Public interest or ratings?

[Ms Piggy]

I had emailed this letter to the DomPost today but they cannot publish it while the trial is still being conducted. Anyhoo, I need to vent somewhere so you're the fortunate recipients!

To Whom it May Concern:

Am I only one of a few who change the channel whenever I hear that any details of the 'Sophie Elliott' murder are about to be reported on? I find it revolting, disturbing and I am seriously concerned that some parts of the media appear to be okay about publishing graphic details of this case including exactly how Ms Elliott was injured by her assailant, the details of their sex life and then an almost blow by blow account from the perpetrator himself of what he did to her. Is it in the "public interest" to have this amount of detail? I think not! Therefore, I would like to know why the media feel it's acceptable to air this case in such detail during the 6pm news? Is it the sort of information we want our children to be exposed to? Or my own sensitivities? In general it is my opinion that TV news reporting has become more unnecessarily visually graphic, we see bodies of the injured, close ups of the grieving and a general invasion of people's privacy and dignity all in the name of "public interest".

Yours sincerely, Ms Piggy

[Blackshear]

I quite agree. It's as if it's a race to provide the viewers with as much graphical shock material as possible, as if it will make them look like the good kid who made the playground safer.

I like eating my fucking pasta with meatballs, my T-bone steak and choritzos, goddamnit!

[sunhuntin]

im getting sick to death of the smug motherfucker. seems almost pleased with himself for taking the life of beautiful young girl, and then subjecting her mother to what amounts to heresay. he should NOT be allowed to talk about her life before they got together, and her sex life has nothing whatsoever to do with the case. if it does, why hasnt his been called into question, cos i bet hes done a lot worse in bed than sophie ever did.

[Winter]

I whole heartily agree.

[Usarka]

Bad news sucks arse.

[Pussy]

I'd quite happily watch the public hanging of that soft-cock Wetherston on telly....

[ajturbo]

today, i made a point of watching... just to see why i was turning off....

now i have been around the a while now and have seen and done and heard lots of things in my time... some nice, some not so nice.......

but even i do NOT need to see this... sure i have to option of turning off the telly, or not reading the paper...

but i still think that this sort of thing is not looking good for NZ... how can the judge allow it?

the guy is a looser, he is on the hot seat smiling and even laughing at one point.... he has admitted that he did it.... book him and tell him what the year is that he will be free......
manslaughter/murder....= the same thing, he KILLED the girl, it was NOT in self defense, it was self gratification.... she will not laugh at me again ....

why waste my tax $$$$ .. just give the judge some time to think how long he will be butt raped.....

[Naki Rat]

I quite agree. It's as if it's a race to provide the viewers with as much graphical shock material as possible, as if it will make them look like the good kid who made the playground safer.

I like eating my fucking pasta with meatballs, my T-bone steak and choritzos, goddamnit!

It's appealing to the same deadshits who watch reality TV. Just catering for the lowest common denominator and there's plenty of those as the population keeps dumbing down :argh:

[topher]

It's all just a great big electronic magazine designed to sell advertising. The appeal is felt most by those numbnuts and dead fannies who watch reality TV and read Women's Day. Stop revelling in someone else's life. Get your own. Shit, if you're on this forum you've got a bike. Get out and enjoy it.

[rickstv]

I can't even stand to look at the prick. I change channels and he's on there as well. SHIT I don't think he realises what he's done. This is what they should do to him:2guns:
Rick.

[peasea]

I had emailed this letter to the DomPost today but they cannot publish it while the trial is still being conducted. Anyhoo, I need to vent somewhere so you're the fortunate recipients!

To Whom it May Concern:

Am I only one of a few who change the channel whenever I hear that any details of the 'Sophie Elliott' murder are about to be reported on? I find it revolting, disturbing and I am seriously concerned that some parts of the media appear to be okay about publishing graphic details of this case including exactly how Ms Elliott was injured by her assailant, the details of their sex life and then an almost blow by blow account from the perpetrator himself of what he did to her. Is it in the "public interest" to have this amount of detail? I think not! Therefore, I would like to know why the media feel it's acceptable to air this case in such detail during the 6pm news? Is it the sort of information we want our children to be exposed to? Or my own sensitivities? In general it is my opinion that TV news reporting has become more unnecessarily visually graphic, we see bodies of the injured, close ups of the grieving and a general invasion of people's privacy and dignity all in the name of "public interest".

Yours sincerely, Ms Piggy

It's called 'gutter journalism'. No, we don't need the details and you make a valid point when you suggest a channel change. Perhaps you could go the whole hog and switch the bloody thing right off.

Chat to the other half, listen to some Mantovani, stare into each other's eyes and.....stab each other a couple of hundred times to relieve the boredom.

