Reality contestants targetted by online campaign
As a MasterChef contestant finds herself the target of online toxic comments, where do you draw the line between fan emotion and the lines of decency?
- Published by David Knox
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MasterChef contestant Joanne Zalm is the latest contestant in the TEN series to find herself in the press, as an apparent target of vitriolic viewers who are unleashing their anger online.
Such attention comes with being in the spotlight of television’s most resonant show.
Zalm is one of the contestants who has attracted negative comment from some online readers. One Facebook page against her has 915 members. The newspaper reports some online comments have included threats of violence.
TEN says it has recently taken a tougher stance against absive quotes on its own forums.
“In environments where we have control, bad behaviour and toxic commentary, not in keeping with the positive spirit of MasterChef, is not tolerated,” a spokesperson said.
“We encourage debate, however all non-constructive personal abuse are removed and repeat offenders banned.”
Jonathan Daddia has also attracted negative comment. He is known as The Terminator for his ability to survive challenges, and seen as highly strategic.
Managing passion is a delicate balancing act for networks.
In drama there is nothing wrong with booing the villain, so long as it is the character not the actor who is the target.
In reality television the lines blur a lot more. There can still be villainous characters, and even some that are packaged that way by the network (“Johnny Rotten” Big Brother 2001 anyone?).
Even for a show as good-natured as MasterChef the audience must be entitled to choose its heroes and villains, be they judges or contestants, and be allowed to express that online. After all, the storytelling encourages us to bond with our favourites.
Contestants entering a show of this magnitude must be prepared to have their lives and identities debated.
But there are limits of decency too. Toxic comments, encouraging violence, breaches of privacy are taking things too far. So too is such anger against minors. It’s one of the reasons why all reality shows should be casting 18 years and over. Internet anonymity is no license to cross the lines of decency an robust debate even on this site is never taken lightly.
It’s clear that 2009’s dream run of good press for MasterChef Australia was a flash in the pan.
Source: Daily Telegraph
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- Tagged with Big Brother, Masterchef
28 Responses
I love Joanne – she hasnt put a foot wrong in the competition; shes determined and passionate and wants to learn.
Im not a huge fan of Joanne but that doesn’t give anyone the right to send death threats to her and be abusive to her. You ahve the right to dislike contestants but just don’t get so personal.
Don’t like Joanne but those who say some people take TV way too seriously have absolutely right. If you get angry at a show, you really do need to get out more.
Or to quote (vintage BBC kids show) ‘Why Don’t You…?’, “why don’t you switch off the television set and do something less boring instead…”
I don’t know what the problem is with Joanne- I don’t mind her.
people take their television way too seriously.
yes, joanne isnt the warmest of characters, but obviously she is doing something right if she’s still there. people need to calm down, after the show’s over we’re not going to hear from most of these people again so does it really matter if she’s still there?
personally i love her bitchiness. her throwing others under the bus amuses me to no end.
I’m no fan of her either, but i think that kind of behavior despicable. Having a dislike is one thing, but a hatred is just insane.
I think sites should be doing a better job when filtering comments, for example looking for hateful phrases and wording, and when the site(s) in question are so popular and relating to such a current topic, there should be stringent guidelines as to whats allowed/not. I’m not saying filter everything – just filter / flag the ones that are obviously coming from nutjobs.
that is actually really mean. get real facebook losers, its just a cooking show, get over it.
On Twitter during Masterchef, it’s difficult to find a positive comment about Joanne, apart from mine.
I think the best thing to do is stay away from official forums!
For some reason they seem to attract an awful lot of crazies (usually ones that can’t spell either)
This should come to no surprise at Ten as the Production Team in these “reality” shows gears the audience towards heroes and villans through music tone and fast close-ups etc.
There is no excuse for threats against people on TV though, however commercial television is to blame stirring up the public to achieve ratings.
Joanne rubs me the wrong way, but there’s no excuse for the hateful comments online. As your mum might say…”If you wouldn’t say it to someone’s face, don’t say it at all”.
Sad but true, but the drawback for people who want to go on these reality shows is that they have to expect some kind of criticism. We also criticize celebrities too but no one seem to care how they feel?
