Mel Greig and Michael Christian as they were being interviewed by A Current Affair.
by ALEXANDRA WAKE
Sadly, few of those outraged over the Kate Middleton hospital prank will understand that the presenters responsible are not journalists but entertainers. For that role they are covered by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and not the ethics of Media and Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA).
If they were covered by the MEAA, warning bells would have rung well before the piece was put to air. Such a prank does not fit with the journalistic rules of honesty, fairness, independence and the rights of others.
Kate’s health might have great public interest, but any woman in the early stages of pregnancy deserves privacy and to be kept safe from the stress of the public gaze. If the presenters were journalists, they would have had to pay attention to an ethics clause that says, “Do not allow advertising or other commercial considerations to undermine accuracy, fairness or independence”.
And that’s the main point of this. The decision to put that prank to air was commercial. The presenters at the centre of the hospital prank were out to win in a cut-throat ratings city.
But just like the contestants in The Hunger Games, the ones who are really to blame are those behind the antics: the audience members who voted overwhelmingly that it was a good gag, and the program directors, company directors, and lawyer who approved it going to air. The lawyer decided there was nothing illegal in the actions, but did anyone in the room reviewing the pre-recorded program piece have a moral compass?
Sadly, the only way to get a moral compass for some, it appears, is to be threatened with big stick. So here is another potential villain in this saga: ACMA. If the Australian Communications and Media Authority had had a track record of being stronger, then perhaps someone would have stopped that piece going to air.
It was ACMA who ordered Alan Jones to do “fact training”
ACMA is the same body that sent Alan Jones for “fact” training, and gave John Laws a mere reprimand for the cash for comment scandal.
If ACMA had taken a harder line with these matters and with Kyle Sandilands for his foul comments to a rape victim and subsequently a female journalist, would someone at Austereo have stopped to think harder and longer about putting this piece to air?
It’s not as though episodes like this were not already on the radar for Australian media as being a potential ethics and legal storm. Remember when Channel Seven got in trouble for its hospital invasion in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake?
Will ACMA now consider revoking the station’s broadcasting licence? It’s unlikely.
Prank calls are for teenagers. It’s time commercial radio contributed to lifting the public discourse in this country and stopped pandering to the lowest common denominator. Maybe it’s time for breakfast radio to ditch its infantile persona and aspire to something better.
Should ACMA have gone harder on Kyle Sandilands?
They need to do so for all of us who have had a loved one in hospital and have relied on nursing staff to tell us, “Get on a plane now” or, “It’s okay, you don’t need to worry”. I wonder how many nurses will now tell us nothing by phone until we disclose our mother’s maiden name.
I spend a lot of time in my classes talking about the need to treat people (such as nurses) with respect. I try to ensure they are fully aware of the impact of media glare on the general public, particularly those under stress.
Sadly, there will always be a percentage of media workers out there who will push the boundaries in a misguided attempt to get a scoop. Big companies including hospitals should be prepared to manage that. A couple of night duty nurses shouldn’t have been left exposed to cop the flack. This is one of the few good reasons we have public relations specialists.
But in the end, it’s media companies who must be held accountable for this kind of stunt. It’s time for ACMA to step up.
Alexandra Wake is Member of the Education Advisory Board for Mindframe, Hunter Mental Health Institute and was Asia Pacific 2011 Dart Center Academic Fellowship, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York City. You can follow her on Twitter here.
This article was originally published over with our friends at The Conversation and has been republished with full permission. You can read the original article here.
What do you think of the role of the media in the radio prank tragedy? Should the Australian Communications and Media Authority enforce stronger rules for the media?
Comments
67 Comments so far
I don’t believe in any reports given by so called “journos” on commercial media, TV and print. Nor those printed by a certain newspaper, which are now so full of advertising that they report paragraph points on things of importance, yet promote celebrities & ‘has been’ celebrities’ as news.
The DJ’s are as much to blame as the system. They had the choice to hang up and also to say who they were to the nursing staff. Yet they have to make a name for themselves regardless of who gets hurt.
Surely they would have taken note of what happened to the ‘Chaser’ crew but no as this is the network that allowed Kyle ‘whatever’ to broadcast to kids for many, many years and endorse the bullying mentality.
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Give them a break. I think that nurse was suffering some form of depression already now these two have to live with it everyday of their lives.
My heart goes out to the family but they should have been aware of her state of mind.
