Today Tonight!

[Boostzor]

So has anyone e-mailed today tonight or channel 9 or even chasers then? we could at least try?

youve been around SAU long enough to know that everyone is all talk and no pork wed be lucky if 2 emails got sent.

[dan_the_man]

man after watching that video... thats f**kin hilarious they passed that off as their own videos from au. lol what shit journalists.

[R34GTTSKY]

DAMN i didn't know that amatuers drivin at "breakneck"speeds can drift that good

[mesmerized]

every 2nd segment on today tonight is bullshit. since someone's complaining to the tv networks, can they try and get big brother canned while they're at it

[dan_the_man]

they should be happy we dont do this crap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPMFHuJFeGI

[dan_the_man]

prolly a good thing they didnt get that footage of pauls wipe out on the cruise. they would have loved that

[syx]

Media Watch FTW. They even harass the producers of the segments. Gold.

listen to this man !

[Boss-zilla]

It seems that everone is up in arms about this, which is good.

Please note what i am postin here comes from a message on antilag.

"To whom it may concern,

I am writing to register my complaint regarding an article aired on tonight’s (Wednesday 9th May 9, 2007) episode of Today Tonight on Network 7. In particular, I believe the segment they aired regarding “Drifting” was not only a piece of inaccurate and poorly researched journalism, I also believe it contravened a number of regulations contained within Section 4 of the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice July 2004 (CTICP).

The segment in question was centered around video footage located on the Youtube website (www.youtube.com) that appeared to show in-car footage of two drivers engaging in “drifting” on public roads. Host Monica Kos introduced the segment as such:

“There’s been an explosion of hoon behaviour in the last few years, fuelled by publicity on the internet. The latest ratbags to hit our roads do something called drifting - hoons in high-powered cars racing and weaving on public roads. And while police say the sport’s fine on raceways, they’ve launched a nationwide crackdown on drivers who risk innocent lives.”

In so doing Ms Kos has set up the segment to be viewed by the audience as being directly relevant to them – the use of the words “our roads” further reinforces this. The first section of footage shown is of the Youtube video, and includes a voiceover by the male reporter referring to the drivers as “amateur hoons”.

Section 4 of the CTICP concerns News and Current Affairs programs, which are defined as “a program focussing on social, economic or political issues of current relevance to the community”. Section 4.1.1 states that one of its main objectives is that “news and current affairs programs are presented accurately and fairly”. As such, this segment has already violated this objective. The Youtube footage featured is in fact filmed in Japan, and featured professional Japanese drivers performing a series of demonstration races on closed roads. A basic investigation into the footage would have yielded this information – the Youtube search tags used to locate it include the words “japan”, “night” and “drift”. Furthermore, the footage was filmed several years ago, and has been made widely available in Australia and numerous other countries on the DVD magazine “JDM Option”.

Section 4.3.1 of the CTICP further states that News and Current Affairs Programs “must present factual material accurately and represent viewpoints fairly”. It is my belief that this segment went beyond merely being grossly inaccurate, and instead became deliberately misleading, by the inclusion of an interview with what appears to be an Australian police officer (which force he is from is never clearly identified within the segment), and the statement by the male reporter that

“Authorities are trying to determine just where in the country this reckless stunt, weaving all over both sides of a public road, was carried out before being posted onto the popular website Youtube.”

This is taken further toward the end of the segment:

Male reporter: “The police are not taking the matter lightly either. Today Supt. Tony Rankin made this blunt warning to the drivers responsible wherever they may be.”

Supt. Tony Rankin: “It seems to me that people like this that take not only their own lives, but others, at risk, should feel the full weight of the law.”

“…as we speak, I’m having people from the Electronic Crime Section have a look at Youtubeto see whether or not they can indentify the vehicles, and/or the persons in there, and I’ll make further enquiries from there.”

Whilst it can only be assumed that it should have been immediately obvious on viewing it to determine that the footage was not filmed in this country at all, it becomes harder to believe that even a basic fact-checking exercise would not have discovered the true origins of the footage. Furthermore, it appears that there has been a deliberate effort by Today Tonight to conceal the true nature of the footage, and instead convince viewers that the footage was recorded by Australian drivers on Australian public roads.

Footage shown supplementary to the Youtube video during the segment consisted purely of drifting being performed on racetracks both here in Australia and in Japan – a completely legal form of the sport. At no point was there any other footage shown featuring the performance of drifting on the street – Japanese or otherwise. A brief clip of a motorcycle performing a “wheelie” on a public road was included in the segment, for an undetermined reason – it had no relevance to drifting, the driving behaviour in question. Interestingly, even a quick viewing of this motorcycle footage reveals it was recorded from a left-hand drive vehicle, again, meaning it was not performed on any Australian roads, and was thus also of dubious “current relevance” to the viewing audience.

I am thus convinced that this segment went beyond just incompetent journalism with regards to fact checking and investigative sources, and instead made a deliberate and concerted attempt to deceive the viewer. At the very least, I do not believe that constructing an entire segment around a single piece of footage taken from an open-source internet video website such as Youtube constitutes journalism, particularly when that footage is at night, and of an undetermined origin; and I fail to see how it fulfils the conditions set by section 4.3.1 of the CTICP in being “factual material”. Furthermore, I believe this segment completely contravened section 4.3.1 in that it did not “present factual material accurately” at all.

I hope that you take this complaint seriously, and that Today Tonight is made to reveal the true origin and nature of the Youtube video footage featured so extensively throughout this segment, at the very least. I would also expect that in future certain basic standards regarding journalism, primary sources of information, and fact checking would be required of Today Tonight, and future segments monitored.

