It started slowly but has now blown into a conflagration. Sarah Monahan, an actress on one of the most popular comedy sitcoms in Australian television history, revealed in an article in the Woman's Day that a 'powerful' man connected with 'Hey Dad!' had over a period of around five years touched her 'inappropriately'. Sarah joined the show at around eight-years-old. 'Hey, Dad' was at a peak in the late eighties.

The revelations in the interview remained on a simmer until Tracy Grimshaw of the Nine Network took it up on 'A Current Affair', the Nine's popular 6 pm magazine program. Through a series of tough focused interviews Tracy got to the heart of the matter. As Neil Breen, Editor of the Sunday Telegraph, said on Nine's Today show this morning, 'nobody's sitting on the fence any more.' What are the facts?

Briefly, Robert Hughes who played the staring role of Dad is the man accused of touching the child Sarah inappropriately. The accusations are not restricted to Sarah Monahan. Other young women have come forward with similar stories. Others are reported waiting to have their say. Sarah's claims have been supported by others on the show and Hughes' alleged mode of behaviour has been confirmed by people outside the show. Most telling of all, fellow actors Ben Oxenbould and Simone Buchanan said they were so concerned about Sarah that they took action to protect her from Hughes. They also approached the show's producers.

Oxenbould claimed that he was told to shut up and learn what 'professionalism' was. Buchanan said she was told to keep quiet when she complained about Hughes' behaviour. Later when she had left the show she was threatened with never getting another job in television if she blabbed about Hughes' alleged behaviour. This is all recorded on Nine's ACA.

The accusations levelled at Hughes remain just that until the police investigate the case thoroughly. If Hughes has to go to court to answer a police case, then the courts will deal with it. If he is convicted, the judge will assess the seriousness of his action and prescribe a penalty. That's our judicial system. As I have said before, let the cards fall where they will. Let justice be done. But this is not the disturbing part of this case.

Hughes' behaviour - whatever it was - was covered up by threats and intimidation relating to 'professional' standards. There is no other conclusion based on the compelling evidence produced by Tracy Grimshaw's interviews. If the cover-up for the sake of preserving the reputation of the show and its people is not serious enough, the testimony of Oxenbould suggests that 'professionalism' in the television industry means placing the reputation of a show before the interests of any person or anything. That includes reporting inappropriate behaviour by an adult actor with a child actress. Cover-up appears to be a mode of management in television. If it is a mode of management in television why would it not be similarly a mode of management in other media sectors - newspapers, radio and film, for example? When negative reports about media instruments could cost the company millions, what's a little inappropriate touching in the scheme of things, seems to be the reasoning?

MORE than 300 Queensland teachers are under investigation for inappropriate behaviour as new details emerge of deplorable acts in schools.

Documents obtained by The Courier-Mail print edition under Right to Information laws reveal almost all 26 teachers who had their registrations suspended or cancelled in the past year were cited for sexual misconduct.

For the rest of the report go to: Sexual misconduct by Queensland teachers exposed

From The Daily Telegraph:

Assaults rife in our schools

THE incidence of schoolyard violence has jumped sharply, with police investigating almost 2000 attacks in NSW schools in the past year.

New data from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research shows an eight per cent increase in assaults occurring on school property in the year to September, compared to the previous 12 months...

A further 1574 assaults took place on school grounds last year - and most went unreported.

Sixty-eight sexual assaults and 265 acts of indecency or other sexual offences occurred on school grounds.

According to the Bureau's statistics, 134 of the general assaults involved a weapon...

For the rest of the report go to: Assaults rife in our schools

These reports are screaming out undeniable facts. The violence and abuse in schools are being allowed to continue. What are those responsible doing? The circumstances of violence and abuse are being kept out of the public gaze by inaction or deliberate policy. What are those responsible doing? If cover-up of sexual abuse is considered evil, as is so often said in other circumstances, why are those guilty of neglect and cover-up in Australia's schools getting away with it? These reports are obviously just scratching the surface. The media companies are reporting the shocking state of affairs in schools periodically, and then only matter-of-factly. Why? Where is the ferocity and tenacity they devote to issues of a similar nature? It is as though the media is selective in what cover-ups should be designated as evil.

On the evidence of the Sarah Monahan/Hey Dad case one would think there is a culture of cover-up in the television networks when it comes to their programming. Will the media deal with it - or will they hope that nobody will notice and the appearance of double standards will just go away?

We are living in an age of gross hypocrisy and self-interest. Hypocrisy is a mode of gaining political advantage.

26 March 2010

Get Ratzinger!

Sexual misconduct by Queensland teachers exposed

From The Daily Telegraph:

Assaults rife in our schools

Shocking stories of abuse in schools