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If she was already suffering depression when they chose to humiliate her without her knowledge or consent, then that makes things worse, not better.
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“…the ones who are really to blame are those behind the antics: the audience members who voted overwhelmingly that it was a good gag…”
As mamamia promoted the original prank without one word of caution or derision, do you count yourselves among the ones to blame?
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I am still shocked that a Hospital with such high-profile patients has seemingly no security procedures or protocols already in place to prevent this sort of event.
All this blame on the DJs, 2Day FM, prank calls etc is baffling.
Surely a huge institution such as this Hospital should already have in place an adequate system for anyone to contact the ward and receive sensitive patient details.
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Why is poor security to blame for the actions of people who seek to breach that security? Do you also blame poor security systems for the actions of thieves? Are any perpetrators ever to blame in your world, or should the victims always have done something different to avoid becoming victims?
I am still shocked that a Radio Station with such high-profile personalities has seemingly no security procedures or protocols already in place to prevent this sort of event.
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That’s why they have security! there are always security risks in places that have high profile people…they’re supposed to stop people from getting past first base!
The hospital had nothing in place to stop this…lucky for the hospital that it was a couple of dj’s messing around… and not some crazy IRA kook trying to get some info.
I don’t believe that hospital supported that woman one bit…I reckon they smashed her bigtime…no-one else did, no-one knew who she was till she killed herself.
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It was all over the British newspapers, right from day one , about the nurses. Saying no one knew who she was is wrong, very wrong.
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Yes, suan, they have security to try and prevent bad people from harming the hospital, its staff and its patients. It’s a pity that they need it but that’s the world we live in.
And I repeat, the same can be said of any security system. It is obvious that any security system that is breached is an inadequate system – but does that lessen the culpability of those committing the breach?
I hope that if you ever find yourself the victim of crime, the police don’t just tell you that the criminals were just doing what criminals do and that you didn’t take enough precautions. After all, crime has been happening for millennia.
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And if it had been the IRA breaching security, would we say that’s okay too because it must be the victim’s fault?
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I don’t think they were trying to ‘breach security’. I do believe they thought they would only get as far as the hospital switchboard at which their request would have been denied.
To compare a radio station’s security procedures to that of a Hospital is a bit far-fetched really. But to indulge you in your argument…I doubt I could call 2Day FM and be given sensitive information about any of their presenters…and comparing the personalities on radio as high-profile is also really far-fetched.
I am experienced in mental health and to blame this prank on a woman killing herself is also naive. She obviously had a lot going on in her life already…and I feel sad for her and her family. Nobody can say if the prank had any impact on her final decision…lets just hope all this media and public hatred towards to the young radio presenters doesn’t push them to the same fate.
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And to clarify:
-I have never listened to 2Day FM or any other commercial radio station.
-My mother has been the victim of a terrible prank call that caused a lot of grief for my family.
-And Yes, perpetrators ARE blamed in my world, and I never once indicated that I think victims can avoid being victims. That comment was in very poor taste Andy.
I doubt I could call the Vatican and get through to The Pope as prank calls etc would have been addressed in any large organisations contingency plans.
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Best article I have read on this so far. Spot on.
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Ooh, a bit rich “journalistic rules of honesty, fairness, independence and the rights of others.” Bollocks! I remember being interviewed and offered something “off the record”. Next day, BINGO!, “off the record” my arse!
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To answer the main question: I think these guys are entertainers… how can they be described as journalists? their main purpose is not to gather important news stories in an unbiased tone…
regarding the ethical issue: I do not understand how so many can be led to believe that the nurses’ suicide is solely due to the prank call. Somebody considering suicide does not do it on the spur of the moment… a set of circumstances usually result in the final act… these circumstances usually involve very personal issues that the subject deals with for a period of time before coming to the ultimate conclusion. If it wasn’t the prank call, something else would have triggered it. To me, the media coverage pinning all blame on the radio hosts is probably the most disrespectful act of all: it doesn’t aknowledge the complexity of the nurses’ feelings and it is disrespectful to all suicide victims and people suffering depression.
In terms of the prank call itself: I personally would not accept to do a job where I am asked to do such things. It is degrading for the hosts, for the station’s audience and especially for the prank victims. I can understand they are trying to please a relatively childish audience (teens and young adults) and in a competitive environment, as long as the law allows it, if it can real in more sponsors (via increasing audience share) then it will happen whether we like it or not. Boycotting the station will only work for ‘show’ (for a short time…as seen in the Jones scandal vs Gillard).
