Crikey

Hearts still aflutter at 3AW: It’s the start of the summer and on the 3AW morning show the love in between new Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle and host Neil Mitchell, documented by Crikey on Tuesday, is getting steamy. Listen here to this morning’s incendiary audio. In one exchange, Mitchell sails close the wind, saying he’s heard more sense from Doyle in one week than he has from former Lord Mayor John So in seven years (the Hong Kong-born So famously struggled with the local lexicon). The duo also jokes about Doyle donning drag for a photo op.  — Andrew Crook

Alcoholic advertising revenue and politics don’t mix. An interesting juxtaposition in the Sydney Morning Herald this morning. On the front page, a post-it note ad with a special Crown Lager offer for a couple of liquor chains. On page three:

Like all media, they are quick to report the horrors of alcohol abuse, the drunken rampages of young people, wife assault, child abuse, drink driving and anything else (and drunken sports fans) linked to alcohol, but are not interested in refusing money for these ads.

Predictably, the same trained ponies who argued against the ban on alcopops from the Rudd Government came out of the woodwork to attack the Della Bosca proposal. No doubt the fools in the Federal and state Oppositions will pick up on the grog industry’s concerns and moan right back, as will those members of the ALP on the bottle of donations from the grog, club and pub industry.

The ad pains of the media will mean they won’t take a principled stand on this issue, even if there’s a strong chance that banning grog ads could lower consumption, assaults and other stupid acts. — Glenn Dyer

Fairfax staff told to keep it clean this Christmas. Crikey understand this message was sent to Fairfax staff:

FAIRFAX MEDIA HOLIDAY FUNCTIONS

With the Christmas party season underway, I wanted to reiterate my message from last year regarding the standards of behaviour expected of Fairfax Media employees at Fairfax-related functions, including conferences and social activities, whether clients are present or not.

The behaviour of employees in any circumstances that identify them with Fairfax Media reflects not just on individuals but on the reputation of the company. Accordingly the standards we expect in the workplace are required to be carried over to social functions. Harassment of any kind is totally unacceptable, as is behaviour that is likely to be offensive or inconsiderate of other Fairfax Media employees or members of the public.

Managers must at all times ensure that the safety and enjoyment of all the members of their group is the first priority. This includes ensuring appropriate arrangements are made for safe travel, both to and from venues; that venues are not over-crowded or lacking adequate ventilation and exits and that behaviour is at all times controlled, courteous and professional.

Excessive alcohol consumption is often the cause of inappropriate behaviour that is later much regretted. Peer support is often the best way to manage this situation and I ask each of you to look out for your friends and work colleagues and help them if necessary by taking the initiative to tell them to slow down or take a break or help them get home safely.

Misbehaviour at any Fairfax related function will not be tolerated and managers as well as those behaving inappropriately will be held accountable.

This is an issue which goes to the heart of the values we have at Fairfax Media and reflects the heritage and brand that that has been built over more than 175 years.

Thank you for your support. I want everyone to have a happy and safe Christmas season.

Sincerely,

David Kirk

Chief Executive Officer

“That’s so gay” spots win top award. The Arnold Agency in New York in partnership with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network has won the Ad Council’s award for best Public Service Advertising campaign. Entitled ‘Think Before You Speak’, the messaging was designed to discourage use of the slur “That’s so gay” by school students. — Advertising Age

Tina Fey gets glammed up for Vanity Fair. There’s no doubt that 2008 was Tina Fey’s big year. She had a hit movie (Baby Mama), her show 30 Rock finally started getting recognised as more than an underground cult favorite, and her impression of Sarah Palin garnered her old stomping ground, Saturday Night Live, its highest ratings in years. Tina is Vanity Fair’s cover girl for the January issue, and the self-proclaimed nerd is turning up the glamour in a leggy, pinup-inspired photo shoot. — Celebitchy

YouTube tightens s-x video rules. The Google-owned site has introduced new rules to control access to entries that have nudity or a s-xual theme but do not constitute p-rnography. Only users claiming to be adults will be able to view videos that titillate but fall short of containing s-xually explicit material, which is banned. YouTube relies on users reporting videos that might break its rules, but with 13 hours worth of footage uploaded around the world every minute, the site is almost impossible to police. — UK Telegraph

Burger King’s ‘Whopper Virgins’ ads: just bad taste? It’s either a fun and original ad or yet another example of the crass exploitation of the world’s indigenous people. An ad campaign for Burger King set to run in the US next week claims to offer “the world’s purest taste test”  — with Thai Hmong tribesmen, Transylvanian farmers and Inuit from Greenland choosing the Whopper over a McDonald’s Big Mac. — Guardian Media

Google CEO’s unemployed girlfriend. What’s the use of dating a megabillionaire if he can’t throw some bucks your way? Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who’s been seeing video producer Kate Bohner since last fall, hasn’t come through with funding for her documentary production firm, so she’s out of a job. — Valleywag

NY Post runs WSJ copy. News Corp. synergy appears to be increasing between The Wall Street Journal and New York Post, as a story on beleaguered Citigroup ran in both newspapers on November 29. Journal staffers told Politico that there’s uneasiness in the newsroom over the decision. If this becomes common practice, Journal stories could be published in the tabloid with Post headlines and graphics, or vice versa. Not to mention story subjects who agree to an interview with one paper might not be aware of it running in another that day. And with Journal staffers moving to News Corp.’s midtown headquarters next year, some said they expect even more synergy between the two papers. — Politico

A children’s treasury of polite, intelligent threaded comments on Change.gov. Obama’s transition website, Change.gov, is getting pretty Internettish. Change.gov suddenly looks a lot like Fark or Digg  —  long comment threads where you can “tell Obama” your thoughts and respond to each other and even rate each other’s comments. So we headed over there to witness the hilarity one sees on every Internet comment board in the world. But as with all things Obama, the discussion is well-written, informed, polite… it is terrifying. This is not the Real American Internet. — Wonkette