Television is crap. Get a DVD like 'Meet the Feebles' for dinner-time entertainment.:laugh:

[sil3nt]

I can't believe we are wasting money putting this fucktard through the court system.

How the hell can anyone sit there so calmly after doing something like that to someone. Every time he opens his mouth he just seems to talk about how fkn smart he thinks he is.

He needs the slowest and most painful death ever.

[Headbanger]

Seriously, The Judge needs to put a stop to this crap, Tell that piece of shit to stfu, and tell him some truths.


Weatherston said he had been frustrated by Elliott having a trust at Otago University named in her honour while he was incarcerated for killing her.

Weatherston said Elliott had a "contrived legacy" and there had been a "misrepresentation of her character".


"In my view she is an attempted murderer," Weatherston said.

[Ms Piggy]

Bad news sucks arse.
Yep it does and it sucks arse way more when I have to hear/see violence with graphic detail in the name of journalism!

[riffer]

Taking this back to the topic originally posted...

Cathy - are you seriously suggesting that children should be watching the news?

At the end of the day, it happened, they're allowed to report it, and they will sensationalise it as much as possible in order to get the ratings. Commercial reality unfortunately.

Our kids don't watch the news for a damn good reason. It isn't G rated.

But reality often isn't.

[Ms Piggy]

Taking this back to the topic originally posted...

Cathy - are you seriously suggesting that children should be watching the news?

At the end of the day, it happened, they're allowed to report it, and they will sensationalise it as much as possible in order to get the ratings. Commercial reality unfortunately.

Our kids don't watch the news for a damn good reason. It isn't G rated.

But reality often isn't.

Hey Simon - no I'm definitely not saying that kids should watch the news, particularly because of the increase in graphic pictures and commentary.

Due to the news being aired at 6pm I assume that it's a lot more likely that little Johnny or Suzy will see and/or hear something that's not appropriate - let alone the fact that I'm seeing and hearing things that I don't need in my head!

It may be a reality but I don't like it, I don't like it one bit. :no: If they (media) want to report in minute detail what was done to Ms Elliott maybe they could keep that sorta detail until the late news. Not when I'm having my dinner.

Actually Simon I never knew the news was rated - comes from not having kids.

[Goblin]

Taking this back to the topic originally posted...

Cathy - are you seriously suggesting that children should be watching the news?

At the end of the day, it happened, they're allowed to report it, and they will sensationalise it as much as possible in order to get the ratings. Commercial reality unfortunately.

Our kids don't watch the news for a damn good reason. It isn't G rated.

But reality often isn't.It's not just that it's on the news at 6 but all the adverts leading up to the news as well as radio news.

Easy for you to say that kids shouldn't see or hear that kind of gutter journalism but its out there! We cant bury our heads and pretend it's not happening.

Maybe a huge public outcry can get this crap out of the media?

[riffer]

Easy for you to say that kids shouldn't see or hear that kind of gutter journalism but its out there! We cant bury our heads and pretend it's not happening.


Mate. I'm not just saying it. My kids DON'T get to watch the news.
I believe this is the best idea. I don't believe in censorship in any form, excepting kiddie porn. But I can choose what I want to watch, or what my four children see.

Remember, this isn't made-up stuff; it's what our fellow humans are doing. And I'm sorry if you don't like what you're seeing. To a certain extent the media are trying to hold up a mirror to society; if things appear to be more violent it's possibly because they are.

Don't watch if you don't like it. And make sure you let any survey-takers know this too. Or write to the people who advertise between 1800 and 1900. Because news lives and dies on advertising revenue.

You can't stop them broadcasting reality. But if the advertisers get antsy about their sales then perhaps there's a chance that the newstellers may change the way they present it. But unfortunately in today's commercially-driven market I can't see it happening. :no:

[Goblin]

Yeah, I know.

Malcolm in the middle is far better.

Just pisses me off to see that creep given so much publicity. He's playing the media and law system like a freakin circus!

Im gunna write a letter! :2guns::whocares:

[Number One]

Ms Piggy I agree. I am so fucking tired of having 'news reporters' talk to pictures of dead bodies being carted away and asking inane questions of affected family/friends along the lines of 'so how do you feel?'.

I don't believe they are 'doing us a service' by putting up a mirror to show us how truely horrible some people in our society are....I didn't need the news to point it out for me.

ALSO - Easy enough to get your kids to not view the 6pm news however they do like to intersperse kids programmes with those terribly important 'news updates' which also tend to include the 'controversial dead body shots'.

