Practical Jokes Aren't Jokes At All

I have often quipped that there should be the death penalty for those who perpetrate practical jokes. I never found them funny, especially, of course, when I was the victim. The humiliation – and the rage – stayed with me a long time, maybe longer than for most.

This could be hereditary. I remember when my mother was the target of a “Candid Camera” TV stunt in a New York supermarket. The nature of it escapes me, but the crew, of course, was hoping she’d have a sense of humor and be a good sport about the whole thing. She did not. When asked if she would sign the release to allow the bit to be broadcast, she not only refused, but stamped her foot while doing so. That meant she was REALLY mad.

Many of us are rightly outraged and disappointed at the two Australian DJs who pretended to be Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles calling into a hospital about the condition of the pregnant Princess Kate. They talked to a nurse, who gave them some personal medical information about the royal, and the interview was broadcast. The nurse was later found dead, an apparent suicide.

The incident is being investigated, but it’s hard to avoid what looks like the obvious conclusion that the nurse’s death was an unintended consequence of the hoax. It could be argued that the nurse must have had other emotional issues percolating inside her and that no reasonable person in that situation would have taken her own life. But how can the perpetrators of this practical joke ever be sure that it wasn’t their action that pushed this woman over the edge?

The DJs involved, who were the subject of death threats themselves, have since tearfully apologized. But the CEO of the parent company of the radio station, while (according to the Huffington Post) admitting the incident was tragic, said such jokes were a standard part of radio culture.

As a former radio broadcaster myself, that’s not a standard I’d be publicly accepting. If that’s anywhere close to true, the industry better start doing some heavy navel-gazing about now.

In Crises, We're All Local

In an earlier post, I mentioned how the Christmas gift of an Internet radio had changed my life -- or at least my media consumption habits. It has reinforced my faith in the value of local radio.

I have spent the past few days listening to the live stream of 3AW 693 in Melbourne, Australia. The station has been providing continuous coverage of the devastating brush fires which, as of this writing, have taken more than 170 lives. As is the practice with many American news/talk stations, the usual programming has been suspended to devote full attention to the fire coverage. The only difference, perhaps, is that the station is running its full load of commercials, including spots for car dealerships, real estate companies and even funeral parlors. If that seems insensitive, it doesn’t seem to bother the audience, who recognize their local station as a vital resource.

While cell phone, messaging and Twitter might otherwise be a source of competition in newsgathering, communication out of the worst fire-affected areas has been difficult. Callers to the station who are put on the air ask about the fate of loved ones in the disaster zone with whom contact has been lost, and often, other callers phone in to report that this one or that one is safe.

While the news reports have been full of compounding tragedy, the fact that the station is there and doing its job is a calming community influence. All of the talk-show hosts are filling their regular shifts. Even the weekend specialty hosts who normally deal with gardening and other subjects have shifted gears and turned into news moderators.

Admittedly, the BBC, CNN and other major news outlets have been offering full and accurate coverage of the disaster, but there’s no substitute for hearing how the locals do it. And with live Internet streaming, this local coverage is now available worldwide.

While the accents of those on the air are different, the coverage strategies are the same – as, at bottom, are the stories: the tears, the heroism, the generosity toward those most impacted. The next phase, of course, will include the effort to catch arsonists and to make a review of evacuation policies and brush clearing rules in residential areas. Welcome to California.

We have a lot to learn from each other and a lot to share, and Internet streaming shows just how critical traditional local sources of news are to a community. The method of distribution may be new, but there’s no question in my mind that what we call local radio is here to stay.

And let’s let the Australians know that we may be on the other side of the world, but we hear them.

There, now I’ve said it.