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I like this post as it brings us back to the facts, we do not know the reasons behind it. Was she going through a marriage breakdown? Her mother was sick, was she not coping with this? Was she perhaps sick? Was it even a suicide…don’t think thats been confirmed yet. Just imagine if it turned out she had a heart attack and all this hate has been thrown at the radio hosts. Obviously they have good reason to think suicide, but just a thought. I wonder if people would then accuse them still of killing her? Probably, even if they found out she ate hamburgers with fries at every meal and had blood pressure through the roof i’m sure some people would still find a way to blame the hosts.
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Radio hosts are people who have nothing to really offer society that is of any real benefit, so they make jokes at the expense of those who do contribute.
I would prefer them to just shut up and play music, introduce the news and tell us the time every now and then.
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I am just so appalled at the lack of accountability they showed. All this entertainers vs journos debate and the gall they had to say “that’s not my department” (!!!!) was just amazing. Whoever had the prank idea, whoever decided to air it, there is SOME accountability to be born by the two humans who actually placed the call. No one held a gun to their head. They elected to perform a prank that picked on a sick and vulnerable woman if nothing else. Shameful enough, without even getting to the ensuing tragedy.
All anyone wants to hear them say is “I should have given the prank more thought, I wish I hadn’t done it”. Cop on.
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Seahorse, that’s exactly what I have been thinking. To try to excuse the 2 djs of their share of responsibility just because ‘they only made the call’ is ludicrous.
Where were their ethics when they came up with idea and then consciously decided to go through with it? If they were strong, ethical people they never would have made the call in the first place.
They have played a role in this sorry affair and I too would like to hear from them “it was a stupid, immature, unethical thing that we did and I realise now that my ethics are completely out of line”.
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don’t you think though that the radio station would be so terrified of being sued that they would have been scripted to ensure no liability was assumed?
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“Where were their ethics when they came up with idea and then consciously decided to go through with it? If they were strong, ethical people they never would have made the call in the first place.”
How do you know they came up with the idea themselves?
How do you know they consciously decided to go through with it (of their own accord)?
How do you know they weren’t scared of losing their jobs close to christmas/\?
How do you know they were scared to speak up in case they were bullied for not agreeing (2dayfm are reputed to have a bullying culture)?
How do you know they weren’t assured that they would never get through or find anything out about Kate?
How do you know they weren’t told by lawyers after the fact that the nurses were unidentifiable and the call would not do any harm when it was aired?
How do you know that the hosts didn’t speak out about concerns about using the material after it was recorded?
How do you know that the lawyers didn’t (in truth) advise against using it and were ignored by the station production team?
Who could have imagined they’d get put through with such ridiculous accents?
Who could have anticipated that the international press would go so completely nuts over such a whacky call?
What happened in the hospital after the call, given that the nurse was not identified at any time either during the call or by the press?
What was the cause of such a security breach in a hospital?
What else was going on in Jacintha Saldahna’s life to put her on edge? How did the hospital deal with her?
There are lot of questions about this incident, but it doesn’t take too much common sense to realise that the hosts were basically one cog in the great big machine of commercial radio. The call they participated in was like every other (more often than not, benign) prank call that is part of radio culture. Perhaps red flags should have been obvious to them and the station bosses, particularly when the call went through and security was breached, but we must remember that hindsight is a beautiful thing. The consequences could have fallen anywhere on a spectrum of none to tragic – this time the consequences were tragic and the hosts will be blaming themselves quite enough without anyone elses help.
Let this be a catalyst for review radio culture as a whole, rather than serve as a reason for a nasty and malicious witchhunt on two people that made the same mistake as a hundreds of radio jocks before them and who could not by any stretch, be said to have had malicious intent or cruel hearts.
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To me it sounded like they had been instructed to “don’t say anything”;
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Having lost my brother to suicide it does sadden me… But what makes me more upset is that ppl actually believe it was all because of this one incident!!! I don’t pretend to know the nurse but I believe with all fibres that there was so much more going on in her mind and I feel sorry for the host, for someone’s death to be put on their heads is awful… The thing that was I guess the tip cherry on top of it all was my brothers ex girlfriend moved on… Should my family blame her… No of course not. Yrs it was a silly prank but why point fingers at just the host and not every single news paper that published the story when it was thought of as funny?? The journos who wrote them pieces??? I hate suicide it’s awful I feel the anguish of those left behind but it was her that took her life I’m sure for many reasons or mental illness not just because of a radio prank!!!