A police car passed us the other day with lights blaring. My 5 year olds first words were 'they are going to go kill someone'...that's what he learned from those all important 'news updates' Police are there to kill people....how nice :rolleyes:

As for this creep Wetherston - he is a smug fuck head - I hope he is treated as he deserves in prison...and I don't mean with heated floors and LCD TV screens either. I just want to slap his smarmy face...whether she was an angel or not is irrelevant - he admits to killing her, he did a pretty nasty bloody job of it and now he sits up there like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth. A PSYCHO if ever I saw one...critter.

Thanks for this thread Ms P - I needed a chance to say all that :lol:

[Ms Piggy]

Remember, this isn't made-up stuff; it's what our fellow humans are doing. And I'm sorry if you don't like what you're seeing. To a certain extent the media are trying to hold up a mirror to society; if things appear to be more violent it's possibly because they are. You're right it's not made up but it's also not the reality of the world. My opinion is that it's teaching society that we have a right to invade people's lives (dead or alive) and we should all be allowed to see dead bodies, cars with blood smeared on them and hear what a deranged man did to his ex girlfriend when he stabbed her over 200 times. It's not good journalism - Goblin and others are right, it's gutter journalism.

I also don't believe it's all bad news in the world, there are lots of good things happening everyday but because they're not sensational or don't grab ratings we all go around thinking the world is an evil place (no I'm not saying the world is wonderful and fabulous...I'm not naive). I guess what pisses me off is it's not balanced and it's unnecessarily graphic.


Don't watch if you don't like it. And make sure you let any survey-takers know this too. Or write to the people who advertise between 1800 and 1900. Because news lives and dies on advertising revenue.
It's not as simple as "turning it off". I'm not happy with it and I want it changed (which I know is like pushing the proverbial up hill). I have a right to be able to be informed about what is going on in society without having to hear the gruesome details - why is that necessary? I'm not saying it shouldn't be aired, I'm saying it should be aired appropriately, i.e. the 10:30pm news not the 6pm news.

[Ms Piggy]

Thanks for this thread Ms P - I needed a chance to say all that :lol:
Well said No.1 :yes:

[Ms Piggy]

Im gunna write a letter! :2guns::whocares:
I emailed TV3 last night - the letter I sent the paper. I doubt I'll get a reply.

[jrandom]

If it bleeds, it leads, and the ratings don't lie.

Ever since the invention of mass media, there have been hand-wringing women writing in to complain about its tastelessness (no offense, Cathy) but that has always had and will always have precisely zero effect.

You can't change human nature, and most humans are ghoulish rubberneckers.

It's not about 'public interest'. Gosh. It's simply about getting advertisements in front of the largest number of ghoulish rubberneckers possible.

[Usarka]

Public interest would be publishing positive stories so we don't dwell so much on the negatives of life.

Unfortunately as stated that doesn't sell.

Step right up, get your doom and gloom here!

[MSTRS]

It's not about 'public interest'.

No, it's about how far the boundaries can be pushed....
Did anyone notice the clip of the prosecutor? Several times he said the word 'fucking' as part of something he was reading out to the court. Isn't that normally bleeped out prior to 8.30+?

[gwigs]

That smug Fuck is Guilty,Guilty,Guilty.........its murder not manslaughter.....stab someone twice I might believe it was manslaughter and he didnt mean to kill her
but 200 times .....the guys a fucking pyscho.....he just thinks hes clever...
Hope he gets a big hairy homo for a cell mate...:angry2:

[Genestho]

Hmmm, I can see all sides here.

When the invasion of Bagdad was going on, we had constant updates (We wern't watching the News!) of - how many dead, filming of the missiles etc, I worried about the impact of that on my son! Why speed up the loss of his innocence? (HAH - never mind it was about to happen a year down the track anyway!!)

So I wrote an email to the TV stations.
The reply in not so many words was:
You can change the channel, or turn the TV off.

As a person who has been hounded by media, we DO have the right to turn the media way, and request that we are not filmed.

So don't think for one minute privacy is being invaded.

The media sells what is on demand, it feeds the masses, people want to see greif, death and loss of dignity.

Which is one of many reasons - why, in a moment of clarity I decided I did not want to be interviewed for TV back in the day.

Quite frustrating now though, when I am interviewed in News papers, the reporters will only dwell on the story, and not the positive outcomes!!!!
Which in a way is good, because maybe it reaches and teaches someone!

Personally I don't watch much telly, I'm too busy living my own reality!

