Cameron Slater A complaint about Cameron Slater's comment on a Newstalk ZB show that gay Labour MP Grant Robertson "enjoys being stabbed from behind" has been dismissed by the Broadcasting Standards Authority. The man behind the muck-raking blog Whale Oil made the comment in a discussion about the Labour leadership race in August. “He’s the one who really is the natural leader in this out of this whole lot, giving that he enjoys being stabbed from behind,” Slater stated. It came on The Larry Williams Drive Show during a segment called The Huddle. James Clark complained that the double-entendre was offensive and ‘disgusting’, and breached good taste and decency standards in the Radio Code of Broadcasting Practice. Newstalk ZB’s owner The Radio Network responded that The Huddle was targeted at adults and was known by regular listeners as involving “robust debate, but also irreverent and edgy at times”. It described the comment as “subtle and glossed over, with the other panellist and host not picking up on it at all”, and it considered that most listeners would have seen it as a throwaway line not to be taken seriously. The Authority has ruled that while a double entendre may have been intended, the comment could also have alluded simply to ‘back-stabbing’, and it was not entirely clear which candidate the panellist was referring to. “Even if it was intended as a double entendre as alleged, the comment fell within the panellist’s right to free speech, and would likely have bypassed many listeners given the quick delivery and that it was not picked up on by the other participants,” it says in its decision. “We are satisfied that the comment did not threaten standards in this context, including that it formed part of a legitimate political discussion, and the nature of the programme and the radio station which are both targeted at adults and unlikely to appeal to children. Accordingly, we decline to uphold the complaint.” You can hear the exchange below:
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 25th November 2013 - 11:40am