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I agree except for one point. Prank calls should not be acceptable for teenagers either. The prank call aims deceive and humiliate a victim so an audience or peers may laugh. It takes power away from the victim and gives it to the perpetrator. Therefore it may be viewed as a bullying behaviour, particularly when one teenager does it to another.
To all those who think the prank call is funny, ask yourself why? Then think about your children and the sort of behaviour you prefer them to show. Question if it would still be funny if a classmates prank called your child. Imagine how your child would feel at school the next day if everyone was laughing at them because they fell for a ‘prank’.
We do not tolerate bullying in our schools, we encourage students to develop empathy skills but the job is made that much harder by the antics of some members of the media. No, prank calls are not for teenagers. It is time we, as a community, said NO to prank calls by anyone at any time. They serve no purpose. There are so many ways to offer entertainment and humour that we do not need to resort to causing embarrassment. We need to set a better example.
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I do, I think there should be stronger rules against prank calls certinly in this instance, I believe Kate deserved privacy imagine if she had been god forbid miscarrying and the whole world found out, all because of some silly prank call.
I remember being with my husband in the car once and he was listening to MMM and they did a prank call on a woman pretending to be an energy company, she had rung earlier in the week to ask for an extension on her electricity bill as she needed extra time, they rang and pretended to be the energy company saying she couldnt have the extension and had to pay by the due date. She started to cry, and say she couldnt. It was horrible to listen to and my heart broke for her, how is that funny????
We need stronger rules against this or it will get worse.
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Something that’s worried me about this debacle, even before the death, was that these “entertainers” managed to get a worldwide scoop that only journalists worldwide could have ever dreamed of getting, hence the high-fiving all round. Now will that sort of thing become some kind of legal loophole for journalists to get hold of top-security information via the “entertainers”? Because entertainers are allowed to and journalists aren’t?
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Q: Are radio hosts journalists or entertainers?
A: Neither. They are idiots.
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well they get paid like entertainers and are there to draw crowds (listeners) and so much emphasis on numbers and ratings….so yep entertainers!
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For me they are entertainers…and not very good ones!!! Increasingly over the years I have had to tune out to most commercial radio stations, especially in the car whilst taking our kids to school, as the topics of conversation, language and silly jokes embarrass me and make my kids squirm!!!
Even though I am not to keen on some of the music that Triple J play, I tend to listen to them the most…all I want is news and music
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As a lawyer who’s worked on tv (not radio) broadcasting for a number of years, I’d like to add that the lawyer’s role in the pre-broadcast process is quite specific and limited. It revolves just around whether or not the proposed broadcast is defamatory, in contempt of court, or illegal. The lawyer doesn’t get to say that they think the broadcast is immoral or in poor taste. I’ve had to approve broadcasts that I’ve been uncomfortable with because they aren’t illegal. When I’ve tried to say that I think something is morally questionable, the producer or journalist will snap at me and say “well, is it illegal?”. I have to say “no” and they reply “well, then it isn’t up to you”…
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‘Sadly, there will always be a percentage of media workers out there who will push the boundaries in a misguided attempt to get a scoop. Big companies including hospitals should be prepared to manage that.’
You have got to be frick’n joking! Hospitals are NOT fair game, they are there to look after sick and dying people, not to put up with immature pranks like this. The nurses and doctors there work their butts off to help people who are unwell and don’t deserve to put up with this sort of rubbish.
It should be illegal to prank call hospitals and emergency numbers for ambulances or police.
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Thank you, Tuesday, I agree. Calling out ambulances / police / firefighters / SES on any kind of prank is not just stupid and selfish and childish, it’s socially and morally wrong. These services exist to help in emergencies …. “sorry that your house burned down, we had been called away on a joke at the time.”. I though it actually WAS a legal offence to call out any of these services for a “prank”.
It should also be illegal to call a hospital for any reason other than legitimate business. Anyone who thought this would be funny has never had experience in a hospital – as a patient, staff member, family member or friend.
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They’ve always been ‘entertainers’ on commercial radio, but whether they actually entertain is debateable – personally the music and the news is all I need – no gossip, no stunts, just music and news!!