[vifferman]

No, it's about how far the boundaries can be pushed....
Did anyone notice the clip of the prosecutor? Several times he said the word 'fucking' as part of something he was reading out to the court. Isn't that normally bleeped out prior to 8.30+?
Yeah, I noticed that.
The news sucks. For a start, it's formatted: "they" have decided we need so many minutes of each kind of story, so the news is manicured to fit that format, regardless of what is happening in the world. Secondly, most of it isn't realay informative or important - it's basically gossip, sensationalism, gloating over every little bit of human tragedy, blowing things up out of all proportion, and milking every item (like swine flu) for all it's worth.
Unfortunately, it's human nature that this is what many/most people want. Even more unfortunate is that in large part, we've been conditioned to expect news of this kind and in the format "they" have decided we want.
Most media is like this though: we were subscribed to The Haroldfor years. I realised even if I tried to read everything in the paper, almost all of it was the written equivalent of white noise. I was lucky if I could remember two (2!) things - usually one thing that pissed me off enough to notice, and one thing that was amusing.
Waste of time and money.....

[sunhuntin]

only thing id like to change would be for them to stop giving that crackpot air time for blathering on about shit unrelated to the case at hand. so he was a perfect student? whoopdie fuck. so she was promiscuous... well, arent most girls these days? not related to the case, then it shouldnt be bloody shown. its not news, its him getting his jollies.

[Katman]

I'm just looking forward to seeing him fry.

[CookMySock]

Blardy hell, haven't you figured this out yet?

Think about it - there's a little box in the corner of your lounge room, and every time you turn it on your emotional state goes through the roof and your self esteem goes through the floor.

It's not rocket science!

Steve

[Pussy]

I'm just looking forward to seeing him fry.
Bet he won't look so smug when Bubba in the big house gives him a reaming... :)

[Finn]

I'm just looking forward to seeing him fry.

Unfortunately in NZ, the only chance of this happening is if the central heating thermostat in his cell malfunctions.

[Winston001]

Yes it's very unpleasant watching Weatherston. Do we need to see this? We have open courts and an open democracy and have the right to know about the sick individuals among us.

There is research which shows humans are hard-wired for bad news. The reason is that this is how we learn to avoid danger. Unfortunately our primal drives get over-fed in the information age resulting in the belief that society is disintegrating.

In reality the bad stuff is isolated, most people are good, and life is safe.

The other point that such reporting makes is our judges do not - never have - live in ivory towers. Judges see more of the sad and seamy side of life than the average citizen ever dreams. Daily.

[Katman]

Unfortunately in NZ, the only chance of this happening is if the central heating thermostat in his cell malfunctions.

You're right. Maybe I should have said 'hang'.



Personally I think there's a damn good chance of exactly that happening when his fragile ego gets locked up.

[oldrider]

They just seem to be feeding rope coil after rope coil but is it to eventually have him dismissed as insane, it gets more and more evident with every news cast!

Whatever, he admits he killed her and is trying to blame her for the outcome!

Manslaughter my arse, he's nothing more than a self opinionated murdering show pony!

If he gets away with this there has got to be a public outcry against the justice system in NZ.

Do we need this crap on TV?

NO but you "can" turn it off, it's not compulsory viewing! Freedom of choice! :yes:

[Number One]

Ever since the invention of mass media, there have been hand-wringing women writing in to complain about its tastelessness

Saw a couple of hand wringing men on tv this morning making comment about how totally unnecessary much of the detail being shown about this Wetherston characters trial is...he was the dude from that Investigation show - something about working old cases on tv...on tonight I think don't know haven't seen it or caught any ads for it and I promptly fell back to sleep before the item was done. What I did catch was that he made a comment about how (with his own show) it is most often NOT in any way useful to dredge over the gory details of a crime and said he thought that Wetherston was a narcissist whom we are readily supplying a lovely platform upon which he can perform and further inflate his own ego.

I agree - he does seem to be enjoying his trial...lock that evil nasty little man up with horny bubba I say - the sooner they get him off the tv and locked up behind bars where he clearly belongs the better.

BTW - I do turn it off...though the constant ghoulish updates are pretty farken annoying and difficult to avoid - specially when you are at home in bed sick watching the damn tv

[oldrider]

I purposely watched the TV1 news on this subject as a result of reading this thread.

I think that Wetherston is using the stand to just keep on thrusting the knife and mutilating the girls body and personal image with every word he utters!

He should be taken off the stand and made to sit down and shut up!

Manslaughter? Never! He has not got one once of remorse for what he did to her.

One of the best advertisements for corporal punishment that I have seen in years,and there have been some good ones lately!

Hanging would be too good for him! (IMHO)

PS: Get well soon Number one!

[marty]

He's a narcicst. Nothing more. And unfortunately, he's having his say. I reckon though it's a whole heap better than if he had just shut up in the corner like Bain did - it gives the jury a chance to see just how manipulative and self-absorbed he is. I bet the prosecutor lay awake at night dreaming of fun ways how bad he could make him look.

[Goblin]

...I think that Wetherston is using the stand to just keep on thrusting the knife and mutilating the girls body and personal image with every word he utters!

