ABC’s Mark Scott ‘Sorry’ Over Chris Kenny Sketch

[icyfroth]

The boss of the ABC has apologised to conservative commentator Chris Kenny for a Chaser skit that depicted him having sex with a dog.

ABC managing director Mark Scott released a written statement today apologising to Mr Kenny, nearly seven months after the photoshopped image appeared during a skit in The Hamster Decides.

The national broadcaster received more than 200 complaints about the crude image but the ABC's complaints department found it had not breach editorial policies.

Mr Kenny has since proceeded with a defamation lawsuit against the ABC.

In the statement Mr Scott said he had come to the decision the ABC "should not have put the skit to air".

"Having reviewed the issue, in my opinion it falls short of the quality demanded by our audience and normally delivered by our programming," Mr Scott said.

"While Mr Kenny is a strong and persistent critic of the ABC, and can expect to be a subject of satire, the depiction of him was very strong in the context of the satirical point attempted."

Mr Scott said he had called Mr Kenny to apologise to him and his family and also regretted the delay in making an apology, saying he was originally waiting for internal and Australian Communications and Media Authority reviews.

Chaser team member Julian Morrow responded to Mr Scott's apology by tweeting a digitally altered photo of the ABC boss having sex with a hamster in the same vein Mr Kenny's image was used.

Mr Kenny has not yet commented on the apology but the Twitter account for his Sky News show has retweeted various tweets about it.

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The ABC seems to be doing a lot of apologising lately.

[icyfroth]

So why is Mark Scott sorry?

[lakeland27]

he just wants to shut them up.

[icyfroth]

Ah so.

Do you think it'll work?

[just_me_karen]

Yes it probably will work, because his conservative litigious attitude will intimidate a company that is reliant upon money from Kenny's puppets.

Already I've noticed the abc is becoming more of a govt broadcaster than a community service.

[silverfaun]

He has intimated that the case will not be dropped because  another chaser  has decried the apology.

I hope Kenny keeps up on the court case. He was targeted simply because he criticised the ABC so the ABC went after him.

This from our public broadcaster??  this kind of witch hunt is unacceptable from a taxpayer funded entity, they are supposed to be unbiased but they sure showed their true colours here.  I hope he sues the pants off them.

Imagine if they did this to a left wing journalist?? Oh? that's right, they wouldn't.

[just_me_karen]

Haha did you see the guinea pig pic with the abc manager?

Oh gosh, pearl clutchers are keeling over. Fetch the salts!

[icyfroth]

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@just_me_karen wrote:
Yes it probably will work, because his conservative litigious attitude will intimidate a company that is reliant upon money from Kenny's puppets.

Already I've noticed the abc is becoming more of a govt broadcaster than a community service.

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Well I certainly hope it makes the Chaser rethink it's "tasteless and undergraduate" material.

[icyfroth]

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@just_me_karen wrote:
Haha did you see the guinea pig pic with the abc manager?

Oh gosh, pearl clutchers are keeling over. Fetch the salts!

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It was a hamster.

[lakeland27]

stop complaining. you guys rant about free speech . lets see just how free it can get. kenny is a free speech ranter .. what changed his mind ?

[lakeland27]

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@silverfaun wrote:

He has intimated that the case will not be dropped because  another chaser  has decried the apology.

I hope Kenny keeps up on the court case. He was targeted simply because he criticised the ABC so the ABC went after him.

This from our public broadcaster??  this kind of witch hunt is unacceptable from a taxpayer funded entity, they are supposed to be unbiased but they sure showed their true colours here.  I hope he sues the pants off them.

Imagine if they did this to a left wing journalist?? Oh? that's right, they wouldn't.

---

they did.

the whole affair is part of a war between mordoch and the ABC . modochs hacks went after the ABC because they are competition basically and the ABCs investigative journalists (starting with media watch) embarrassed them for 1. plagiarism 2 telling wholesale porkies. the list goes on.  so in order to remove any accountability as a source of news its easier to go after the ABC.. far easier than actually applying some reasonable journalistic standards.  there in fact should have been a person rather than a dog used in the skit because that is in fact what people like kenny are doing. the person represents the public you see.