Prank call turned bad

[jezr74]

Before the unfortunate events unfolded, people were having a laugh about it. Not as an assault on the deceased, but as prank in general.

It's like the old saying "It's all fun and games until someone looses an eye".

The media are having a field day on both sides of the globe, with much being contradictory.
http://www.news.com.au/entertainmen...acintha-saldanha/story-e6frfmq9-1226534040709

It's my opinion they would not intentionally prank call with an objective for someone to end their life. And that is the tragic result of something that would have been considered just low brow radio humor.

 

[jezr74]

So making a 14 year old girl confess she'd been raped at 12 isn't malicious? Telling a girl her mother was sleeping with the girl's boyfriend isn't malicious? It's just fun then.......
they have official warning against them and the station for the type of prank calls they made. yeah I bet they are heartbroken....at losing their careers.

That particular incident wasn't these two DJs, they guy that did that one is an absolute tool "shock jock" and is nothing like these guys... may have been the same radio station though, I do recall this about 12 months ago vaguely, and I think it sparked an investigation into the young girls well being.

 

[Tez3]

To be honest I can't see what's funny about pretending to be the Queen and asking about the Duchess of Cambridge's health, there's no comedy value in that. If they'd phoned a pizza takeaway pretending to be the Queen perhaps it might have been funnier but really it's quite childish. Not many were laughing before the nurse died because it simply wasn't funny, we have real comedians to make us laugh not amateurs filling in air time.
I'm sure they didn't mean this to end in someones death, I don't support having them blamed for her death but surely they must realise that 'prank calls' can and do go wrong, yet they seem shocked that it has.
My main complaint is them coming on to the television crying and saying how bad it is for them, that they are heartbroken etc, it's nonsense, they should apologise sincerely then shut up. It's not about them, they are perpetuating the story which will quieten down here as the police investigate because the press cannot report anything about the case if there's to be criminal charges. As I said, we should all wait for the Coroner's verdict and then see what going on but really those two need to shut up.

 

[K-man]

I feel sad for the family of the nurse but IMHO this has been blown out of proportion because of the unexpected and unfortunate death. However these presenters do NOT have history. Another guy called Kyle Sandilands did the lie detector interview and that went down like a lead balloon. He was employed by the same radio station but that is the only link.

The revelations were made during a segment in which the now 14-year-old was strapped to a lie detector and asked by her mother about her sex life.


The controversial segment led to a huge public backlash against the show's hosts - Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson.
The show has since been suspended and Sandilands has been dumped from his role as an Australian Idol judge.
The day after the controversial segment, police and the Department of Community Services said they were looking into whether a criminal investigation into the rape allegation was necessary.
The girl was interviewed by police in the presence of her mother on July 31, a police spokeswoman said.
But now that the girl had told police not to continue the investigation, police had to drop the case, the spokeswoman said.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/kyle...nvestigation-20090806-eag0.html#ixzz2EnSLN3WB

This type of prank interview is staple for a lot of shows including the top ranking TV show, 'The Chaser'. Where an unauthorised recording is made it requires permission from the party recorded before it can be used and the station claims it tried to contact the hospital. In the early stages it seemed like a harmless bit of fun. Even Prince Charles thought it funny. I believe the presenters concerned are genuinely remorseful and I feel sorry for them as well as the family and friends of the nurse. Sometimes it is impossible to foresee the consequences of our actions and I believe this is the situation here. A tragic outcome from what started out as a bit of fun.

(For what it's worth, the impersonation was terrible. Sounded nothing like the Queen. The presenters were surprised when their call was transferred.)

:asian:

 

[Tez3]

It's not the call so much as the presenters behaviour since, they should have said they were sorry then shut up, their crying all over the place was wrong, it was like they were thinking it was all about them. They even said they weren't responsible for it going out that someone else made the decision to broadcast it. There was a situation here where some broadcasters phoned a celebrity up here on a prank call where they told him that his grandaughter had slept with one of them, it upset the celebrity a lot as it did the public, we don't really have the same sense of humour here when it comes to 'prank' calls. This may be one of the reasons people aren't happy about it here.