He should be taken off the stand and made to sit down and shut up!

Manslaughter? Never! He has not got one once of remorse for what he did to her.

One of the best advertisements for corporal punishment that I have seen in years,and there have been some good ones lately!

Hanging would be too good for him! (IMHO)Couldn't agree more!

If we all make complaints to the BSA about this, maybe we can silence him.:2guns:


He does make Vietch look tame in comparison.

[Shaun S]

He should be taken off the stand and made to sit down and shut up!I agree with everything you said in your post except this part. Keep him on the stand, let him talk, because the more he talks the deeper the hole he digs for himself. No one will ever listen to that smug idiot who almost seems proud of himself and let him get away with the charges he is facing.

His defense will soon see (if they don’t already) that putting him on the stand was a mistake. But that’s a good thing – he should fry for what he has done, so let him dig that hole deeper and deeper.

[Goblin]

His defense will soon see (if they don’t already) that putting him on the stand was a mistake. But that’s a good thing – he should fry for what he has done, so let him dig that hole deeper and deeper.But what's the maximum he could get? Preventitive detention? 18 years...out in 12? I'm hoping the former.

[Shaun S]

But what's the maximum he could get? Preventitive detention? 18 years...out in 12? I'm hoping the former.I get what you say 100%, and he should hang for this - however to get back to what Ms Piggy asked - the up side of all this coverage - is even if he is out in 12 years, his life will never the same - this entire country knows what an absolute fucker he is, and hopefully he gets the beats every week from random strangers!

[Goblin]

Bring back the gallows!

[James Deuce]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2594033/Te-Papa-boss-Seddon-Bennington-found-dead

Do we need pictures of body bags? No, I don't think so.

No one is allowed dignity when there is a story in the offing.

Apparently "we" asked for that.

[Winston001]

But what's the maximum he could get? Preventitive detention? 18 years...out in 12? I'm hoping the former.

The maximum sentence for manslaughter is life imprisonment.

Preventive detention can only occur where there are previous serious convictions.

What the judge can do is recommend a minimum period before parole.

[Winston001]

Keep him on the stand, let him talk, because the more he talks the deeper the hole he digs for himself. No one will ever listen to that smug idiot who almost seems proud of himself and let him get away with the charges he is facing.

His defense will soon see (if they don’t already) that putting him on the stand was a mistake. But that’s a good thing – he should fry for what he has done, so let him dig that hole deeper and deeper.

Maybe not. The objective of the defence is to present a highly intelligent, personable young man - who is psychologically damaged. A little bit crazy. If the jury get drawn into believing he wasn't exactly sane when he committed this atrocious crime, then there is a chance of manslaughter. The gasps of disbelief at times in the court-room play into this.

Personally I can't see the jury being fooled.

[Ms Piggy]

I agree with everything you said in your post except this part. Keep him on the stand, let him talk, because the more he talks the deeper the hole he digs for himself. No one will ever listen to that smug idiot who almost seems proud of himself and let him get away with the charges he is facing.
Actually that's the point my Aunty made today when her and I were discussing this topic. The 1 positive of having all the diatribe of the trial is that once Weatherston has been convicted and comes up for parole all the verbal diarrhoea will stand as evidence against him and early release. We hope.

Anyway, this isn't so much about that particular trial but about the increase of graphic stories, photos, news reels that are posed as news in the "public interest".

I'm a stubborn bitch at times and I am pretty sure I can't change anything but I won't shrug my shoulders and accept it.

[Ms Piggy]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2594033/Te-Papa-boss-Seddon-Bennington-found-dead

Do we need pictures of body bags? No, I don't think so.

No one is allowed dignity when there is a story in the offing.

Apparently "we" asked for that.
Exactly my point! This is another example of the invasion of the media.

[Ms Piggy]

Ever since the invention of mass media, there have been hand-wringing women writing in to complain about its tastelessness (no offense, Cathy) but that has always had and will always have precisely zero effect.
Well that makes me a hand-wringer with the best of them - whatever that means!

[hospitalfood]

I think it takes two, in other words I think she was probably an utter bitch.

I think he should get murder. no question. you don't treat chicks that way ( even if they are an utter bitch ) .

shame that they did not kill each other really. the news would be hard pushed to drag it out this much.

question, is it as disturbing when the media drags out a "man kills man" case ?

[Ms Piggy]

question, is it as disturbing when the media drags out a "man kills man" case ?

Hmmm, interesting question...I'd like to think it would be if the injuries inflicted on the victim had been as violent and been reported in as much detail as they have in this case. But, knowing the media they wouldn't be.

[peasea]

Yep it does and it sucks arse way more when I have to hear/see violence with graphic detail in the name of journalism!

