ImperatorFish: JT and Willie in shock Radio NZ deal

Written By: - Date published: 4:25 pm, November 13th, 2013 - 16 comments
Categories: broadcasting, humour, making shit up, Media, radio, Satire, Social issues - Tags: ,

Scott at Imperator Fish has kindly given us permission to syndicate posts from his blog – the original of this post is here.

jt-willie-rnzRadio New Zealand management have confirmed that they are in talks with controversial broadcasters John Tamihere and Willie Jackson about a new afternoon radio show.

The pair was spotted leaving Radio New Zealand’s Auckland office yesterday, but neither Tamihere nor Jackson would confirm the rumours of a new show.

However, Radio New Zealand’s new CEO, Paul Thompson, today confirmed that Tamihere and Jackson were in line to host a new afternoon weekday show.

While Radio New Zealand National continues to rate highly, bosses have been concerned for some time that racists, anti-Semites, homophobes and misogynists are ill-served by the network’s current programme schedule.

“Like it or not, we are a public broadcaster,” said Mr Thompson. “We owe it to our listeners to provide programming that caters for a diverse group of perspectives. Even if we find some of those perspectives challenging.”

The new show would replace Jim Mora’s Afternoons, which currently broadcasts every weekday afternoon.

“It’s going to be difficult to let Jim Mora go. Jim’s understandably shocked and devastated, but he’s also realistic about the need for change,” said Thompson.

“We were faced with the choice of continuing with a popular magazine-style radio show that covers diverse topics such as the arts, food and wine, science, travel, news, and politics, or just going with two dickheads shooting their mouths off.

“In the end we had to remind ourselves what our core values were. Radio New Zealand exists for all New Zealanders. Even dickheads.”

Radio New Zealand’s commercial-free format would suit Tamihere and Jackson, said media expert Brian Bannister.

“There won’t be an advertiser backlash the next time one of them says something utterly offensive,” said Mr Bannister. “It’s a brilliant career move by the pair.”

Meanwhile. Radio Live bosses say they have no plans to replace Tamihere and Jackson with another person.

The duo were taken off air even before news of the Radio New Zealand deal broke, after they failed for once to get away with saying awful things about people.

Their comments about the Roastbusters victims proved deeply offensive to Radio Live’s accountants, after an advertiser walkout threatened the company’s financial prospects.

In place of Tamihere and Jackson Radio Live has been playing a sound recording of two yapping dogs, rewinding and replaying it several times during the show’s three-hour slot.

Listener feedback on the changes has so far been positive.

“It’s great to hear Michael Laws back on the radio, even if he sounds a bit shriller than before,” said one listener. “I agree with pretty much everything he has to say.

“I’m not sure who that other bloke is, though. I hope he’s not one of them queers.”

16 comments on “ImperatorFish: JT and Willie in shock Radio NZ deal ”

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  1. rilsildowgtn 1
    13 November 2013 at 4:29 pm

    I read this yesterday on 1 of the feeds on here and I thought it was a joke…..

    • The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 1.1
      13 November 2013 at 5:09 pm

      Nothing gets past you…

      • rilsildowgtn 1.1.1
        13 November 2013 at 5:51 pm

        At least I have a brain fool.. you on the other hand all you have is failed ideology everytime your brain functions.
        You should let it go……really

        • The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 1.1.1.1
          13 November 2013 at 6:11 pm

          At least I have a brain fool..

          But it is no good at recognising sartire (even when there a a tag saying “satire”)?

  2. Crunchtime 2
    13 November 2013 at 4:29 pm

    I’m offended on behalf of yapping dogs everywhere for being considered anything at all similar to Michael Laws.

  3. Tracey 3
    13 November 2013 at 4:32 pm

    former politicians ought to be banned from radio shows. One thing that JT has done is show that dickheadedness knows no colour

  4. Tracey 4
    13 November 2013 at 4:53 pm

    Touche

  5. Ad 5
    13 November 2013 at 5:56 pm

    Tamihere to replace Laidlaw – you’ll really wake up after Country Life then.

    And Kim Hill’s just a weird science nerd these days; Willie would bring it.

    And now, Murray Deaker for Morning Report …ahhh smell that coffee…

  6. Crunchtime 6
    13 November 2013 at 9:50 pm

    Michael Laws and Murray Deaker for something extra in your coffee. And here’s Paul Henry with the weather.

  7. greywarbler 7
    14 November 2013 at 4:11 pm

    I ought to ask Radio Live to play something better than two yapping dogs, better some NZ classic that many young listeners would never have heard before. It is a ‘country’ record uniquely prepared by NZs – the Ashley Clinton Sheep’s Choir
    You may be able to hear this flock that can rival Mongolian throat singing any time on Radionz
    presentation of Chris Bourke’s Blue Smoke, http://bluesmokebook.wordpress.com/
    another unique piece of Kiwiana.
    http://www.radionz.co.nz/concert/programmes/bluesmoke/2011120

    The sheep go for it last on this 60 minute collection.
    Track: Now is the Hour
    Artist: Ashley Clinton Sheep’s Choir
    EP: Ashley Clinton Sheep’s Choir
    Composer: Clement Scott/Maewa Kaihau
    Label: Kiwi SB-1

  8. Peter B 8
    15 November 2013 at 9:00 am

    It’s kind of sad really. Up until their verbal assault on a rape victim and expression of some bizarre attitudes towards teenage pedophiles I enjoyed Willie and JT’s show.
    To me they represented an important voice for the left with a range of economic and political views that simply don’t get heard anywhere else.

    While clearly it is important that these two gain some understanding of sexual assault – they’ll be most strongly affected by those closest to them – we shouldn’t forget that the deepest horror of the whole situation comes down to the fact that the NZ police had irrefutable knowledge of a pedophile gang operating in Auckland in 2011 and they didn’t do anything.

    Utterly chilling and frightening is the indifference of the community involved. The friends and peers of the perpetrators, the schools, the parents – they did nothing. A conspiracy of silence and inaction – quiet literally sacrificing their female children to meet the sexual needs of young alpha males in their community. This is not a new phenomenon this is primitive, tribal behavior and I suspect the Roast Busters are only the most visible and obvious perpetrators of this type of thing. One has too ask how many other underage rape complaints sit forgotten in police vaults around NZ and how many other young men are growing up thinking that pedophilia is fine as long as you can get away with it.

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