Reporter Gladys Hartson opines on the rights or wrongs of media workers making the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Last month a story broke on social media that showed footage of a group of men wearing t-shirts with slogans, ‘ Man Up’, ‘Real Men’, ‘Tu Tangata Raising Fathers To Save Our Children,’ and making their way up the stairs of the Te Atatu Peninsula Community Centre in West Auckland.
It was a Saturday afternoon and they were protesting the show ‘Hugo’s Rainbow Show’ by Hugo Grrrl, described as a drag superstar.
It was the world premiere described as a musical, magical adventure exploring the science of the skies. The show was for toddlers, pre-schoolers and children ages 5-10.
The footage shows men shoving their way through staff trying to stop them from going up the stairs. The group performed a haka at the entrance and I was alarmed to see some heated exchanges between a few of the women who were present, getting fired up, phones in faces, yelling and trying to drown each other out.
I thought to myself, this will hit the news cycle soon, and sure enough it did.
I was disappointed to read that two teenagers were injured, with one sustaining a concussion. Children attending the show had to be barricaded while the commotion was going on outside.
How do the young people say it… What the actual fudge?
Since when… what happened to a peaceful protest? How does that work, where grown men try to storm a show for young children only to then be barricaded indoors for their safety? I hope a thorough investigation is done so that it never happens again!
Unbeknown to me, another story was brewing when a social media commentator who goes by the name of ‘Bloody Samoan,’ pointed out to his followers that a well known radio personality working for the only Pan Pacific radio network in New Zealand, PMN, was among the protestors.
As a former staff member of PMN my curiosity peaked. Most of us who work in the Pasifika media space in Aotearoa New Zealand know of each other, so naturally we would be interested in who it was. If you didn’t know who he was before, you did now. Bailey Palala had been named (and in my opinion) shamed.
I watched as the headlines came out thick and fast, ‘radio personality under fire for attending Destiny Church protest’, ‘Pasifika radio personality among Destiny Church protestors’, ‘Niu Fm Radio personality from the Morning Shack amongst violent protest’, you get the gist.
Then came the social media comments, Bailey Palala is putting our children in danger, he is not safe, Niu Fm is not creating a safe space for our LGBQTI+ community, heads need to roll, what is PMN going to do about this??
I didn’t work with Bailey, but I found myself thinking, when it comes to working in media here in NZ, bro did you not read the memo?
We discussed it here at the Sunpix offices, and it was a reminder of what our directors have made clear to us; our responsibilities are not only to represent the company, but also to be mindful of the role we play within the Pasifika community.
Aside from the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) guidelines and Media council recommendations, each media organisation has their policies, processes and guidelines to protect the integrity of their platform.
We’re damned if we do, and damned if we don’t. I am sure that PMN would have done the same thing telling their staff of their expectations when it comes to protests.
There is also the argument that it shouldn’t stop those of us working in the media from exercising our right to support causes that we believe in.
My take on this particular outcome, Bailey became the target. In the public’s perception, he became responsible for the behaviour of the protestors, he was going to take the hit for everything that Destiny Church stood for.
Those who loathe Destiny Church, and all that it stands for, would have seen Bailey as an extension of what they displayed that Saturday afternoon in Te Atatu. Many questioned how he could work in the media while supporting this protest? Only Bailey knows the answer, someone should ask him.
To cut a long story short, Bailey is no longer at PMN. That is an employment matter between Bailey and PMN.
Should Bailey have known better, given his profile as a producer for the Niu FM breakfast show? Yes. Does he have the right to express his beliefs and attend events outside of his role working in the media? Well this is what’s up for debate.
Bailey is not the first media personality to come under the microscope and he won’t be the last.
I googled media personalities who have attended protests in NZ. Unfortunately Bailey Palala comes up at the top of the list.
I guess this is an indication that media personalities either avoid protests or are careful to avoid being seen at public gatherings.
Back to our friend google, how to avoid becoming the news when working in the media.
I had a quick read of the Media Council and BSA codes of conduct and while there are clear guidelines about balanced, fair reporting, I couldn’t find anything that answered my question. Maybe it’s time to standardise rules and regulations for people in the media about taking part in public protests.
Does this spell the end of Bailey’s career in media? I hope not. Bailey is a cautionary tale and he has learnt the hard way.
With cameras everywhere, media beware… whether it’s your own platform or a company you work for, social media sleuths and media influencers are always watching.