But it's NOT journalism, it's "get the faces in front of the paper/tv to sell ad's shock therapy", that's what it is.

We (the world as a whole) are in short supply of good journo's. These days it's all about jamming a camera in someone's face while some some bimbo asks inane questions or worse, jamming a camera in the face of some poor crime victim with the on-going, equally inane question "how does it feel?" etc etc. It's irritating.

I love the 'off' button, it's my friend.

[Paul in NZ]

Shaun S is right, best thing the prosecution can do is keep the clown there on the stand digging his own grave and dumbest thing the defense did was let him get up there (unless of course he insisted and they didn't particularly like him)

However, yes, coverage of some of this is getting silly - fame can be found these days by simply being dead. And we wonder why we see tui stickers on coffins. Frankly if there WAS to be this kind of coverage I'd make them show the bleeding, the bowel venting, the screaming, the agony and the guts on the ground while calling for mummy or praying to a god that does not answer so these dumb pricks would realise getting dead is not always an easy thing...

[Laava]

Haven't read all this thread but yes this guy sickens me too with his casual approach to his cowardly shamefull act! But I wonder has it occured to him that when he gets inside[He will get there!] that he will have zero sympathisers because of his bullshit courtroom dramatics? It's not A TV show FFS! Or is it?

[doc]

Isn't about time the victims got name suppression or something. We don't need to know all the nitty gritty and the name as well.

I usually avoid the news cos the 1st reports are more about sensation than facts.

[oldrider]

Personally I can't see the jury being fooled.

Joe Karam and David Bain....probably feel a bit different about that! :shutup:

[merv]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/2594033/Te-Papa-boss-Seddon-Bennington-found-dead

Do we need pictures of body bags? No, I don't think so.

No one is allowed dignity when there is a story in the offing.

Apparently "we" asked for that.

Not pretty that's for sure.

See my comments on Seddon here http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?p=1129307943#post1129307943

[dave_a]

Isn't about time the victims got name suppression or something. We don't need to know all the nitty gritty and the name as well.

I usually avoid the news cos the 1st reports are more about sensation than facts.


The rights of victims in this country are absoulte bullshit, Nothing is geared towards the victim, Its all for the offender.

This shit is fucking sick, She has suffered enough, But to have every ounce of anything she has ever done wrong brought up in court for the whole country to see!, This is such a clear cut case why are they bringing anything up about her!!

This guy doesnt deserve a bullet, thats way to easy for him. I wont go into what he deserves Itl probably incriminate myself

[peasea]

The rights of victims in this country are absoulte bullshit, Nothing is geared towards the victim, Its all for the offender.

This shit is fucking sick, She has suffered enough, But to have every ounce of anything she has ever done wrong brought up in court for the whole country to see!, This is such a clear cut case why are they bringing anything up about her!!

This guy doesnt deserve a bullet, thats way to easy for him. I wont go into what he deserves Itl probably incriminate myself

Quite right; I can't understand how he's STILL managing to 'put the knife in' long after her death. Didn't he stab her enough already? I also feel for her mother. She witnessed her daughter's violent death and now has to endure a media circus while the perp' laughs about it in the box.

Every time something like this goes down and members of the public air their feelings of disgust and frustration (at the system's inadequacies) while calling for harsher penalties, such venting is described as a 'knee-jerk reaction'. Weatherston should get solitary life at best. He's holding court and he's getting way too much air/press time. I would like to see his face after someone put over 200 stab wounds in his body; that'd wipe the smarmy smile off his dial. It's almost worth committing a serious crime to get locked up in the same jail with him.....just for a quiet chat, you understand.:bash:

[Genestho]

The rights of victims in this country are absoulte bullshit, Nothing is geared towards the victim, Its all for the offender.

This shit is fucking sick, She has suffered enough, But to have every ounce of anything she has ever done wrong brought up in court for the whole country to see

That's right.
Heaven forbid if victims stand up and try to explain their individual cases, and why there are minimal victims rights.

They are referred to as having 'axes to grind', or the 'pitchfork brigade'.

Unrealistically labelled....or offenders rights groups saying it is unfair on offenders that victims are 'paraded or exposayed', when they CHOOSE the long hard road to lobby for victims rights!
Victims have a one page brochure on rights, offenders? A stack.

As for this case, I'm quite aware of it, let's blame the dead woman.
Let's drag her diary out, let's talk about her sex life, it all jusitfies being chopped to death. Her poor mother.

[Winston001]

Quite right; I can't understand how he's STILL managing to 'put the knife in' long after her death. Didn't he stab her enough already?

I also feel for her mother. She witnessed her daughter's violent death and now has to endure a media circus while the perp' laughs about it in the box.