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talk about a scape goat!!! Maybe the media that continued to broadcast it over and over should be berated, put down and dragged through the mud like these two radio hosts who made a simple mistake. Hey prince Charles thought it was funny!!!
Did it ever occur to anyone one of these radio hosts could comitte suicide due to the disgusting bagging by the rest of the media?!? Of course not if they did it wouldn’t be every news program’s fault who not only played the gag but then pointed the finger too.
Bit disappointed that mamamia can not see instead of placing blame how bout a little support for two people who are likely hurting
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Totally disagree.
But then I took issue with the prank even before news of the nurse’s death broke. Kate Middleton might be a public figure but even her privacy shoudl be respected. She was in hospital because she’s pregnant and unwell. That deserves privacy.
I think the idea of the prank was ill conceived, it should never have been executed or aired.
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I don’t think DJs need to have a Journalist background, few DJs are required to take on a journalistic role and while some are entertainers most are just radio presenters.
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Then her privacy should have been better protected by the hospital.
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Blame the victim.
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Can ANYONE, ANYONE AT ALL get over the blame game?
Who was responsible? EVERYONE. Including Mamamia for harping on and on about who to blame. (Except that post by Bec.)
People to blame:
The radio hosts- they made the call
Their producers/lawyer- they approved the call to be aired
The nurse that killed herself- she shouldn’t have put call through
The nurse that gave info- Should have never given out private info over the phone
The media- Probably the WORST perpetrators of the lot. Their constant blaming and finger pointing is what escalated this whole situation.
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You’ve left out the most important group – the audiences who continue to support these types of radio programs and personalities.
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So very true Izzy.
Every one and no one is to blame.
There are only victims in this situation….. sadly
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Izzy I agree with your point about everyone needing to place blame, however I dont think anyone is to blame as such for someone committing suicide.
What I do think however, is that everyone should look at their processes and look at what they can change for the future. (ie hospital, Austereo, lawyers, DJ’s, media, audience, other radio stations who play pranks).
To learn nothing from this horrible story would be a tragedy
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The 2 DJs are simply being blamed for a flawed system in the radio station here and a flawed system in the hospital.
The pre recorded call should have never been allowed to go to air, and nurses should have never been responsible for answering incoming calls overnight. Especially knowing there was a VIP in their care.
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They are being blamed for what they did.
There is nothing simple about it.
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One group that hasn’t seemed to have learnt anything and the hypocrisy looms large, is the British Gutter Press……They have been doing this sort of thing for YEARS. They would have hounded the nurse and now go on to do the same to the radio presenters…..
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When asked, especially by a skilled and persistent questioner, most people divulge all sorts of personal things. And they would be horrified if those things were then suddenly published.
Just because a person answers a journalist’s question, does not mean that the journalist automatically has to put that answer in the story. It’s a choice whilst writing which should be weighed up against public interest vs what is right.
I am sure for most people, being ethical is learned behaviour. So it should be taught! Some journos are too egotistical to be ethical.
As an aside, when I was in radio (which admittedly was a long time ago!) if we were recording a person we had to make sure they knew they were being recorded… something that prank calls never do. Is this not a requirement any more?
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i believe the rule in australia is if you’re making a prank call you must at the end of the call inform the person that it was a prank and may this be used on air – this is not a requirement for international calls, which is definitely a factor here
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I very much doubt if anyone ever thought they were journos in the first place.. i have never considered any radio DJ to be nothing more than a front piece of trying to entertain or trying to shock and create ratings. I do not listen to commercial radio for that reason.
You state that if they were covered by MEAA, warning bells would have rung; prank doesnt fit within guidelines of journalistic rules etc however after the prank was aired certain journos, actually many journos, were linking to the audio with comments listen to this, funny as etc etc.
Double standards? they did not participate in the making of the audio but they certainly let their journalistic integrity slip by actively promoting it as fun.
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Finally an article that doesnt play into the whole ‘it was unforseeable’ reasoning. Yes it might have passed the legal hurdles, but clearly not the moral ones. Perhaps as well as a lawyer, commercial radio stations should have some sort of inhouse ‘ethics regulator’ that has to give their tick of approval too.
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Whilst the nurses’s death wasnt forseeable, her humilitation was. So was the invasion of Kate’s privacy. That should have been enough not to air it.