[play r 32]

wow thats a good letter. Congrats to who ever wrote it. i hope they get somewhere with it. I like the idea of Chasers doing the RC segment. Informative yet hilarious at the same time.

[dan_the_man]

Great letter

who wrote it?

[Gazee]

Media Watch FTW. They even harass the producers of the segments. Gold.

Media watch is probably the best show i've seen that take the piss out of their bogus stories...

The best one i've seen is when they showed footage of the 2nd bali bombing... although it was actually footage of the 1st one...

I say screw the media and maybe we should all write to Media Watch to investigate these f**kwits and show how much BS their story's about the "hoons" are...

EDIT: That letter is GOLD

[Boss-zilla]

sorry guys i dont know who did the letter it is on antilag.com.

Another thing i noticed was all the shots of the Aus. drift was on a racetrack (Mallala by the looks) and it was old. There was a gold r33 which looked like whip-lash in the eaily days (im from the east coast so i dont know how many people know of this car, about 4 years old those shots of it i think).

Good to see the media do there research.

[tigeryas]

A really good letter. Cant stress how important and good practice it is to refer to CTICP codes when putting in a complaint (I work for the Dept of Racing Gaming and Liquor and people write in complaints regarding nightclub noise and other situations, but that's irrelevant here, except for the fact that you have to write complaints properly, the above is a good one).

Today Tonight has already gotten in trouble for misleading information before (remember that incident at the nursing home and TT chaining people up?), wonder how this one will go.

[Syde FX]

yeah we don't believe it because we know better but general public who doesn't know shit is now going to see any import and with the new video hoon law gonna try take shit into there own hands! yeah i heard someone from anti has put formal complaints in and from what i heard silviawa has put a formal complaint in!

chasers would be a good idea!

[ossie_21]

ok everyone at chanel seven news tonight at 8pm doin massive drifts and burnouts lets fight back

I'll bring my brothers fully sik vn commy down. Can turn up the sound system too & have my arm out the window chicken wing stylez

[michael87]

ok everyone at chanel seven news tonight at 8pm doin massive drifts and burnouts lets fight back

At least then they will get some new footage, ever noticed every hoon report whether its on ch7 or ch9 contains the same footage of cars doing burnouts etc. They must be getting desperate looking on you tube.

I swear I've seen footage like that on a very early video option dvd, perhaps get in contact with them surely that breaks copy right laws.

My opinion any tv at 6.30 is not worth watching, unless its funniest home videos on Saturday! Haha

[Kaido_RR]

hmm that letter is good but some of the facts on it aren't true

the footage isn't on a close road, and im pretty sure they aren't the Pro drivers.

If i remember right the the footage was posted up as an initial d system race (rx7 fc vs r32 gtr), and I've never seen that footage on any option video i've watch. although they do have similar footage and all the drifting they show on the street is illegal.

but good letter none the less

ps just my 2cents....

[bnr#@]

First saw that footage when I was just starting to watch initial d about 6 or 7 years ago, the video was part of the initial d download then (initial d was a free fan sub back then)

[lach 32]

Ahh good old today tonight, good for a laugh. What a big joke that "current" news program is. The amount of crap they report on each night amazes me. When i saw this clip, not only was i pissed off that they were associating this clip of drifting which was filmed many years ago in japan with car clubs like ours, they then went on to make out like it's a normal occurance around hear. Then when they showed fotage of legal drifting on a track and tried to make it seem like that was the shit that people do around the street, cmon......wtf. I geuss today tonight will never learne where to draw the line on whats real and whats not, with there inaccurate reporting and misleading stories. I'm sure this will result negatively for us skyline owners........more evils cruising down the streets, more attention from the cops, but hey, not much you can do about it i geuss. I thought it was funny when that police sargent said that he was going to find the people resposible......good stuff dick head, it was years ago in japan, i'm sure you'll find them and i'm sure they actually give a shit about what you think about their driving technique.

p.s. any of you guys interested in a drift battle in the hills this saturday night. Of course it has to be in a uncontrolled environment and on public roads, and of course we have to hit break neck speeds. I have a white 32, all i need now is a rx7 and we'll be ready to go doooorifting. :laughing-smiley-014:

[Tofu]

I'm sure the cops don't care that much. The police hold enough respect and knowledge for the common driver to be able to differentiate between an import enthusiast and the local "hoons". (looks around the room in silence) Although assumptions are ALWAYS made.

I know we all count urban dictionary as a leading source for referencing; the description of a hoon is:

"1. To travel at speed in a confined area, or do burnouts on a public road in traffic ..

2. To show off in a dangerous manner, mostly with a vehicle or engine powered item ..

Used in a sentence:

Look at that bloody dangerous hoon!!

(YELLED IN ANNOYANCE AT OFFENDER).. YA f**kIN' HOON!!!"

The cops will treat us exactly the same next week as they did last week. Today Tonight, Chaser's War or what ever, it doesn't matter if its for good or for worse it will not change. As long as the politicans are trying to:

1. Cut the Road Death Toll

2. Justify Multinovas as life savers and not revenue raisers.

3. Crack down on Speed.

4. Make Money.

They will use the police to find scapegoats (ie us), target them to attempt to eradicate their shortcomings(ie the above 4 items). So yes you can complain to the media watch or whoever about the stupidity of the 30 minute programs like Today Tonight but for me I am going to masturbate with a cheese grater as it will be more productive.

As for cruises etc, the police will always be there. From a resource point of view, it is the easiest way for revenue raising (speeding fines and defect stickers) with the least amount of man power needed. If you're car wont pass do what I do; get a yellow sticker so they cant touch you or don't come.

My two cents. peace

Edited May 10, 2007 by Tofu