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During the coverage of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, host Goran Paladin provided pre- and post-match comments for the boxing match between David Nyika and Uladzislau Smiahlikau. The Authority did not uphold a complaint alleging the broadcast breached the good taste and decency standard due to the host mispronouncing and mocking Uladzislau Smiahlikau’s name. The Authority was satisfied the comments were unlikely to cause widespread undue offence or distress or undermine widely shared community standards. Not Upheld: Good Taste and Decency...

Complaint under section 8(1)(b) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Prime News – news item repeated footage of a high tackle 12 times – allegedly in breach of violence standard Findings Standard 10 (violence) – item did not contain gratuitous violence – footage was repeated to allow viewers to decide for themselves if the player had intended to make the high tackle – not upheld This headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast [1] An item broadcast on Prime News at 5. 50 pm on 16 August 2007, reported that a rugby league player had been found guilty of a reckless tackle by the Australian National Rugby League judiciary and had been suspended for seven games. During the course of the item, footage of the high tackle was shown 12 times....

Complaint under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Shameless – programme contained sex scenes, swearing and violence – allegedly in breach of good taste and decency and children’s interests standards – broadcaster upheld complaint under content classification, warning and filtering standard FindingsAction Taken: Standard P1 (content classification, warning and filtering) – action taken by the broadcaster was sufficient – not upheld Standard P2 (good taste and decency) – incorrect classification and inadequate warning label meant that viewers were not sufficiently informed of the programme’s likely content – viewers were therefore denied the opportunity to make a different viewing choice and were more likely to be offended – upheld Standard P3 (children’s interests) – broadcaster sufficiently protected child viewers from unsuitable content by classifying the programme 16 – not upheld No OrderThis headnote does not form part of the decision....

Complaints under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Australian Tennis Open – some footage included a “Live” watermark even though the matches had already been played – allegedly inaccurateFindings Standard P8 (accuracy) – not a “significant error of fact” – not upheldThis headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast[1] From 14 to 27 January 2008, footage of the Australian Tennis Open was broadcast on SKY Sport 2 between 1pm and 12am. Between matches that were broadcast live, historical footage, simultaneous matches, and highlights from matches which had already taken place were screened to fill in the scheduled breaks. Some of these were introduced by commentators as footage that was filling the time between matches, or identified as games that had already been played earlier in the tournament. For example:. . . Later on, we’ve got the second of the men’s singles semi-finals. . ....

Complaint under section 8(1C) of the Broadcasting Act 198960 Minutes – personal story about a same-sex couple and their experience of parenthood through surrogacy – allegedly in breach of controversial issues standardFindingsStandard 4 (controversial issues) – item focused on one same-sex couple and their personal experience of parenthood through the use of an off-shore surrogate – it did not amount to a discussion of a controversial issue of public importance requiring the presentation of alternative viewpoints – not upheld This headnote does not form part of the decision. Introduction [1] An item on 60 Minutes, titled “The Two Dads Story”, reported on a same-sex couple and their personal experience of parenthood through the use of an off-shore surrogate. The item screened as a follow-up to a story that aired on Channel 9’s 60 Minutes in Australia in 2009....

The Authority has not upheld a complaint about an election advertisement for the Labour Party which included questions on possible funding cuts a National-led government might make. The complaint was that these statements were an inaccurate portrayal of National’s proposed cuts. The Authority found the statements were clearly questions and advocacy promoting the Labour Party, rather than statements of fact, and that viewers were unlikely to be misled. The harm alleged was not sufficient to outweigh the importance of freedom of expression and free political speech in the lead up to the general election, or to justify regulatory intervention. Standard E4: Misleading Programmes did not apply. Not Upheld: E1: Election Programmes Subject to Other Code (Accuracy), E4: Misleading Programmes...

Warning: This decision contains content that some readers may find distressing. During coverage of the 15 March 2019 attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, SKY Network Television channel 085, Sky News New Zealand, included a number of edited clips taken from the alleged attacker’s 17‑minute livestream video. The Authority upheld a complaint that the broadcast was in breach of the violence and law and order standards. While the broadcast as a whole was newsworthy and had a high level of public interest, the clips themselves contained disturbing violent content, which had the potential to cause significant distress to members of the public, and particularly to the family and friends of victims and the wider Muslim community in New Zealand. In the context of the attacks, the content of these clips also risked glorifying the alleged attacker and promoting his messages....

Summary[This summary does not form part of the decision. ]A Prime News item reported on the Conservative Party Annual General Meeting, which was the subject of a police call-out because a former Board member attempted to attend the meeting and was issued a trespass notice. The Authority did not uphold a complaint alleging that the item lacked balance, was inaccurate and was unfair to the Conservative Party and its former leader Colin Craig. The item was a straightforward news report that was not unfair to the Conservative Party or Colin Craig, who as a public figure should expect to be subject to some criticism and scrutiny. The item did not discuss a controversial issue of public importance that required the presentation of other views and was not inaccurate....

Complaint under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989True Stories Uncut: Tantastic – contained shots of naked man – allegedly in breach of good taste and decency Findings Standard 1 (good taste and decency) – footage was not titillating or salacious – contextual factors – not upheld This headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast [1] A documentary titled True Stories Uncut: Tantastic was broadcast on Prime Television at 9. 35pm on Friday 30 January 2009. The programme spoke to a number of people, described as “tanorexics”, who were obsessed with tanning, either naturally or through the use of sun beds or spray tans in salons. [2] At approximately 9. 55pm, the programme featured a middle-aged man who liked to sunbathe naked. He was shown undressing then lying naked in his backyard, mowing the lawns naked, and then walking down a beach naked....

