Hit Network to air ad free mental health show as part of royal prank call punishment
Southern Cross Austereo’s Hit Network is set to broadcast a mental health awareness show called Press Pause on Tuesday as part of its punishment from the media watchdog for airing the royal prank call.
The three-hour long ad free show Press Pause is part of a deal it struck with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) in July, after SCA was found to have breached broadcast codes by playing the prank call in December 2012, after which British nurse Jacintha Saldanha took her own life.
Tuesday’s broadcast across the network’s 42 stations between 7-10pm will deal with a range of mental health issues including suicide and self harm and is aimed at young people. Hosted by Jules Lund and Bianca Dye it will feature content from the likes of Hugh Jackman and Ricky Martin in a bid to raise awareness of the issues.
make sure you get trained professionals on the day. Doctors who deal with depression., PTSD , Anxiety, drug and alcohol addition, eating disorders and mood disorders all presenting conditions “labelled mental health issues”. Get someone like Father Chris Riley who deals with these challenges to young people everyday minute of every day. Don’t make it a showcase of personalities who with respect may n o nothing about the illness. 1 in 5 suffer from it in Australia.
I hope weekend radio hosts are paying attention to this broadcast!
This is great. Perfect timing as there’s heaps of radio hosts that would benefit from this broadcast and training SCA are providing as part of the resolution. Namely weekend radio hosts.
SCA should repeat “Press Pause” during Weekend Breakfast.