist. D’oh! . . read more

Stolen History

27 oct | Every once in a while television proves itself to be the medium of historic change. What we are witnessing with the SBS series First Australians is an acknowledgment of the aboriginal history of this country which was denied through guilt, and stolen through suppression of the evidence. It is a process that has started with the Rudd government’s apology, and which is a century and longer overdue. By Renate Ogilvie . . read more

Previous | Next

State Elections Show an Interesting State of Affairs- by Birgit Lang

With two States waiting weeks for election results, the political culture of Australia seems decidedly messy and confused.

In Tasmania, a large vocal minority of Greens will have the balance of power in a hung parliament, there will be infighting and bickering until the Liberal Opposition claims a minor majority and thrusts forward its impotent Premier into the melee.

In South Australia, Rann will win, but his bravado and virility will be curbed as his ability to nonchalantly wave around his policy penis becomes hampered.

What all this seems to show is that Labor is slipping, the Greens and the environment movement are gaining a lot of traction and Australia is divided.

Hopefully not to the point where Red and Blue States form which look at each other with systemic suspicion, but it does seem that these divides are becoming increasingly irreconcilable.

Bet Labor wishes they could turn back the clock two years when they controlled every government at State and Federal level and do things a bit differently.

The Catholic Church and Biscuits: How to Avoid a Priest's Finger- by Sean Maguire

At a recent lecture given by long time subversive artists Gilbert and George, there was a fantastic point made which highlighted the absurdity of institutionalised religion and the anomalous status it's given in today's society.

They said something along the lines of....

"Imagine if a biscuit company was able to sell itself the way the church does. The biscuit company would probably be able to do a lot better if it was able to offer eternal life (in addition to biscuits) as a reward for your money"

Now the idea also works in reverse.

Imagine if there was a company that didn't pay tax, had little or no oversight from the state legal system, was found to be fingering children- had tried to hide it- their leader and the leader's brother were both implicated and they still refused to open themselves up to public scrutiny.

You probably wouldn't buy their biscuits would you.

NTEU Strike at UNSW Today

As mentioned on HPD last Saturday, there will be a strike at UNSW today by the NTEU.

The strike is centred around expired Enterprise Agreements that the Management are refusing to re-sign leading to negotiations having stalled.

Unfortunately, the power of this strike seems limited.

Around campus most students are either: going to come to class because their lecturers said they were coming, treating it as a holiday, or completely ignorant of why the NTEU is striking.

The problem is high-lighted when we consider that for most people a strike seems like an inconveniance.

A not all together unpredictable state of affairs, but one that shows the gulf that has grown between students and staff and the work that may need to be done to bridge it.

Jesus Christ! Blasphemy in Ireland- by Sean Maguire

At the beginning of the year it was reported around the world that Ireland had introduced laws against blasphemy- a seemingly bizarre reversal of the times as the country moved to becoming a more pluralistic society.

Yesterday it was announced that a referendum will be held on the laws, with the hope from securalists and the divisive group Athiest Ireland, that they'll be rescinded.

Don't hold your breath.

It wasn't too long ago that Ireland voted down the Lisbon Treaty because of fears of a loss of sovereignty on social issues- primarily regarding laws on marriage and abortion.

So on this St Patrick's Day let's say thanks to the man who brought catholocism to Ireland (and got rid of the snakes) and hope that one day the Irish will be able to say fuck you to the pope in peace.

Keating breaches the Abbott-Proof-Fence- by Sean Maguire

For even the most casual watcher of Australian politics the last few months have been depressing.

Tony Abbott, the self-styled ideological love-child of Bronwyn Bishop and John Howard has been playing some pretty petty party politics; stone-walling any Labor policy, regardless of its merits.

So step up Paul Keating, the ideological love-child of a brick wall and Jack Lang.

He has launched a vicious and burning attack on Abbott calling him an "intellectual nobody [with] no policy ambition", and the "poor man's John Howard".

Hard to disagree with, and hard to see how Abbott will slip out of the shadow of the anodyne if he doesn't start voting with Australia's, and not his interests in mind.

A culture of hate- by Simon Moore

In the last few days I have been researching a political organisation known as the nationalist alternative. From their ideologies it is not hard to jump from ultra conservative white-only party to radical neo-nazi party. I realised that many opposed to such racist groups are looking into a violent mirror. The nationalist alternative was attacked aggressively at an anti internet censorship rally in South Australia, a video on slackbastard depicted multicultural groups stomping the white only protestors heads, the lyrics to a song by Skarharrper called "nazi scum" has the lyrics "we gotta beat em in the street, there's a time to fight and that time has come, we're comin for ya nazi scum". How does one defend minorities by violently attacking one?

HPD Salutes: "When We Were Kings"

Today we salute "When We Were Kings", the 1996 film that depicts the "Rumble in Jungle"- the infamous 1974 fight between George Foreman and Muhamad Ali.

