FIVEaa held in breach over Bob Francis ‘boat people should drown’ tirade
Controversial South Australian radio host Bob Francis has been reprimanded over two breaches of the commercial radio codes of practice, one of which saw the host tell listeners he hoped asylum-seekers would drown before arriving by boat.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has found FIVEaa’s parent company DMG was in breach of the code during two separate broadcasts by Francis in June 2012 which included his declaration about “boat people” drowning and the other an attack on a journalist who criticise his statement.
On 4 June, 2012, during a discussion of the asylum seeker Francis said: “Bugger the boat people I say. As far as I’m concerned I hope they bloody drown out there on their way over here!”
ACMA found the comments conveyed: “a contemptuous disregard for the numerous fatalities that have occurred at sea.”
ACMA also found that a subsequent broadcast on 6 June also “offended standards of decency” after Francis launched an on-air attack on a journalist who had criticised his comments.
According to the ACMA report he said:
“You wanker, [name of journalist].
“Some smart-arse, dickhead woman, [name of journalist], South Australian political reporter for [the newspaper], wrote me up in the paper this morning […].
“Why the hell you said that, you dickhead, I don’t know.
“Can you believe that bloody bitch in [the newspaper] […].
“In her bum.
“Well, tell her to go to buggery for me!
FIVEaa subsequently suspended Francis for six days following a furore over his of the comments. The station also said he had received “additional training” on the code of practice.
In the wake of the breach finding, the ACMA has recommended that Francis make on-air apology be made to the journalist he attacked on air. Francis read an on-air apology to the journalist on the 21st March, 2013.
In its investigation the ACMA found that FIVEaa did not breach the code relating to “the incitement of hatred or serious contempt of a person or group of people on the grounds of nationality or gender” however, it did find the station also breached the complaints-handling provisions of the code.
Nic Christensen
Bob Francis encapsulates the South Auatralian psyche and helps put a face to the great new conservative South Australian logo.
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Wow.
Is this guy still on air?
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He is an Idiot and everyone in radio knows it!
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I’ve chosen to remain anonymous because Bob Frances likes to be personal, and will attack anyone who holds an alternative view to his own, attacking them with such hatred and bile, screaming and bellowing insults and bad language at anyone and everyone. His constant barrage of insults and name calling equate to verbal abuse that should not be tolerated by the general public, the authorities and even more importantly the radio station’s management and owners. There are some good people who work for FIVEaa, why should they be tarnished by the likes of this fowl mouthed racist bigot. The management obviously hold the radio listening public and the other hosts at the station in utter contempt returning Bob Francis to his late night spot, he should have remained off air until he can admit to the abhorrent nature of his tirades or made to find other employment, something where his malevolent hate filled rants and verbal abuse aren’t being broadcast into civilised people’s homes. Enough already, the man is bordering on hate speech, either fix him or take him off air, it’s a bloody disgrace.
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Given that Bob Francis is himself an asylum seeker, I’d tend to agree…..
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And Francis eats with that mouth?
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