BSA Decisions Ngā Whakatau a te Mana Whanonga Kaipāho

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Summary

The Auckland Hero Parade (organised by gay organisations) was covered in an item

broadcast on 3 National News between 6.00–7.00pm on Monday 13 February.

Mr McLauchlan complained to TV3 Network Services Ltd, the broadcaster, about an

aspect of the item when two women wearing g-strings only were shown dancing

erotically. That part, he said, breached the standards requiring good taste and the

protection of younger aged viewers.

Pointing out that the segment complained about was a very brief aspect of an item

which explored the reasons for and the opposition to the Parade, TV3 said the

material shown did not breach the standard relating to taste. Because of its brevity,

TV3 stated that younger viewers would not have been influenced. Dissatisfied with

TV3's response, Mr McLauchlan referred his complaint to the Broadcasting

Standards Authority under s.8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989.

For the reasons below, the Authority declined to uphold the complaint.

Decision

The members of the Authority have viewed the item complained about and have read

the correspondence (summarised in the Appendix). As is its practice, the Authority

has determined the complaint without a formal hearing.

Mr McLauchlan complained to TV3 about its coverage of the Hero Parade on the

news between 6.00–7.00pm. As the coverage included a float showing two women

"dancing exotically and wearing only g-strings", he said that it breached the standards

relating to taste and the protection of children. Mr McLauchlan did not object to the

coverage of the Parade but to the inclusion of material which he believed was

unnecessarily erotic.

TV3 assessed the complaint under standards G2 and G12 of the Television Code of

Broadcasting Practice which require broadcasters:

G2  To take into consideration currently accepted norms of decency and taste

in language and behaviour, bearing in mind the context in which any

language or behaviour occurs.

G12 To be mindful of the effect any programme may have on children during

their normally accepted viewing times.

TV3 explained that the coverage of the Parade was seen primarily through the eyes of

members of a marching team, adding that it had:

... joined the team during their final practice and then followed them through the

parade and talked to them at the conclusion. The accompanying voice over and

interviews dealt with a number of issues including why some of the participants

were taking part, Police and a Civic Leader's concerns about behaviour and dress

during the parade and the response from spectators.

As for the specific aspect of the coverage complained about, TV3 said that it probably

referred to a pan of 10 seconds length along several women who were either topless or

scantily clad. The shot, it added:

... carried the voice of Auckland's Deputy Mayor David Hay expressing his

concern about that particular float and referring to the women concerned

"caressing each other". The shot did not actually show the women "caressing

each other".

Pointing out that the shots were neither close-up nor provocative, TV3 maintained

that they did not breach the guidelines. Rather than include possibly offensive shots

during the news coverage of the Parade, it continued, the item had developed the

theme of viewing the parade through the male marching team. Moreover, TV3 argued,

the shots would not have had any significant affect on children.

When he referred his complaint to the Authority, Mr McLauchlan said the shots of

the women dancing sensually were of little news value and had lowered the item's

standard of decency. Questioning whether TV3 had supplied the Authority with a

tape of the news item from 13 February (rather than 14 February), Mr McLauchlan

expressed his opinion that the footage of women wearing only g-strings while dancing

was inappropriate in the context of prime-time news. It also breached standard G12,

he said, as it was unsuitable for small children.

In response, TV3 assured the Authority that the tape was of the item broadcast on 13

February and, in addition, argued that in view of Mr Hay's comments, the shot of the

women dancing in g-strings was relevant.

In dealing with the complaint, the Authority accepted that the story was a valid news

item which had been approached by the broadcaster in a different way. In determining

complaints which allege a breach of standard G2, the Authority is required to take

context into account. The item in question was broadcast during a news programme

and the Authority is prepared to accept that news items may deal with issues which

might not otherwise be appropriate for family viewing. However, to ensure that

standard G2 is complied with, the Authority expects that items which raise explicit

questions of morality be dealt with sensitively.

Taking into account the fact that the item dealt with a valid news story about a parade

organised by gay groups and that the aspect complained about was relatively short

and was dealt with discreetly to show only part of what the Deputy Mayor was

referring to, the Authority decided that neither standard G2 nor standard G12 had

been contravened.

