Are Radio Shiock Jocks The Biggest Censors Of Free Speech In Australia?

Shouting down differing opinions, giving no right of reply and at a last report cutting people off.

Best Answer

They always have been. In my job I handled radio enquiries and would often do interviews over the telephone but never with a shock jock. I was happy to go to the studio and do the interview in the studio but not over the phone. The reason is that the announcer has a voice activated microphone that cuts off everything else. If I am talking on the phone, all they have to do is talk over the top of me and whatever I am saying does not go to air - and I have no idea it is happening. You hear this regularly with people like Alan Jones. In the studio, I could see and hear when he was speaking so I would stop until he allowed me to speak again. The method was perfected by John Laws and has been used by every shock jock since.

Unless you agree with everything they say or want to discuss something they do not have a bee in their bonnet about, never do an interview over the phone with a shock jock. You'll lose if you do.

I am not attacking all radio announcers here, there are many who are very good and fair. If they ask you to speak on their program they allow you to do so even if they disagree with you and you can have a good discussion. It is the self-opinionated w@nkers who think they are god's gift you need to be wary of.

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