Summary[This summary does not form part of the decision. ]The music video for Nicki Minaj's song 'Only' was broadcast on MTV at 6. 50pm, in a segment classified MC. The Authority upheld the complaint that the numerous expletives and sexual references in the video were distasteful and unsuitable for uncensored broadcast at a time when younger viewers were watching. The video was incorrectly classified MC when it should have been 16LC and the explicit adult content exceeded audience expectations of the MC classification. The incorrect classification also meant that filtering technology would not have been as effective in preventing children from viewing the video as it should have been....

The Authority1 has not upheld a complaint an item on Prime News, reporting on reactions to comments made by ACT Party Leader David Seymour on the Ministry for Pacific Peoples, as well as an incident where two men went to the Ministry and filmed staff while asking about expenditure, breached the accuracy standard. The complainant considered the broadcast breached the standard as it gave the misleading impression that two men had threatened staff at the Ministry as a result of Seymour’s statements, and it was inaccurate to suggest the men ‘threatened’ staff when ‘they only filmed staff while asking about spending’. The Authority agreed the broadcast’s introduction could have given the impression the two men went to the Ministry as a direct result of Seymour’s comments (when this occurred prior)....

Complaint"A Tale of Tofu" – National Geographic documentary – unbalanced coverage of controversial topic – inaccurate FindingsSection 4(1)(d) – item dealt with tofu’s cheapness, versatility and availability, not health issues – not controversial topic – no uphold This headnote does not form part of the decision. Summary "A Tale of Tofu" was broadcast by Sky Network Television Ltd on the National Geographic channel on 8 October 2000 at midday. It provided a cultural and historical overview of the role of tofu in Chinese life. Mr R F James complained to Sky Network Television that the broadcast was unbalanced because it presented tofu in a positive light, and failed to acknowledge that there was a significant body of evidence which showed that it was not healthy, and that it posed irreversible dangers to consumers....

Summary[This summary does not form part of the decision. ]A campaign advertisement for the Ban 1080 Party (an election programme for the purposes of the Election Programmes Code) was broadcast at 5. 20pm on 9 September 2017 on Prime, during a G-classified fishing programme, Addicted to Fishing. The advertisement featured a voiceover discussing the purported use and effects of sodium fluoroacetate (1080 poison) on New Zealand’s fauna, in particular deer. The advertisement included a number of close-up images of dead deer allegedly poisoned by 1080, some of which appeared to be frothing at the mouth. A complaint was made that the broadcast of these images at a time when children may be watching was upsetting and inappropriate, in breach of the good taste and decency standard (which applies under Standard E1 of the Election Programmes Code)....

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Summary[This summary does not form part of the decision. ]An episode of a documentary series Shocking Lives, titled The Grandmother Lovers, explored relationships between younger men and older women. It contained sexual content and nudity. The Authority did not uphold a complaint that the documentary breached the good taste and decency standard. The documentary did not contain overly explicit or graphic material. Sexual activity was largely implied, and the programme featured only limited nudity. The broadcaster took sufficient steps to inform viewers about the content of the programme, which was classified AO, broadcast at 9. 30pm and preceded by a warning for sexual content and nudity. The documentary focused on relationships between consenting adults and in the context of the broadcast this did not undermine general community standards of good taste and decency....

BEFORE THE BROADCASTING STANDARDS AUTHORITY Decision No: 11/95 Dated the 6th day of March 1995 IN THE MATTER of the Broadcasting Act 1989 AND IN THE MATTER of a complaint by PHILLIP SMITS of Auckland Broadcaster SKY NETWORK TELEVISION LIMITED I W Gallaway Chairperson J R Morris L M Loates W J Fraser...

The Authority has not upheld a complaint that a comment referring to a rugby player as a ‘Jew’ because he was unwilling to pay for his wedding breached the discrimination and denigration standard. The Authority observed that the comment was an example of casual anti-Semitism and such comments can contribute to the normalisation of racism. However, while the Authority considered the comment to be ignorant and disrespectful, in the context it did not reach the threshold for regulatory intervention. Not upheld: Discrimination and Denigration...

ComplaintEmmanuelle 7 – adult movie – rape scene – offensive Findings Standard S2 – eroticised rape scene – unacceptable in context of adult movie – upheld Standard S29 – rape theme not treated with utmost care – upheldNo OrderThis headnote does not form part of the decision. Summary[1] The adult movie Emmanuelle 7 was screened at 12. 30am on 13 September 2003 on SKY 1. The movie is rated “18”. [2] Rudy Hueting complained to SKY Network Television Ltd, the broadcaster, that a rape scene in the movie was unsuitable for broadcast. [3] Declining to uphold the complaint, SKY maintained that in context the scene did not offend against broadcasting standards relating to good taste and decency or programmes which have rape as a theme. [4] Dissatisfied with SKY's decision, Mr Hueting referred his complaint to the Broadcasting Standards Authority under s. 8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989....

Complaint under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Sex and the City – fictional series about professional women living in New York City – scene broadcast at 8. 25pm showed woman walking in on her boyfriend performing oral sex on another woman – allegedly in breach of good taste and decency and children’s interests standardsFindingsStandard P2 (good taste and decency) – contextual factors – not upheldStandard P1 (content classification, warning and filtering) – programme rated “16” and had warning label for content that may offend – parental lock set to M would have blocked viewing without a pin number – not upheldStandard P3 (children) – broadcaster sufficiently protected child viewers from unsuitable content – not upheldThis headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast[1] An episode of Sex and the City was broadcast on Comedy Central at 8pm on Saturday 28 August 2010....