Well-established actor, Craig McLachlan, was accused of sexual harassment during his participation in the Rocky Horror Show, dating back to 2014. Since then, he has been acquitted of all charges, but is now suing ABC for claims of ‘coaching’ the three female accusers of what to say during an interview.
This information was revealed in an hour long interview with McLachlan and his partner Vanessa Scammell, by a program called Spotlight created by 7News.
This accusation is a breech in ethics by the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance Journalist Code of Ethics (MEAA). Specifically:
1. Report and interpret honestly, striving for accuracy, fairness and disclosure of all essential facts. Do not suppress relevant available facts, or give distorting emphasis. Do your utmost to give a fair opportunity for reply.
In response to an accusation of breaking journalistic ethics, ABC journalist Lorna Knowles released a response on Twitter:
In todays age of #MeToo and the 97% of Women female empowerment and awareness groups, sexual assault claims are taken seriously. The accusation made by McLachlan and 7News against the ABC indicates bias from the interviewers and inaccurate responses from the alleged victims. McLachlan was also not given a chance to reply to the interview that ABC conducted, as they contacted him during a time where he was unable to come in due to its late notice.
Statistics from the ABS state that one in two women will experience sexual harassment in their lifetime. Given an accusation as substantial as one from McLachlan and 7News, it also takes away the power from the alleged victims. As many people struggle to come forward after sexual assault, this could cause a lot of backlash not only for the media companies involved, but in the progression towards equality.
It is estimated that only 5 per cent of sexual assault claims are false and that men need not be scared. However, an article by Forbes disagrees and says men do need to be scared due to severe consequences that come with an assault charge.
This dilemma should have been handled better. The back and forth between ABC and 7News online appears unprofessional. The accusation of coaching and manipulating answers given by the three women is also a massive claim that requires substantial proof. A discussion in person, maybe even with a legal team, could have kept this dirty laundry from being aired. In saying that, 7News could have genuinely believed that the public needed to know this which begs the question: how far can you push the ethics of journalism?
Student journo 