No one knows yet whether she committed suicide and if she did why so the presenters weeping everywhere,it has overtones of their PR people telling them to 'look sorry', as I've said before, we should wait until the inquest to see what the Coroner's verdict is before deciding who or what is to blame if there is any. The presenters should shut up they just look as if they are milking it. As for the accent, my Gurkha shift partner says he heard it and while he speaks and understands English very well, accents are difficult and he wouldn't have known it wasn't the Queen so it's unlikely that the nurse, an Indian national would have been able to tell either so that isn't any excuse on the part of the presenters.
To be honest it doesn't matter whether it's the station or the presenters who have the history, the station let them broadcast their inaneness so are responsible for what goes out.

 

[mook jong man]

Probably would never have happened if the bloody media weren't so obsessed with the Royals.
I think the media possibly over estimate just how much the general public care about the day to day lives of the Royal family.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

Probably would never have happened if the bloody media weren't so obsessed with the Royals.
I think the media possibly over estimate just how much the general public care about the day to day lives of the Royal family.

And if not, then people care too much about their lives.

And Tez-as for the Deejays 'weeping' about it, they have every right to weep, they may have killed someone by accident. And if it really is just because of the PR then don't blame them, everyone in a position like that is forced to listen to the PR, and I would still guess they are as sad as they claim, they just wouldn't have shown it as openly otherwise.

Also, as far as the station having the history and should have known better, as K-man said, many radio stations do similar things. Sometimes worse then that, if you dont look at the unknown consequences. So why should they not have played it while all the other ones play their prank calls?

Once again, I think it's horrible that the media is making such a huge deal out of it, even if it did involve the amazing and incredible royal family in such a horrible thing they shouldnt have to dirty themselves by being involved in. It doesn't matter whose fault it is, if they feel remorse, if they reacted properly, or who was involved, there was absolutely no reason for them to cause more pain for the family by making it into a big spectacle that the family did not want to be involved in.

 

[Tez3]

How can they have killed her by accident? We don't know how she died or even what caused her death. They didn't accidently do anything. what they did may have contributed to her state of mind IF she killed herself, but they didn't accidentally kill her. What they did may have cause a chain reaction ie the hospital reprimanding her etc which made her feel she had no choice, IF she killed herself. What those two can do is get a cup of man up and stop whinging. They aren't in any position where they can do nothing other than what the PR tells them to do, they can turn round and say 'no we'll handle this with dignity' and then shut up.
I didn't actually expect Australians to act like American celebrities crying everywhere, I'd have expected a straight forward apology for anything they may have done that contributed or in anyway caused her death, done in a tasteful subdued way to show they were really sorry and not merely sorry for themselves. If you make prank calls you have to be aware that one of a couple of things can happen, that it isn't actually funny and you end up looking a fool or someone on the end of the phone gets hurt. To think you can get away with it everytime is fooling yourself.

Incidentally it seems the family do want to part of the media circus, they have been filmed going to the hospital and have given interviews to a lot of the media.

While many of us think having a Queen as head of state is a good idea for us and our democracy very few of us actually want such a large Royal family and even fewer of us think they are amazing or incredible, a good many of them, in fact most, are useless hangers on and would be better sent out to earn a living.

The furore here has died down because as soon as the police are involved the media has to pipe down as much of what is going on becomes sub judice. We'll have to wait for the Inquest which opens tomorrow.

 

[billc]

I'm sorry, did you say they didn't go to an NHS hospital...

The hospital (which is private one not NHS)

Why didn't they go to an NHS hospital?

 

[granfire]

I'm sorry, did you say they didn't go to an NHS hospital...



Why didn't they go to an NHS hospital?

It has not a damn thing to do with anything.

 

[arnisador]

It has not a damn thing to do with anything.