With hypnotic chants of "Ali Bomaye", scenes of Foreman smacking dents into boxing bags, and the epic mental and physical strength of each boxer, this is a film that shows the real golden age of boxing.

So here is our salute to a vicious, viceral and sometimes beautiful sport and two men that stunned the world with their athleticism, bravery and spirit.

Feedback

4 mar

The HomepageDAILY community likes to co-create both content and process. What are you thinking right now about what we do and how we do it? Tell us about the news, videos and stories and anything else you see on HPD. What you like, what you don't like, what you'd like to see in future. Recommend a website, video or article; send us pix, new stories - share it with us and by so doing you are giving us permission to share it with the world.

Leave Feedback here

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Why has homepage started running so many nameless 100 word eds? Names are good for intellectual continuity, honesty and non-hypocrisy. - Terry McGee

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Re: Bale de Rua

We thought the Bale de Rua was aweful. Choreography was terrible - set design, music and costumes were lacklustre. The dancers however were very athletic and graceful. - Jules

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Re: In Praise of Mediocrity

I just wonder who decides if what ever you chose to do in life, is mediocre or not. Sounds like with standards like yours, this article with its poor structure and soap box appeal may also be considered by many as, in-fact, mediocre. - Khedra

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Re: The Assassins of Langley

Yes, Mr. Neville. Odious, heinous assassins sold body and soul to Luciferian entities who pull the strings (the last of them, I want to believe) from the shadows. Philip Aggeee and John Stockwell portrayed them quite well. They are NOT heroes, nor are the gangbangers of East Los Angeles who spray grafitti in Iraq, where they most certainly train for urban warfare on our streets. Good riddance to them all!

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Re: Hairy Legs: A Study of Female Art, Feminism and Femininity

Looking forward to more of her articles. Hope she does plenty of Art Theory at SCA. Barbara Kruger and Judy Chicago are certainly powerful artists and it would be interesting to see what they are doing now.

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A hero's welcome for the famous Iraqi shoe thrower

Terrorist! Please do your research first before writing such dangerous things, we was insulting Bush by throwing the shoe as he was disgraced with him, not trying to topple the largest super power in the world by throwing a shoe. I cant believe you have put those words up. Ashamed

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Re: How to Report the News

Having worked as a TV news reporter I found Charlie's piece very amusing - some of us have long believed reporting like this is a rubbish way to do things! But even if a journalist wants to tell stories in a more authentic and engaging way, the constraints of the so-called "house style" in many news organisations make it difficult to achieve. What's needed is a massive culture shift and a complete re-think of what we understand quality broadcast news reporting is. And guess what? That's exactly what's happening, though you'd never believe it from what we're still mostly seeing on TV. Anyway, the new digital technologies, and shake up of "old school/old mainstream" journalism means new platforms and styles of "news" storytelling can now emerge. Let's hope fresh and appropriate ways of funding appear too, so we can kill off this dreadful formulaic reporting and delivery, and clear the way for more natural and interesting ways to treat stories and content.

Much love, Ian Aspin.
www.twitter.com/ianaspin

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Re: Pushing 60 With Pot

You're pushing 60, well I'm pushing 70 and still having to scrounge around for my pot. It's tragic that when I first came to Australia it was $30 an ounce, and now I have to pay nearly $350 - Peter

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Re: Textbook publishers dream of the tablet

Why can't this just be a program for PC and Windows? Why do they have to make us buy more hardware that's just going to disappoint? - Tyler J. Wilson

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Re: Killing Indian Students: Australia's Favourite New Sport!- by Sean Maguire

How about the indian guy who slashed his wife's throat, is still australia to blame for?..may be , for accenpting them to move over!I am an immigrant myself but I love this country, there is no perfect place on Earth but australia is one of the best! - Michael

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Re: Killing Indian Students: Australia's Favourite New Sport!- by Sean Maguire

This entire fiasco is an incredible over reaction. Australia is an easy target. Why? because we are honest, transperant and we talk about our failings. Is there aggression and iolence in Australia? Sure, like any country. But we face it head on and we work to eliminate it. What about the stories of the 100’s of thousands of Indian workers who are treated as slaves in the middle east and nobody says anything? What about the fact that India still has entrenched pedophilia in terms of child brides? What about the crushing poverty embraced by more than 60% of the Indian people while this nation runs around building nuclear warheads? A storm in a teacup, an over reaction, and a diversion from some the really bad issues facing India. What is really happening here is that students are being unnecessarily frightened. meaning they will miss out on what could be the opportunity of their lifetime. - Daryl

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Re: Killing Indian Students: Australia's Favourite New Sport!- by Sean Maguire

I couldn't agree with Sean Maguire's article more on the recent Indian attacks. For all those who like the pretend the attacks are merely based on coincidence, try to imagine how we would react if the boot were on the other foot and an uncharacteristic number of Australia's had been murdered in India. Would you push for a travel ban? Would you be scared for your children in a seemingly hostile environment so many miles away? - Kara Jensen-Mackinnon

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12 sep

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