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The Authority has declined to determine a complaint that a hip hop song contained racial slurs (including the n-word). The Authority noted the broadcaster apologised to the complainant for the offence caused and removed the song from its playlist. The Authority considered this action was sufficient and, in all the circumstances, it was not necessary to determine the complaint. Declined to Determine (section 11(b) of the Broadcasting Act 1989, in all the circumstances): Good Taste and Decency, Programme Information, Children’s Interests, Violence, Law and Order, Discrimination and Denigration, Privacy...

The Authority has not upheld a complaint that an item on Newshub Live at 6pm concerning a car accident breached several standards by featuring images of dead bodies in the car wreck. The complainant believed there were dead bodies shown in the wreck, which they found highly distressing. The Authority acknowledged the complainant’s distress, however, after carefully reviewing the broadcast, found that no bodies were featured. In considering the images of the car wreck shown, the Authority considered that the footage was unlikely to cause widespread undue offence or distress, or undermine widely shared community standards, so the good taste and decency standard was not breached. It further found that an audience advisory was not required, and the programme information standard was not breached. The balance, accuracy, privacy, and fairness standards did not apply or were not breached....

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....

Complaint under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989A Shot at Love II with Tila Tequila – reality dating show where a bisexual woman dated 15 men and 15 women – allegedly in breach of children’s standard and classification and warning standardFindings Standard P1 (Content classification, warning and filtering) – programme borderline 16 but appropriately classified M – did not require S warning label – not upheldStandard P3 (Children) – not targeted at children or screened adjacent to content aimed at children – not upheldThis headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast[1] A Shot at Love II with Tila Tequila was the second series of a reality television dating game show starring bisexual American internet celebrity Tila Tequila....

Complaint under section 8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Simulcast by broadcasters of the Good Vibrations Carnival at Cooper’s Beach between 1pm and 5pm Saturday 15 April 2006 – carnival organised as community response to Dr Neil Benson’s plan to open a brothel at Cooper’s Beach – broadcast included comments critical of brothel proposal and extracts critical of the proposal from the meeting at Mangonui Town Hall organised to discuss brothel proposal – broadcasts allegedly in breach of privacy, unbalanced, inaccurate and unfairFindingsDoubtless Bay Family RadioPrinciple 3 (privacy) – no private facts disclosed – not upheldPrinciple 4 (balance) – approach taken in broadcast clearly explained and reasonable opportunities given for other significant points of view – not upheldPrinciple 5 (fairness) – Bensons not dealt with unfairly – not upheldPrinciple 6 (accuracy) – no inaccuracies – not upheldPrinciple 7 (social responsibility) – brothel owners not denigrated or discriminated against – not upheldFar…...

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....

Complaint under section 8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 19899 Songs – film included explicit scenes of unsimulated sexual intercourse, oral sex, masturbation and ejaculation – broadcast at 8. 30pm on Rialto Channel – allegedly in breach of content classification and warning standard, and good taste and decency Findings Standard P1 (content classification, warning and filtering) – 18 S classification was inadequate to advise viewers about the explicit sexual content – should have included a visual and verbal warning prior to the broadcast – upheld Standard P2 (good taste and decency) – lack of warning and audience expectations of Rialto Channel – upheld No Order This headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast [1] At 8. 30pm on Saturday 7 July 2007, a movie entitled 9 Songs was broadcast on Rialto Channel. The channel was available to both SKY Television and TelstraClear subscribers....

BEFORE THE BROADCASTING STANDARDS AUTHORITY Decision No: 83/95 Dated the 17th day of August 1995 IN THE MATTER of the Broadcasting Act 1989 AND IN THE MATTER of a complaint by L J DARCY of Timaru Broadcaster SKY NETWORK TELEVISION LIMITED J Potter Chairperson L M Loates R McLeod...

Summary[This summary does not form part of the decision. ]The E! channel featured an 'Entertainment Special' entitled The Real 50 Shades of Grey about couples who engage in BDSM (Bondage/ Discipline/ Dominance/ Submission/ Sadism/ Masochism). The Authority did not uphold a complaint that the programme encouraged sexual violence and normalised BDSM practice. The content was discussed only in fairly innocuous terms and no explicitly sexual or violent material was shown. However, the Authority upheld the complaint that the programme should have included warning labels for sexual and other potentially offensive content, as the subject matter had the potential to offend viewers. Upheld: Content Classification, Warning and FilteringNot Upheld: Good Taste and Decency, ViolenceNo OrderIntroduction[1] The E! channel featured an 'Entertainment Special' on The Real 50 Shades of Grey. Couples who engaged in BDSM (Bondage/ Discipline/ Dominance/ Submission/ Sadism/ Masochism) and experts on the subject were interviewed....

ComplaintThe Happy Hooker Goes to Hollywood – film screened on MGM Channel at 7. 30pm on TelstraClear – nudity and sexual content – inappropriate timing – TelstraClear upheld complaint as breach of good taste and decency – apologised – future screening rescheduled to 4. 25am – dissatisfied with action taken FindingsScreenings of films in future by TelstraClear will comply with Standard Subscription Code rather than Advanced Code – action taken sufficient This headnote does not form part of the decision. Summary [1] The film The Happy Hooker Goes to Hollywood was screened on the MGM Channel at 7. 30pm on 28 March 2002. The MGM Channel is available to subscribers of both Sky and TelstraClear....