I agree. The trial feeds Weatherston's grandiosity, he revels in the attention, and gets to relive the power he felt when murdering this poor girl. On top of that he also gets to show off how clever he is by debating with the prosecutor.

In hindsight the judge should have suppressed some of the evidence - but what? And the media would have rushed off the the Court of Appeal to get that overturned.....

I'm appalled this young womans family have to witness this. Its like having her murdered again daily.

[Pussy]

That's right.
Heaven forbid if victims stand up and try to explain their individual cases, and why there are minimal victims rights.

They are referred to as having 'axes to grind', or the 'pitchfork brigade'.

Unrealistically labelled....or offenders rights groups saying it is unfair on offenders that victims are 'paraded or exposayed', when they CHOOSE the long hard road to lobby for victims rights!
Victims have a one page brochure on rights, offenders? A stack.

As for this case, I'm quite aware of it, let's blame the dead woman.
Let's drag her diary out, let's talk about her sex life, it all jusitfies being chopped to death. Her poor mother.


I agree. The trial feeds Weatherston's grandiosity, he revels in the attention, and gets to relive the power he felt when murdering this poor girl. On top of that he also gets to show off how clever he is by debating with the prosecutor.

In hindsight the judge should have suppressed some of the evidence - but what? And the media would have rushed off the the Court of Appeal to get that overturned.....

I'm appalled this young womans family have to witness this. Its like having her murdered again daily.

Spot on... both of you!

[Spyke]

I agree that the news doesn't represent what we really want to see, they've just lost sight of what they should be reporting. how about more storys on the good sorts which is the only part of the news i take seriously (last item on a sunday). If you haven't seen it they report about a person that has done something good for the community or such alike.

they could be reporting more about things that are going to help us in life and living in general, instead of so many things that don't show whats actually happening in nz. do some real reporting and keep us in the loop of life not death.

[Winston001]

I don't go along with the "if you don't like it, turn it off" argument. Most of the news whether on TV, radio, or newspaper is benign and informative. Ok - TV is shallow but it is also true that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Why should I have to turn off the 6:00pm news and miss items of interest, simply because they might show salacious material? That's what editors are for - to judge what should be shown.

Incidentally last night TV1 News apologised for airing the clip of the foul language in the trial. Must have had complaints.

[Genestho]

I agree. The trial feeds Weatherston's grandiosity, he revels in the attention, and gets to relive the power he felt when murdering this poor girl. On top of that he also gets to show off how clever he is by debating with the prosecutor.

In hindsight the judge should have suppressed some of the evidence - but what? And the media would have rushed off the the Court of Appeal to get that overturned.....


Z'actly. ^

I turned on the news last night because of this thread, and noted the apology in regards to the swearing too! Openly admitting the editing processes weren't adequately applied!

[peasea]

I don't go along with the "if you don't like it, turn it off" argument. Most of the news whether on TV, radio, or newspaper is benign and informative. Ok - TV is shallow but it is also true that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Why should I have to turn off the 6:00pm news and miss items of interest, simply because they might show salacious material? That's what editors are for - to judge what should be shown.

Incidentally last night TV1 News apologised for airing the clip of the foul language in the trial. Must have had complaints.

You make a couple of valid points. The picture I have in my head of Withered-dick chuckling to himself in the box will remain with me for some time.

The people who let dubious 'news' articles appear at dinner time (for many) need to sharpen their act. 6pm news does, I think, need to be sanitized a bit with perhaps an adult, coarser version at 9.30 or 10. The 10.30 bulletins are a bit late for me generally.

Kids see/hear enough these days without having foul language, blood stained knives and details of how many stab wounds a pretty young woman received in her bedroom thrown at them at dinner time.

TV: "There was a frenzied attack"

Mum and Dad: C'mon, eat your veges.

TV: "There was blood everywhere"

Mum and dad: You won't get any pudding.

TV: "He took a knife into her bedroom"

Mum and dad: I'll tuck you in, get a good night's sleep sweety.

No wonder some kids spin out.

[Genestho]

I agree Peasea.

And by the time this same kid is 14, I wonder what the chances of the following scenario happening after years of desensitising.

Kid1: Dude you just stabbed/shot/ranover ___________< (add your family member of choice.)

Kid2:yawn: :whocares:

Also we give the offender much wanted attention, a certification in publicity - and kudos - as in this case. Should we be feeding this blokes ego? It seems alot of people are asking this question too.

[Pussy]

Should we be feeding this blokes ego? It seems alot of people are asking this question too.
Yes... we should be feeding Weatherston's ego....


with cyanide

[Number One]

The picture I have in my head of Withered-dick chuckling to himself in the box will remain with me for some time.

