Milk, sexual innuendo – what Kiwis complained about on TV and radio

Of all the end-of-year roundups, some of the most colourful, eclectic reading can be found within the Broadcasting Standards Authority’s (BSA) annual report which details the complaints sent in by outraged Kiwis.

In the report released yesterday, the BSA revealed 1 News was the most complained about show of the last surveyed year (from July 2021 to June 2022) clocking up 29 submissions. Tea-time rival Newshub Live at 6pm copped 25 complaints at No 2 and Morning Report triggered 13. All were dismissed by the BSA.

The pandemic, and coverage of it, generated ‘‘increasingly passionate responses’’, as the BSA addressed misinformation on public health issues, according to the report.

There was, however, a change in public attitudes towards the sort of language that offends us – audiences have a shrinking tolerance for racial and cultural insults, but have chilled out when it comes to blasphemy and the F-word.

Six stand-out complaints from the annual report

Saturday Storytime: Referring to milk as ‘‘snot slop’’

An episode of RNZ’s kids’ show Saturday Storytime in December 2021 included a tale about a child going to stay with her aunt who told the child not to drink milk because it ‘‘snots you up’’.

A listener took offence to this – specifically when the character Aunty Twinkle referred to milk as ‘‘snot slop’’. They made the formal complaint ‘‘on the grounds of children’s interests, as that reference to milk as ‘Snot slop’ will put some off drinking milk’’.

The complaint was not upheld, as the BSA said: ‘‘It [was] not clear what harm could possibly be caused by an imaginary, child character who does not like milk.’’ Breakfast: Use of phrase ‘‘fussy puss’’ in allegedly sexual reference to cat food

A viewer complained about a Breakfast piece on TVNZ in May in which presenter Matty McLean interviewed veterinarian Stacey Tremain about shortages in the supply of cat food.

The complainant said the presenter’s and guest’s use of the phrases ‘‘fussy puss’’ and ‘‘are pussies fussy’’ breached the good taste and decency and children’s interests standards.

They said there was ‘‘clear sexual innuendo and connotation and this was clearly premeditated’’ and that the interview was ‘‘clearly sexualised and at a time when children would be watching/ listening.

The BSA did not uphold the

complaint, among the reasons were that: ‘‘It was unlikely that children viewers would have the knowledge required ‘to draw a sexual meaning from the phrase’.’’

Seven Sharp: Host was ageist for referring to slow drivers as ‘‘grandpa’’

In a story from August 2021 about road rage on TVNZ’s evening programme, Seven Sharp, hosts Hilary Barry and Jeremy Wells were discussing slow drivers when Wells made the comments ‘‘grandpa’’ and ‘‘always a grandpa’’.

The viewer accused the hosts of showing ‘‘grossly abusive and discriminatory behaviour towards the elderly’’. The BSA declined to determine the complaint, saying it considered it frivolous or trivial.

1 News: Colourful language in sports news item (‘‘they can shove it up their arse’’)

The Southland rugby captain used the phrase ‘‘shove it up their arse’’ in response to a question on what he would say to ‘‘the detractors’’ during a post-match interview on 1 News on February 9, 2022.

The BSA found this was lowlevel coarse language, within audience expectations and recognised the value of allowing interviewees to express themselves in their own words.

Mike Hosking Breakfast: Mike Hosking referred to Meghan Markle as a ‘‘hussy’’

Mike Hosking showed he was no fan of Meghan Markle, in a segment on his Newstalk ZB show in July 2021. Hosking described the Duchess of Sussex as a ‘‘shallow, self-absorbed, attention-seeking, woke bandwagon-riding hussy’’.

The complaint argued it was in breach of the goodness and decency standard, saying that the ‘‘word ‘hussy’ is deeply offensive and sexist’’.

The authority found it was not likely to cause widespread, undue offence in the context.

The Project: Host’s comment that ‘‘happily we don’t have many Americans in New Zealand’’

A piece on Three’s The Project in August, 2021, discussed escalating violence in New Zealand and the possibility of New Zealanders demanding a right to bear arms.

The presenter (who wasn’t named in the report) said: ‘‘I think happily we don’t have many Americans in New Zealand, so we probably won’t end up in that situation.’’ The complainant said the comment ‘‘incites violence and open discrimination against KiwiAmericans’’.

The BSA did not uphold the complaint, judging that the comments were merely ‘‘illinformed and, as suggested by the broadcaster, a ‘clumsy’ contribution to this discussion’’.