This was my guess too.

 

[CanuckMA]

I'm sorry, did you say they didn't go to an NHS hospital...



Why didn't they go to an NHS hospital?

My first guess would be to not over burden the public system by shutting down parts of a floor because of the security detail.

 

[Tez3]

I think the name of the Hospital may give it away....full name is King Edward VII Hospital For Officers. Usually known just as The King Edward VII.

National Health Hopsital are often used by Royals, the Queen Mother was in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary a couple of times. Prince Edwards daughter was born in a NHS hosptial and she was also in a specialist neo natal NHS unit, when she broke her arm recently it was also treated in an NHS hospital.


Don't read too much into whether the Duchess of Kent is in a private or NHS hospital, don't make it into a 'political' thing, it's bad enough someone is dead without using the barely cold body of a nurse to make a point which is of no relevance to this at all.

 

[Tez3]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20710644

From the preliminary day of the Inquest in the Coroners Court.

 

[jezr74]

The Australian Communications and Media Authority will consider whether the licensee complied with its licence conditions and the Commercial Radio Codes of Practice.

If the inquest found that no laws were broken, and everything was in line with codes of practice in AUS and UK and the DJs were not at fault.

Would that change anyone's view on the events that happened?

 

[CanuckMA]

No.

It's still stupid and not funny. Shortly after my age moved in the 2 digit range, I started wonderin what was so funny with calling someone to make fun of them. And to do it on the radio is even worse.

 

[granfire]

I am somewhat undecided.

There is the stupid prank call, that's something you do in college on a frat dare, when half or 3/4 drunk....(or you work for a sleezy tabloid paper)
Yes, it did made me chuckle, because it was so terribly bad, and I am not even talking about the accent....

However, no matter what they will find out or have done, I am totally astonished. I know, the poor woman would have never lived it down, being the nurse to fall for this stupid prank, but for crying out loud, it was no reason to kill herself over.
Especially not since, heck, the tabloids had that type of information already it seemed to me.

So I suppose I would still feel the same confusion as I did when I first heard about the nurse being found dead.

 

[jezr74]

Well looks like the hospital staff are partially to blame as well according to her notes left behind.

Is interesting how divided people are over it, I think your right, it confuses people how to think about it.

What's is a reputable UK news site, I'd like to see if they report the same findings?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Tez3]

Well looks like the hospital staff are partially to blame as well according to her notes left behind.

Is interesting how divided people are over it, I think your right, it confuses people how to think about it.

What's is a reputable UK news site, I'd like to see if they report the same findings?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...l-left-three-notes-inquest-hears-8412585.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...l-nurse-suicide-note-criticised-hospital.html


As I said before I think it's very likely the hospital did threaten to or perhaps actually did discipline her with the effect of her fearing for her job and ultimately her staying in the country. I believe the whole thing escalated from the hoax call onward. It's likely that the Palace had words with the hospital about it's security, despite Charles making a joke about it we don't actually know that much about the pregnancy etc perhaps there's more to know than what the media have been told. It is a security lapse, quite a serious one so I can't see anyone just smiling and thinking it's alright. The hospital's reputation has been damaged and perhaps blame was being laid at the nurse's door.
Prank calls are just infantile to be honest, it's for a young teenage market or those who think like young teenagers. Perhaps if they'd done one as the Queen phoning Battersea Dog's Home asking about corgis it might have been funnier but phoning a hospital? I can't see any laughs there. I'm sure the two presenters are somewhat upset but they also have no dignity nor compassion if they think weeping on the television is the right thing to do. Their motives were to humiliate someone or make fun of them not to lead to anyone's death. If the call has led to the nurse's death they didn't kill her but what they did would have lead to her death. Now whether you can make that stick legally I don't know, it will depend on the Coroner's verdict.

 

[K-man]

The next part of this sad saga is that the presenters have been relocated to safe houses because of death threats to them and other staff of the radio station.