Julia Gillard mania has well and truly hit the nation’s consciousness this past week. It seems we just can’t get enough puff pieces and souvenir liftouts about our freshly minted PM.
Columns / Wankley Awards
Crikey honours the week’s worst displays of journalism.
Ben Fordham: he’s no Laurie Oakes.
We love Ben Fordham. Almost as much as Channel Nine loves Ben Fordham, which has lately boosted him up the network’s increasingly rickety star ladder. But he’s well deserving of a Wankley.
Gerry Harvey, the master salesman
Tabloid TV is in bed with Gerry Harvey, the affable billionaire who can self-interestedly rattle off at length on anything to do with furniture at very low prices. Like bedding bargains in his own store!
Newspaper editors overcome with iPad fever
A virulent strain of iPad fever has infected Australia’s newspaper publishers, since desperate editors long ago decided Apple’s latest must-have gadget was the saviour of newspapers.
The ‘TV freak and wigged-known reporter’
It was a Kevin Rudd’s “meltdown”, his “angry exchange” with Kerry O’Brien on the 7:30 Report where he “lost his cool”, but Crikey smelt a beat-up. Even China contributed.
Thorpie’s 12-hour return to swimming
The mere possibility of a return to swimming is good news for Ian Thorpe Inc, and his manager is happy to fan the flames — and global media attention. For that, Crikey bestows a deserved Wankley.
Who magazine for flouting Journalism 101
How did Who magazine slip up in such an unfashionable way, publishing Carl Williams gossip under a suppression order? It deserves this week’s Wankley, writes Patrick Tombola.
Sky News’ trusty spinner, The Oz
The Australian has consistently acted as Sky’s spinner in its attacks on the ABC. For its services to shameless protection of its company’s interests, the newspaper wins the Wankley this week.
The twisted virus that is Dog Man
Dog-gone, the internet is a funny thing: you can be eccentric talent on Australian tabloid TV one minute, a global multi-media phenomenon the next. This week the Wankley goes to the Dog Man madness.
The bloke fest at Melbourne Talk Radio
This week’s Wankley goes to the all-male all-white launch of Melbourne Talk Radio at Gordon Ramsay’s Crown Casino noshery. All male, that is, save for the Women’s Weekly Deborah Thomas.
Hey Ratings! the TV sex scandal
A Current Affair hit the jackpot this week in airing actress Sarah Monahan’s allegations that she was subjected to sexual abuse on the set of Hey Dad!. For its ratings-driven exploitation, the show is a clear Wankley winner.
The media on Borders’ Control a Woman
Press a button and a woman’s boobs will grow and she’ll fetch you a beer. Yes, such a product exists! And as lawyer Katie Robertson learnt this week, you can just press a button and create a little media storm as well.
Mrs Nowra answers her husband’s critics
Louis Nowra’s wife Mandy Sayer answers her husband’s critics in today’s Australian, in an item running under the awful headline: “Louis, Louis, oh baby, you gotta go.”
The whole Bingle bungle
Bingle. Fevola. The shower. That photo. Everyone has dipped their nibs into the inkwell of shame, transforming a former home wrecker/WAG into a cowed media victim. But is that the whole story?
Overington is Greg’s poet laureate
Caroline Overington’s heartfelt love letter to Liberal Party pin-up Greg Hunt was one of the most sickening pieces of newspaper text we’ve read in some time. Even including the NT News.
Guy Rundle: The Monckie of the month
Hey hey it’s the Monckies: Crikey’s new regular competition for the dumbest contribution to the climate change debate. First up: The Oz and their interview with a Bondi beach regular (note, not a climate scientist).
Our (possibly, but we can’t prove it) worst columnist
Sure, Kylie Eastwood, the woman who got her five year old son drink isn’t exactly mum of the year, but does she deserve to be dubbed by Hun ‘Our worst mum’? To use the language of the tabloids, this week’s column by Alan Howe was a stinker.
SMH, Tele and Oz all in need of an heir cut
With all the attention little Jackson Lloyd Packer received, you’d think Indigo, Jamie and Erica’s daughter and eldest child, didn’t exist, writes Crikey intern Tristan Price.
All the stink about the Minx
The Wankley this week goes to the Hun and the Advertiser for dishing out free publicity for controversial game My Minx, the game where innocent children turn into raunchy avatars, writes Crikey intern Flint Duxfield.
The media’s royally crushed on Wills
The Australia media’s “We Willy willy like you” response to Prince William’s visit left the Crikey team with little doubt as to what the topic of this week’s Wankley would be. Crikey Intern Flint Duxfield examines the field.
All the lazy best of the summer news
A salute to the best-of-the-worst articles being passed off as “newsworthy” by the Aussie media during this annual summer suckhole of no news, as submitted by Crikey readers.
The Most Wankiest of Wankleys for 2009
From a tough field of nominees, this year’s Wankiest of all Wankleys goes to Richard Wilkins and his Goldblum gaff, writes Elly Keating, but Sam the Koala, Daryl Somers and Kyle Sandilands all deserve honourable mentions.
The Canberra Press Gallery’s Fright Night fest
Congratulations Canberra Press Gallery: we hereby present you with the Crikey Wankley award for your ability to rehash so many zombie dead clichés in the past week.
Tiger’s ‘trangressions’ and a ‘celebrity’ wedding
This week’s Wankley goes to the global media’s obsession with all things Tiger, and the Aussie media’s love of a ‘celebrity’ wedding, writes Elly Keating.
Liveblogging Trishna and Krishna’s post-op presser
This week’s Wankley Award goes to Paul “Colgo” Colgan of The Punch for liveblogging the marathon surgery that was performed on conjoined twins Trishna and Krishna at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital this week.
