Complaint about Nightline nudity thrown out

By Dan Satherley

Conservative lobbyist group Family First has criticised the Broadcasting Standards Authority for not upholding its complaint about a Nightline story featuring full frontal nudity.

In June, 3 News reporter Dave Goosselink reported on the closing down of Dunedin student pub The Gardies. To celebrate, a group of students held a game of nude rugby.

Footage from the match was included in the story, which drew a complaint from Family First director Bob McCoskrie.

“The morally dysfunctional BSA has given the green light to full frontal nudity in our current events and news programmes and has no problem with sexual innuendo and offensive comments," says Mr McCoskrie.

The BSA said the item was broadcast well after the 8:30pm watershed, preceded by a clear warning and that Nightline viewers were unlikely to have been offended.

“The incoming tide of sexual content disguised as news is a disturbing trend," says Mr MrCoskrie. "The TV channels are trying to mask sexual innuendo and pornographic material as news and current events.”

Mr McCoskrie also filed a complaint against another item broadcast in June, where humorous potential porn film titles starring MP Shane Jones, collected from Twitter, were read out, on air.

This complaint was also not upheld.

3 News