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I watched the ACA and Today Tonight interviews last night and could not help but think that the two radio presenters are being used as the public scapegoats for the radio station. Yes, they have control over their own actions and phoning a hospital in that manner is an unethical thing to do (everyone deserves privacy – even Princess Kate), but at the same time they are two people who are part of a wider team and that wider team needs to also be held accountable.
I am a lawyer (albeit not in the field of broadcasting) and I am quite shocked that it was allowed to go to air. The lawyers and management who approved the broadcast also need to step forward and accept responsibility rather than hide behind the presenters.
As was said many many times in the interviews, no one could have predicted the outcome of this prank call, however just because it couldn’t be predicted, doesn’t mean those involved should not accept responsibility for the part they played. And while this outcome could not be predicted, what could have been predicted was embarrassment of the parties involved and the invasion of privacy of a young woman who deserves respect (as all people do).
The standards of ‘entertainment’ really do need to be lifted – drastically.
This is a very insightful article.
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Yes, yes and yes. Great piece. I’m so tired of the way this is being constantly referred to as ‘a harmless prank’ and that no one could foresee such a tragic outcome. That someone else’s humiliation should be dished out as some kind of entertainment is a sad reflection on our society. I’m also tired of the speculation about the poor nurse’s ‘mental health’ that we know absolutely nothing about, and nor do we have the right to. If this kind of prank had been pulled on me at my professional place of work I’d say I’d be pretty devastated too. Sadly there is not enough empathy in this world. I do feel for the presenters, whose consideration for the prank’s victim was probably pushed aside through some encouragement of their employer and their own ambition. Such a sad, sad situation.
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What on earth is so humiliating about putting a call through. A mistake maybe, but not humiliating…no-one even knew who put the call through till she killed herself. She wasn’t harassed, stalked or abused by the media or anyone else…she may have been if they knew who she was, but they didn’t. I don’t believe the hospital when they say they supported her..I believe she would have been torn to shreds by management. Mostly for not using her commonsense that would have told her the Queen would never be ringing on an open line. ok..she was a foreigner, I get that..still..even foreigners have VIP’s in their own country.
Suicide is a selfish act…not once did that woman consider the pain and anguish she left behind. It was all about her and her ‘humiliation’. Not once was it about her children that she left behind to suffer this terrible act.
God knows how it will affect them in the future.
No-one is to blame, at the end of the day the dj’s enquired about the princess’s health..big deal! at the end of the day, no really private info was given out…the princess is fine, is going to shower later..etc etc…hardly life threatening information!
Sad she thought the answer was to kill herself…but ultimately that was her choice. I feel great sympathy for those that are now suffering for her selfishness.
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Wow, Suan. I think you really need to get some education about the reasons behind why people suicide. It is certainly not for selfish reasons. If anything, people I have treated who have survived attempts talk about trying to rid their loved ones of the burden of having to be around them. Hardly selfish at all. Also not logical thinking. That’s because most people who commit suicide have an illness which distorts their thinking.
In this case, it was not “just putting a call through”. This woman unknowingly broke a code of ethics to protect medical confidentiality. I imagine shame was a strong emotion for her at that time.
Your views are rather outdated. Suicide is hard for everyone, especially for the person who is gone.
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Hard for the person that has gone?? really?
Oh good grief! I suppose it would be hard sitting on a cloud playing a harp and watching your children sobbing.
Yeh! real hard! I guess that’s what my mother did. Left us with an abusive father because she was too weak to defend us and herself. Or at least do something about it!
Suicide is a cop out!
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One of my friends attempted suicide, and her sister challenged her about whether she thought about her family or friends. She said she could only think about how to end the misery. I am so saddened to read about what you went through, as one of the people left behind.
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Gosh Suan, maybe Santa can put some empathy for you under the Christmas tree!
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I am sorry your Mum committed suicide and that you suffered through the childhood that you had because of your Mum’s act. However, there are as many different reasons for committing suicide as there are people who commit suicide. I have discussed this with a family member who has attempted suicide and the only thing that seems to be clear is that, at that time, the person is feeling so much pain that they cannot see any other way out.
It is likely that this prank call was the final disaster in what this woman saw as a chain of disasters in her life. Just as we do not expect a person with a broken leg to use that leg properly, we cannot expect a person with a broken mind to make decisions properly.
Your anger is understandable, have you thought of seeking counselling?
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How do you know the facts behind whether or not she was “humiliated”? How do you know how she was treated by the media or anyone else? What ridiculous claims!! Why was a stupid prank call being made in the first place to a hospital where sick, dying and vulnerable patients are being treated?? Where hardworking staff are trying to keep them alive and well. Perhaps we need some “commonsense” here.
She may have been a foreigner – but this nurse is a highly educated woman, who was working very hard looking after patients and doing her job on a normal day at work.
Suicide is NOT a selfish act. It is an act of desperation at a time of intense, unbearable pain. It takes a lot to confront death in that way and no one just does it for fun. To make such ill informed comments adds to the stigma of suicide and mental illness. You say no-one is to blame, but it is okay to say that this woman is selfish. It was a choice she partly made due to the circumstances /stress/pain she was forced to face due to a phone call in a chain of events. I feel a GREAT DEAL of “sympathy” for you and your lack of compassion towards others.
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She might not have been harassed or such after the prank call, but everything you say happened before hand. Pretty sure telephoning someone at their workplace to play a prank is harassment. Sure there was no intent or maliciousness or any of that in the actual call but there the situation was still humiliating for the individual. How would feel if you were in the shoes of the nurse? If it’s enough to make you blush with embarrassment even in the slightest then it’s humiliating.
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Susan, how do you know that the nurse wasn’t being abused and harassed? Do you have some kind of insight that the rest of us don’t?
I think your comments about suicide are disgraceful and will just further add to the stigma associated with mental illness and suicide. It’s a shame that after all the work that is being done to raise awareness there are people who still think like you. You desperately need to educate yourself on this topic.
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“Suicide is a selfish act”
Unlike a prank call from a multi-million dollar radio station eh? I’m sure their intent was pure altruism.
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“I wonder how many nurses will now tell us nothing by phone.” My mum is a nurse and I have known since I was 5 years old that nurses aren’t allowed to give out any information over the phone, not even admit that a patient is in the hospital! This will not stop then from calling a family however. to update then on a patients condition. And in regards to the comment about breakfast radio aspiring to be something better, please note Mel and MC’s show was a night show, with a target audience of 10-17. I do hope this blame game will end soon.
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What Liz said. It’s exactly the article I have been looking for. No one likes talking about a moral compass. It’s too close to religion for many people. But guess what many things that are still legal are just stupid and wrong. And this stunt was. And any person who is truly an adult would see that. I wish we could teach people to think through possible outcomes to things they do. They wouldn’t be able to forsee the suicide but they would be able to think we are lying to people and wasting their time what good can come of this.
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I dont condone for a minute the prank that led to the breach of confidentiality at the hospital and the susequent release of private information. There are errors and lapses of sercurity all-round here. It is a very tragic affair too – that a nurse took her own life. One thing we are missing in this whole debate IS..the very real possibility that the nurse’s state of mind may well have been in a delicate state prior to her actually having taken the phone call from the radio station. Everyone seems to be jumping onto the bandwagon of making the suicide an obvious connection with the phonecall and subsequent media fallout. No doubt there are far more circumstances that were being played out in the nurses life to have made such an acute impact on her mental state and compelled her to take her life. Please – lets all be rational here. There has been far too much hysteria and the need for the british press to salvage some dignity from their own media debacle in recent times…..so finding such an obvious target in the radio station (and its silly prank) ….may very well be missing the point of trying to get down to the REAL reasons for a loving mother and wife to have taken her own life.
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While I agree that none of us knows the reasons that led to the suicide (though plenty of people have quickly concluded, as you seem to have, that she clearly suffered from mental illness and had a lot more going on that a silly phone call), I think that misses the point.
Even before news of the suicide, plenty of people were able to see this prank as a form of humiliating bullying. It doesn’t matter what her state of mind was, how her marriage was holding up, what her employers were like or what her cultural background was.
Unlike the pranksters, she wasn’t a major personality or the like. She didn’t have a team of lawyers, media advisers and publicity officers. She was a nurse who turned up to work one day, answered a phone, and then found herself the centre of global ridicule. Suicide or not, she was likely to have a very bad time of it for a while.
As I see it all this talk about mental illness and other possible pressures is a sideshow apparently designed to shift blame and ease the pressure on the perpetrators and their employers.
I can understand how a juvenile audience can fail to empathise with the victim but the station is, supposedly, not run by juveniles.
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Thankyou. This is the kind of well written article I have been looking for all week.
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