ABC pulls The Chaser for 2 weeks. Team apologises.
The ABC banishes The Chaser for two weeks while the comedians now acknowledge "we shouldn't have done it."
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
In a major response to public fury over a sketch this week, the ABC has opted to withdraw The Chaser’s War on Everything from its schedule for two weeks.
ABC Managing Director Mark Scott made the decision following the controversy surrounding The Chaser’s sketch, “Making A Realistic Wish Foundation,” that went to air on Wednesday night.
The sketch depicted child actors as terminally-ill patients and was roundly blasted from manysections of media, politics, health industry and community. It illustrated the programme needs better checks and balances for what qualifies as satire, given the ABC recently pulled an ad parody from The Gruen Transfer.
It was only the second episode back on air after an 18 month production break. ABC is yet to indicate what will replace it.
The decision, made with the ABC’s Director of Television, Kim Dalton, followed discussions with The Chaser team.
“We have decided that this is the most appropriate course of action,” Mark Scott said.
“It gives the ABC an opportunity to complete a review of editorial approval processes. It also gives The Chaser a chance to regroup and review their material.
“In making the wrong judgement call we have let down our audience and the wider community. We need to fully review the ABC’s approval processes for programs that deliberately challenge public attitudes.”
Scott has unreservedly apologised for the distress caused, admitting the sketch had gone too far.
“While unintended, it has caused considerable concern and distress particularly to parents of seriously ill children,” he said.
In a blanket statement on their website The Chaser team says it is “disappointed by the decision, and we don’t agree with it. But that aside, we’d like to apologise.
“The piece was a very black sketch. Obviously too black. And we’re really sorry for the significant pain and anger we have caused.
“Many people have asked how could we possibly think a sketch like that should go to air. We realise in hindsight that we shouldn’t have done it. We never imagined that the sketch would be taken literally. We don’t think sick kids are greedy and we don’t think the Make a Wish Foundation deserves anything other than praise. It was meant to be so over-the-top that no one would ever take it seriously. But we now understand the sketch didn’t come across as intended, and we take full responsibility for that.
“Now we’ve seen the impact of the piece we wish we’d thought it through better. There was no value in it that justifies the impact it’s clearly had on people whose grief or trauma is so great already. We should have considered that.
“We got it wrong. We’re sorry.”
The move to suspend the show is an extremely rare one in local television, usually confined to particular performers who are deemed to have gone too far. The most famous response to a programme being pulled was when Kerry Packers pulled Doug Mulray’s Naughtiest Home Videos off air mid-programme.
The Chaser controversy this week will now surely become part of television infamy.
72 Responses
I would like to remind the ABC of the classic Late Show piece with Rob Sitch as “Bruce McAvaney” doing the commentary about the Special Olympics…”Isn’t it great that they get their own Games… just like normal people?” (Applause)
That one still goes down as comedy gold… err I mean Champagne Comedy. Nobody got offended. Nobody should have been offended by this Chaser sketch either. I’m utterly astonished at the rampant political correctness and righteousness that’s been expressed in the last couple of days, not only in the exploitable media but in the comments on this very site. It. Was. Satire.
Get over it, everyone. Yes, you too, ABC. Pulling a top-rating show for a fortnight as what would appear to be an attempt at punishment is a gobsmackingly crazy over-reaction. RichoTB’s comment is right on the money – although I do not agree that the closing line was out of place or wrong. Yes, it was confrontational, but that was the whole point. Some of the best comedy and satire has you laughing whilst you’re also thinking “err, am I wrong for laughing at this?” It makes you think.
I agree with Craig Reucassel as mentioned in Justin’s comment. I still think it was funny – and funny in an intelligent, bitingly accurate satirical way. What the hell’s happening to this country when even the national public broadcaster acts as the Taste Police? People – and yes, this means you too, TV Tonight readers – get off your self-important righteous pedestals and be human. Come on. It won’t hurt that much. You might even live a little.
It may have been in bad taste but it is the Chaser. Virtually any sketch is going to offend someone.
And if the its so bad, why did Channel 9 show a sizable chunk of it on the Saturday Today show this morning? Will they apologise?
The chasers ““disappointed by the decision, and we don’t agree with it. But that aside, we’d like to apologise.”
Good Grief – your arrogance has no bounds, does it!
Suck it up boys – you made a mistake. Your apology, if thats what you call it, is pathetic – like your humor. Sorry it is Black comedy or satire!, forgot it was supposed to be funny – Wrong.
They’ll have to rename it to The Chaser’s War on everything politically acceptable.
