DWTS and the problem with live tv

Channel 7 has faced more controversy this week after Mark Holden's bizarre Dancing with the Stars performance at 7.30pm on Tuesday night. The entertainer-turned-judge-turned-barrister shocked audiences with a circus inspired routine and his post performance attitude.

It opened up the age-old debate around live television programming, and whether the benefits outweigh the potential for disaster. Many networks have opted for 7 second delays on their live programs to give themselves a chance to bleep out accidental swear words, but this doesn’t account for incidents such as Mark’s, where so much of his segment was scary and inappropriate for a family friendly show.

The controversy continued into the following day, with questions raised over how the incident was reported on various media platforms. (Remember that the ACMA code of conduct still applies to news and current affair programs such as Sunrise). Many social media comments were made noting that it is one thing to show the content initially, but to reshow it the following day after there has been ample time to edit the inappropriate content out is unacceptable.

Did you consider his conduct inappropriate? What would you recommend to producers of live TV shows to avoid similar situations happening again? And would you have re-aired the content the following day?

#MileyOnSunrise: Producers don't listen?

“Miley Cyrus” seems to have become synonymous with controversy over the past few years, after her exploits including pole dancing at concerts, provocative outfits, public drug use, naked video clips and the infamous “Blurred Lines” duet with Robin Thicke at the MTV music awards.  

The 21-year-old is currently touring in Australia and appeared on Sunrise (Channel 7, Weekdays 6am-9am) on Monday October 13th. According to the producers, when they announced she scheduled to appear, they received a lot of negative feedback. This did not seem to deter them though, as she featured heavily throughout the show.

This demonstrates how many television stations fail to consider their audiences and the values they hold. Many community members consider her songs and style inappropriate for a traditionally family-friendly morning show, and surely if your viewers are passionate enough about an issue to go to the effort of contacting you about it, it requires consideration. Maybe producers were ultimately wooed by the rating potential of her appearance…

Having said that, in the Sydney Morning Herald review, they reported that "Her high-cut leotard was almost demure ... her language polite, her answers considered". 
Perhaps then society has different values to that which the media perceives us to have? Let us know what you think about Miley’s appearance, and whether you think Sunrise should have listed to the outrage from their viewers?

P.S. We retweeted and reposted some of the best response to MileyOnSunrise - check them out at https://twitter.com/RightAtNight and https://www.facebook.com/rightatnightcampaign