Me too - that made me sick to my stomach and I wanted to jump through the tele and smash him

[peasea]

Me too - that made me sick to my stomach and I wanted to jump through the tele and smash him

Keep an eye on Grab-a-Seat, I'll come with ya and we can.....

Oh no, hang on, it's not his fault, remember?

Now, where are those wet bus tickets?

[James Deuce]

You make a couple of valid points. The picture I have in my head of Withered-dick chuckling to himself in the box will remain with me for some time.

The people who let dubious 'news' articles appear at dinner time (for many) need to sharpen their act. 6pm news does, I think, need to be sanitized a bit with perhaps an adult, coarser version at 9.30 or 10. The 10.30 bulletins are a bit late for me generally.

Kids see/hear enough these days without having foul language, blood stained knives and details of how many stab wounds a pretty young woman received in her bedroom thrown at them at dinner time.

TV: "There was a frenzied attack"

Mum and Dad: C'mon, eat your veges.

TV: "There was blood everywhere"

Mum and dad: You won't get any pudding.

TV: "He took a knife into her bedroom"

Mum and dad: I'll tuck you in, get a good night's sleep sweety.

No wonder some kids spin out.

While I appreciate the sentiment, it isn't our job to prevent our kids ever finding out how the world works. That's how you end up with a Weatherston.

There's multiple lessons in everything that's wrong with society in this case and I'd much rather have an informed discussion about right and wrong and how little of the information that is presented on television can be trusted to be actual untainted information than to quickly rush them out of the room or change the channel. Having said that we don't watch the News anyway. There's no canned laughter so we don't know when we're supposed to be laughing.

Life sucks and you need to be taught how to deal with the sucky bits and you need people to support you in the sucky bits. Far too many people have an unrealistic expectation of life and far too many people liken support to a patronising pat on the head.

[Ms Piggy]

I don't go along with the "if you don't like it, turn it off" argument. Most of the news whether on TV, radio, or newspaper is benign and informative. Ok - TV is shallow but it is also true that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Why should I have to turn off the 6:00pm news and miss items of interest, simply because they might show salacious material? That's what editors are for - to judge what should be shown.

Incidentally last night TV1 News apologised for airing the clip of the foul language in the trial. Must have had complaints.

That's exactly my thoughts! Good to hear that TV1 apologised. I'm still waiting for a reply from TV3 News..........

[Ms Piggy]

While I appreciate the sentiment, it isn't our job to prevent our kids ever finding out how the world works.

While I'm not advocating wrapping kids in cotton wool and hiding them away from the real world I just don't see that it's necessary to publish as much *detail* regarding injuries etc. on the 6pm news when it is more likely that children will be overexposed to gruesome & graphic pictures and words.


That's how you end up with a Weatherston.

How do you mean Jim? I'm not making a dig btw, I'm interested in why you say this.

[James Deuce]

While I'm not advocating wrapping kids in cotton wool and hiding them away from the real world I just don't see that it's necessary to publish as much *detail* regarding injuries etc. on the 6pm news when it is more likely that children will be overexposed to gruesome & graphic pictures and words.

How do you mean Jim? I'm not making a dig btw, I'm interested in why you say this.

Kids aren't partially formed adults. They need guidance, and most all need to know that their parents take them seriously and will discuss their concerns with them without ever belittling them.

Weatherston seems to me to be the product of an environment that has always cosseted his self image. I see little evidence of empathy and a great deal of remorse for the "damage" her actions have "inflicted" on him. Highly competitive, a big predatory fish in a small pond, playing with women who could be regarded as off limits by someone with a more finely developed sense of ethics, self awareness, and taste. But that may well be what a variety of media outlets want me to think.

I'm not very patient with disrespectful children. Weatherston reminds of kids who never say please and thank you and expect to call you by your first name without earning the privilege.

[Ms Piggy]

Kids aren't partially formed adults. They need guidance, and most all need to know that their parents take them seriously and will discuss their concerns with them without ever belittling them. With ya on this one!


Weatherston seems to me to be the product of an environment that has always cosseted his self image. I see little evidence of empathy and a great deal of remorse for the "damage" her actions have "inflicted" on him. Highly competitive, a big predatory fish in a small pond, playing with women who could be regarded as off limits by someone with a more finely developed sense of ethics, self awareness, and taste. But that may well be what a variety of media outlets want me to think.

I'm not very patient with disrespectful children. Weatherston reminds of kids who never say please and thank you and expect to call you by your first name without earning the privilege.
Ah hah. I get what you mean. Thanks.

[oldrider]

This guy should be all sorted by the end of today, maximum sentence for murder is the only acceptable outcome, in my opinion! Bastard! :nono: