pietillidie wrote:OEP wrote:You must be brain dead and I dare say properly a dud root. Don't get offended I'm being light hearted and I do have the right to free speech, even if it's at your expense...right?
I think you might be confusing banter with slander.
In any case, in these lean times being called a dud root would be something to cheer!
No more so than you referring to people as red necks, bigots, racists and misogynists simply because they have a different point of view on a situation(s) to you.
Also it's not banter when it's insulting and made on national television. Someone makes comments like the ones made about Roberts-Smith in a public not private forum (especially when the person being insulted isn't present to defend themselves) then it stops being banter and becomes slanderous. Just because you and David don't agree with how the military are viewed by others and the wars they fight doesn't lessen or make right what these presenters chose to say. After the first comment was made they had ample time to stop, regroup and realise it wasn't appropriate (especially a seasoned journalist like Negus) yet they elected to continue.
People have the right to feel indignant on the behalf of Roberts-Smith as many have, and as many have voiced. In the same way someone may hear a insulting or inappropriate comment made about another person and tell those involved it was out of line and to pull their heads in.
Do I agree with the death threats? Absolutely not that's completely unacceptable and those making them should be prosecuted.
Do I agree with Facebook pages trying to get the show shut down or the presenters fired, or the ones aimed at getting the sponsors to retract their advertising from the show? Personally no I think it's over the top, but in saying that those creating them have done nothing wrong they're simply voicing their opinion and continuing disapproval about what happened and taken more direct action.
Mind you all this could have been easily defused if the presenters involved had simply swallowed their pride and made a humble public apology - it could've been as simple as "I would like to apologise to Cpl (get his rank right George
) Roberts-Smith for my comments, they will ill considered and inappropriate. I hope I haven't offended him, or his family as that was not my intention and I hope I can move on from this and continue doing the job I love."
Very little face lost, not an apology to the public but a public apology to the man himself which also serves to soften the publics view of the presenters and what was said.
This whole thing has been very poorly managed by the show and the presenters and as a result things have escalated.
I guess the saying "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" could've saved them a lot of heartache.
A Collingwood supporter since the egg was inseminated.