These days the reality contestants are treated like celebrities. The only problem is that they are not trained to be in the spot light and handle the media as well. Why would you put yourself on these shows I have no idea.
@ Davo, yes, I agree with you. Marion does look like the winner at this point, though Adam, Alvin, Aaron and Jonathon would also be palatable to the Australian public as winners, too, I think. Claire would not make for great PR (her married lover scandal, plus she’s too ‘beige’ and vapid), Callum is too young to be credible and Joanne has impacted on the viewing public in a largely negative way and it would damage the much vaunted MC brand if she won. For editing purposes at present, it suits that she is the villain of the piece, but she will be eliminated before the final three, I’m sure of it.
I’m a Johnathon fan so I know what it’s like to have people constantly [possibly undeservedly] dumping on your favourite. I am definitely of the opinion that Joanne should have been eliminated by now and that she’s not very likeable, but even I think threats of violence is slightly radical.
@Mydonna you do realise this show is heavily edited. those reaction shots are almost always fabricated and taken out of context. if you observe closely you’ll see that in the very next shot, jonathon is seen smiling and congratulating callum for his win. they did the exact same thing with chris last year.
.I guess most of us MC fans have their favourites, however it’s pretty rotten of people to be so cruel about someone they don’t know personally.
MC is a competition and the contestants are very motivated to win, however clever editing tends to show us the same two or three who show the most emotion be it good or bad. Unfortunately Joanne and Jonathon are the ones we usually see as the villains
First rule of reality tv – it isn’t reality!
This is a fun show: smugness/joy of Marion; scowl/deflecting/emotion of Joanne; Callum’s secret ingredient of sweat in every dish.
People should relax, and embrace the fact that this is a complete fabrication of reality.
The tv channels have no obligation to edit the show in a truthful way. Its all about ratings, and Masterchef is an absolute winner. Mind you, it also indicates the true lack of alternatives in tv land at the moment.
Marion must win the show. She’s the best personality for a book tie in/tv special. No way that the Masterchef brand can afford for a male or Claire (personal life issues) or Joanne (enemy of fan blog) to win. Just a matter of when the others get eliminated. Now that’s a good whisking of cynicism and reality.
Loved the Herald Sun headline out the front of the newsagents today… Masterchef Death Threat!
Seriously…
Why Joanne? I picked her to like, partly as a joke, she is not particularly likable but it’s hard to hate her too.
Quite sad how some people react to a these contestants, the same thing happend with teh Come Dine With Me Australia forums, they were removed as people got very personal and very nasty.
These things can get out of hand. Some viewers end up believing they know these people even though they only see them for 1 hour a day and in a highly edited situation. It is potentially dangerous and all channels need to be careful on how they handle these situations. Yes, a lot of people love the drama of reality TV but it is not “reality” it is highly created and to judge a person on what they see is wrong.
I have seen some of what has been written on Channel 10’s own forums and it is poisonous and vindictive. The sites should be better moderated and offensive comments removed.
they are 2 that only look out for themselves. both have let others taken the fall for bad food instead of owning up to serving up rubbish
I am glad the public don’t vote for the Masterchef contestants cause she would have been out long ago.It’s funny how brave someone is sitting behind a computer screen, they are all gutless, I doubt they could do any better.
And on the hating of Masterchef wagon, did you see the filthy look Jonathan gave Callum when Callum won the cooking challenge?….I wish Callum had, he might not have beeen so quick in picking him to join him to meet Jamie Olivier.
I have been astonished at the level of vitriol unleashed against Joanne by posters on the official MC forum on the Ten website. For a while, they let some very nasty comments through but I note that the moderation has become much stricter when it comes to threads and comments on Zalm. It was almost defamatory at times, really abusive and evil stuff. I have not seen any of the Facebook groups but I can just imagine how appalling they must be.
MasterChef is the only reality series I have ever followed on a consistent basis and to be honest, I don’t have a favourite, I admire them all. I really like the contestants chosen for this series, particularly the males. I think the vibe between the contestants this series has been much more relaxed and friendly, as they don’t have to vote to eilminate each other any more. That appears to have really improved morale and bonding amongst them all. It was a good decision by the producers to put elimination into the judges’ hands rather than the contestants.
I love Joeanne….leave her alone!