David Campbell gay-bashed out of office

The NSW government minister, David Campbell, who was forced to resign his portfolio after a TV network outed him is the victim of media gay-bashing.

Campbell had done nothing wrong. He had not breached any government protocols; he hadn’t acted corruptly; he hadn’t done anything inappropriate with children.

The only thing that could be pinned on Campbell was that the use of his ministerial car to drive himself to the gay sex club where he was videotaped might be “inappropriate”.

But Campbell resigned in disgrace. What’s the disgrace?

That he had the temerity to be a closeted gay man living in a marriage with a wife and two children. This is not unusual, nor is it grounds for dismissal from office, but the more homophobic elements of the news media can’t leave this scabby drama alone.

Channel Seven, the network that spied on the minister and ran the story, behaved appallingly and this sleazy justification for destroying the life and career of David Campbell is absolutely fucking pathetic. [Yes, I’m angry about this]

Channel Seven said it was right to broadcast the story because the minister’s private conduct was at odds with his public persona.

Seven’s news director Peter Meakin says Mr Campbell has been hypocritical.

“I think you’ve got to look at the aspects that apply in each case,” he said.

“In the case of Mr Campbell, here was a guy who had been minister for police, which is a very sensitive portfolio, who had been presenting himself and gaining re-election as a happy family man – sending out Christmas cards with his wife and sons pictured on the card and portraying himself as a loving father and husband.

“Now all this time and apparently for the last 25 years he has been acting otherwise. I think the electorate have the right to know that.”

Meakin you are an asshole insensitive jerk, plain and simple. What the fuck gives you the right to determine what Campbell’s electorate needs to know about his private life?

And what shitful fucking logic and homophobic thinking leads you to conclude that Campbell is not a “happy family man…loving father and husband”?

Celebrity Privacy – Gossip isn’t journalism…or is it?

Is Alison Mau a lesbian?

Who cares. Perhaps we just need to get over our obsession with the sex lives of television presenters.Watch this clip from Breakfast, Aly Mau gives a serve to the women’s mags, particularly Woman’s Day.

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I can’t see the public interest in this issue. But I can imagine Alison’s children being taunted at school – we all know how cruel kids can be.

They also take a lead from their parents and the media.

This has become a big issue for TVNZ, Close Up waded into the debate later in the day

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And this morning, Bill Ralston was interviewed on Morning Report. For once I think that Sean Plunkett got it right in his intro and his line of questioning.
This is an interesting spat between TVNZ and the gossip mags, but also perhaps indirectly, the Herald on Sunday, which on the weekend carried along piece by Matt Nippert justifying their outing of Mau in the previous week’s issue. It’s not online either, so I’ll dig my copy out of the recycling bin and take another look.
The debate seems to hinge on some sort of privacy laws and some commentators seem to be a little confused. There is no general right of privacy enshrined in privacy laws in New Zealand, or indeed in very few jurisdictions.
The general operating rules are that if you’re in a public place, your photo can be taken without your permission. The Privacy Act covers some types of information, but it doesn’t protect you from paparazzi (a swarm of annoying mosquitos in Italian).
The Privacy Commission’s top-ten-tips say nothing about how to protect yourself from unwanted media intrusion. I don’t think new and more laws are necessarily the fix we’re looking for. In the UK there are now restrictions on media coverage of the royal family, but not for the general public.
The recent John Terry case in the UK is also interesting. The way he tried to protect his privacy – actually his reputation and lucrative sponsorship deals – was by attempting to injunct publication of damaging details of his affair with the girlfriend of an England team mate.
And there’s a suggestion that Alison Mau also considered this approach to prevent publication of details about her new love life (if that’s what it is).
The Law Commission’s review of the Privacy Act is unlikely to bring any joy to those in the cross-hairs of the tabloids who want to limit their exposure to paid appearances and positive mentions.

A day in the life of Ashley Dupre: Celebrity callgirl to callgirl celebrity

It seems that 24 hours is a lifetime in the blogosphere. Just yesterday I was defending the right to privacy for sex workers caught up in scandals and media stories.
Now I find myself being amazed again at how quickly some people can turn adversity into a new adventure.