ComplaintNewstalk ZB – host Danny Watson – results of trial of Jules Mikus for the murder of Teresa Cormack referred to and discussion about justice, retribution and community responsibility – encouraged vigilante justice FindingsPrinciple 7 – not applicable – no upholdPrinciple 2 – some of the host’s populist comments came close to breach – although overall support for judicial processes – no uphold This headnote does not form part of the decision Summary [1] The conviction of Jules Mikus for the murder of Teresa Cormack was referred to on Newstalk ZB between noon and 3pm in the talkback session broadcast on 9 October 2002 hosted by Danny Watson. Concern at the time-lapse between the murder and conviction was expressed. Examples of extra-judicial justice were given by callers and the host at times suggested that instant justice could be more effective in reforming offenders than the justice system....

Complaint under section 8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Fence Jumping – promo – documentary about gay men who “came out” when married – broadcast during One News beginning at 6. 00pm – allegedly offensive, inappropriately classified and unsuitable for childrenFindings Standard 1 and Guideline 1a (good taste and decency) – context – not upheld Standard 7 and Guideline 7b (classification) – appropriately classified as G – not upheld Standard 9 (children’s interests) – homosexuality dealt with in straightforward way which was suitable for children – not upheldThis headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast [1] A promo for the documentary Fence Jumping was broadcast during One News at about 6. 30pm on Sunday 25 April 2004. The documentary was about men who, while married, realised that they were gay and how such men “came out”. The promo indicated the programme’s content....

Complaint under section 8(1B)(b)(i) of the Broadcasting Act 1989Date My Ex – reality series broadcast at 3pm contained footage of people drinking alcohol – allegedly in breach of good taste and decency, responsible programming, liquor and children’s interests standards FindingsStandard 11 (liquor) – presence of liquor in the programme was extremely brief and alcohol consumption was not glamorised – content did not amount to liquor promotion – not upheld Standard 8 (responsible programming) – programme correctly rated PGR – did not contain any material which warranted a higher rating of AO – not upheld Standard 1 (good taste and decency) – programme’s content would not have offended the majority of viewers – not upheld Standard 9 (children’s interests) – broadcaster adequately considered children’s interests – not upheld This headnote does not form part of the decision....

BEFORE THE BROADCASTING STANDARDS AUTHORITY Decision No: 1998-105 Dated the 10th day of September 1998 IN THE MATTER of the Broadcasting Act 1989 AND IN THE MATTER of a complaint by NEW ZEALAND MINERALS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION Broadcaster TELEVISION NEW ZEALAND LIMITED S R Maling Chairperson L M Loates R McLeod...

Summary Storylines which ran through five episodes of Shortland Street broadcast at 7. 00pm during the week 31 August to 4 September 1998, concerned the intimate relationships of three sets of characters. The first storyline featured the relationship between a 17 year old female and a 28 old male, the second portrayed a male character who was painting a nude portrait of his partner, and the third concerned a male character who manipulated a young woman with whom he wished to have sex. Ms Barker complained to Television New Zealand Ltd, the broadcaster, that the storylines were offensive because they portrayed sex outside marriage as acceptable, and failed to examine the damaging consequences of such behaviour. She considered that the programmes’ PGR classification and 7. 00pm timeslot were inappropriate, as many younger children could still be viewing at that time....

Summary [This summary does not form part of the decision. ] The host of The Paul Henry Show and a TV3 reporter briefly discussed the future of Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter tram service, in a new segment titled ‘Council Watch’, and summarised the cost of the project to rate-payers. The Authority did not uphold the complaint that the segment was one-sided and misled viewers about the reason the trams were not currently operating. It is legitimate and important for the expenditure of public money to be scrutinized and subject to robust criticism, and the focus of the item was the cost of the project; other reasons why the tram service was not running were peripheral to that focus, so viewers would not have been misled by omitting reference to those reasons....

ComplaintZG FM Gisborne – offensive language – "eff–off" – "piss off" – reference to complainant on air FindingsPrinciples 1 and 7 – in context – no uphold Principle 5 – reference ambiguous – no uphold CommentBroadcaster’s complaints procedure and process for recording programmes unsatisfactory This headnote does not form part of the decision. Summary During the morning programme on 22 September 2000, an announcer on Gisborne’s ZG FM said "eff-off". On 20 October he said that by playing a certain song, he would "piss off" some colleagues. After a listener called the station to complain about his language, the announcer made reference to her complaint on 25 October, saying "I can’t say ‘piss off’ or Mrs Pascall will get hacked off about it....

Summary "Six Days in a Leaky Boat" was the name of the documentary broadcast on Inside New Zealand on TV3 at 8. 30pm on 24 March 1999. It featured six people in their twenties who were sailing a yacht in the Bay of Islands, and who had never met before. They were required to perform a number of objectives in difficult circumstances. Mr Stewart complained to TV3 Network Services Ltd, the broadcaster, that the language used and behaviour shown in a programme about boating was unacceptable and in breach of the standards. Furthermore, he wrote, the "foul" language used was advanced as acceptable, which amounted to a deceptive programme practice. Explaining that the programme was about the relationships between six people in their twenties who were required to perform difficult tasks, TV3 said that the unscripted programme captured their reactions....

Tapu Misa declared a conflict and did not take part in the determination of this complaint. Complaint under section 8(1)(b) of the Broadcasting Act 1989 Fijian Language Programme – interview with Adi Asenaca discussing the policies of the deposed SDL government – Ms Asenaca gave her views on the coup and the interim government – allegedly in breach of balance and social responsibility standards Findings No recording available – decline to determine complaint under s11(b) of the Broadcasting Act 1989 This headnote does not form part of the decision. Broadcast [1] An item broadcast on Niu FM during its Fijian Language Programme on 23 March 2007, contained an interview with former Fijian MP Adi Asenaca. [2] The interview focused on discussing several policies and laws introduced by the former Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua (SDL) government in Fiji....