This is an outrageous and tasteless decision by the Politbureau of the ABC. Why is public money is being wasted on these lily livered decision makers? The satirical skit by the Chaser crew gently highlighted the selfish, over indulgent nature of this particular charity.
Shame on you ABC, you have let the nation down
we really are becoming such wowers in this country (thank you new ltd % talkback radio) the sketch was in poor taste, yes, but it was on show that aired at 9pm and was rated MA, had it aired at 7.30pm on a PG rated show id totally agree with calls for heads to role, but, people, toughen the F**k up, if your going to watch shows with MA classifications, its not all going to be nice, clean fun!
That said, im not a fan of ‘the chaser’ anyway, i find them a bit try hard to be honest
I miss when the Chaser was a moving target on Friday nights and nobody cared what they did because nobody knew the show was even on.
When is the book burning to start?
Don’t like this one bit, it’s censorship, have them make an on air apology or something but this is a bad day for the public broadcaster…
I wonder if it will get cut from the BBC airing.
yep good news everyone
The Chasers War on Everything is airing in the UK, on BBC 4 *jumps up & down very excited*
Problem is ive already watched the first two episodes this series, I assume its this series.
Ashamed to be Australian.* 🙁
*because of the censorship
Good point, Birddoggy. If anything people should be thanking the Chaser for causing people to donate to such charities.
I know it was a bad sketch but what a complete over-reaction from the ABC. So the Chaser team has to go to the naughty corner for two weeks. What a strange decision.
Meanwhile the Make A Wish Foundation has scored record donations. So who’s really lost out in the end?
They crossed the line a couple of times in that episode. I understand comedy, but that was not funny.
How ridiculous. I suggest that people email the ABC to complain about this. Let them know that there are over one million people who have been influenced by this moronic decision. Also demand that they do not introduce any new “editorial approval procedures” which would have prevented any other piece of material the Chaser have produced over the years from going to air. After all, fact that they have taken the entire show off air suggests that there problems with the Chaser may extent beyond this one controversial sketch. The Chaser have admitted that the sketch missed its mark with the audience, so either the ABC management think the Chasers are so dumb they will make the same mistake twice, or they were simply afraid that something else causing a bit of media attention.
Talk about making mountains out of ant hills. Is anyone else reminded of the Simpson episode where Marge Simpson campaigns against Itchy & Scrathy?: “The screwballs have spoken.”
Gee we live in a very wowserish country.
I think the ABC made the correct call here.
Hopefully the chaser team learn something from this whole debacle.
this is surprising
I thought it was a TV show, not a football player. “Thats a dangerous sketch, the ABC judicary says, they’re Banned for 2 weeks”
What a Joke! Its really pathetic how society says we have to tip toe around evreything like people are made of glass. Get a sense of humor, or if its not to your tatse, just forget it and move on, and continue watching all those rubbish predictable US sitcoms like ‘Two and a Half Men’ and ‘Rules of Engagement’, what i would give to see those shows off air for 2 weeks.
Craig Reucassel, one of the Chaser’s, who as to my knowledge is the only one in the group who has children, even stated after the public outrage that he still thought it was funny. His son Ollie has often appeared on the show in sketches involving kids.
What will the whingers whinge about now The Chasers is off air ?
They’ll have to find another show to whinge about to satisfy their whingy needs.
What a load of crap. As if the Chaser actually intended to offend the families of sick kids, yes the sketch was in bad taste, but it was obvious they were poking fun at the charity organisations. So many of them all aim to help kids, but, there are so many of them! That’s a lot of charity money lost in actually having staff and locations, and all the advertising. If there was only one or two funds that did it all, a lot more money would go to the kids.
While the closing line was out of place and shouldn’t have made it on air, I do think that there were more offensive sketches than that one though which people aren’t giving 2 hoots about (InBrady Bunch, Oscar Bait) and that it wasn’t in the intentions of the Chaser to make those families suffer. IMO the part about the pencil case and the stick instead of Zac Efron and Disneyland was mild humour and although the closing line was far too harsh, the reactions of people calling for the show to be cancelled and for The Chaser to burn in hell is over the top. They have done way worse stuff than this, and if you didn’t realise that, its not your kind of show. I now await the flames from the embittered elderly citizens with severe emotionally fragility and dead relatives.
“The sketch depicted child actors as terminally-ill patients”
1. the kids are are actors
2. and it’s a bloody comedy.
Big bloody deal !
They should just keep going. Suspending it will hurt it more than help, imo.
What will the promos be like in two weeks?
“Remember those unfunny a***holes who made fun of sick kids? They’re back with more material freshly stolen from The Onion website!”
That’s funny because i just got studio Audience Tickets for ‘The Chasers War On Everything’.