For the reasons above, the Authority declines to uphold the complaint.

Signed for and on behalf of the Authority

Iain Gallaway
Chairperson
11 May 1995

Appendix

Mr McLauchlan's Complaint to TV3 Network Services Ltd - 15 February 1995

Mr Andrew McLauchlan of Auckland complained to TV3 Network Services Ltd

about an item broadcast on 3 National News between 6.00 - 7.00pm on Monday 13

February.

The item had reported the Hero Parade in Auckland and the coverage included, Mr

McLauchlan wrote, a float showing two women "dancing erotically while wearing

only g-strings".

Pointing out that children watch news and that his two boys aged 5 and 3 were

frequently in the room at news time, Mr McLauchlan argued that the item breached

the standards requiring good taste and decency and the protection of younger aged

viewers.

Coverage of such events, he concluded, should exclude the unnecessarily erotic.

TV3's Response to the Formal Complaint - 3 March 1995

Advising that the complaint had been assessed under standards G2 and G12 of the

Television Code of Broadcasting Practice, TV3 reported that the item dealt with the

Parade mainly through the eyes of members of a "marching team". It noted:

[TV3] joined the team during their final practice and then followed them through

the parade and talked to them at the conclusion. The accompanying voice over

and interviews dealt with a number of issues including why some of the

participants were taking part, Police and a Civic Leader's concerns about

behaviour and dress during the parade and the response from spectators.

During the item of three minutes duration, one four second sequence was a wide shot

of topless women dancing and a ten second shot panned along several women who

were either topless or scantily clad. TV3 continued:

The latter shot carried the voice of Auckland's Deputy Mayor David Hay

expressing his concern about that particular float and referring to the women

concerned "caressing each other". The shot did not actually show the women

"caressing each other".

While acknowledging that those aspects of the items were provocative, TV3 argued

that they did not breach the guideline. Neither of the shots of the topless women

were close up and its staff had gone to considerable lengths to avoid shots which

might offend viewers. For example, it added, the shots did not show women caressing

each other.

Furthermore, because of the brevity of the shots of the topless women, TV3

maintained that standard G12 was not contravened.

Mr McLauchlan's Complaint to the Broadcasting Standards Authority - 16

March 1995

Dissatisfied with TV3's decision, Mr McLauchlan referred his complaint to the

Broadcasting Standards Authority under s.8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989. He

wrote:

The reply from TV3 made much of the fact that the item dealt with the parade

primarily through the eyes of members of the marching team - and this simply

reinforces my point that the shot showing a float with two women dancing in a

sensual manner and wearing only g-strings added nothing to the news item, but

only lowered it's standard of decency.

Pointing out that his complaint did not refer to women caressing each other, Mr

McLauchlan said his concern focussed on the shot showing women on a float dancing

and wearing only g-strings. The shot, he added, was not long distant and of sufficient

length for small children to take in what was happening. He maintained that TV3's

response to his complaint was inadequate and, he concluded:

I believe the footage was in breach of code G2, as women wearing only g-strings

and dancing in a sensual manner is not the accepted norm for our society in the

context of prime-time news. And I also believe it was certainly in breach of

code G12, as such viewing is not suitable for small children, many of whom

would be watching TV at that time.

TV3's Response to the Authority - 28 March 1995

In its report to the Authority, TV3 said that the tape of the item confirmed that it had

mentioned Mr Hay's comments as they specifically referred to the shot in question -

two women dancing on a float wearing G-strings - and, consequently, added to the

relevancy of the shot.

Mr McLauchlan's Final Comment - 4 April 1955

Because of possible confusion and because TV3 might have supplied the Authority

with the wrong tape, Mr McLauchlan emphasised that his complaint was directed at

the material shown on Monday the 13th. He maintained that TV3 had shown poor

judgment by including footage that added nothing to the item which was clearly

unsuitable for small children.

On 13 April, TV3 confirmed that the tape supplied showed the item broadcast on 13

March.