“Some of James’ comments about the complainant were particularly emotive and critical of him personally, for example, that he set ‘a low bar’ for finding a replacement father figure, he ‘disowned’ James, that James didn’t trust Janet to find him a man as ‘she did date my dad’ and making fun of his sports career.
“Although the word ‘abandoned’ was not used in James’ descriptions of his father leaving, some viewers may have taken that interpretation.”
A comic reality show, James-Must-a-pic His Mum a Man follows James’ attempts to get his mum, Dunedin psychologist Janet Millichamp, back on the dating scene “in hope of finding the father he’s always wanted”. The six-episode series went to air in early March and is available for streaming on TVNZ+.
Dan Mustapic, a former curling champion who works in the mental health sector in Wellington, laid a formal complaint with TVNZ, claiming hurtful comments made about him in the programme were “grossly untrue and unfair”.
TVNZ’s complaints committee accepted the inference that Mustapic had not paid child support was incorrect and would be “highly offensive to a reasonable person in your shoes”.
An inference that Mustapic had been asked to take part in the show but refused was also found to be incorrect. Both statements were removed and the programme has been further edited to remove identifying information, including references to curling and Mustapic’s involvement in the 2006 Olympic team.
On Mustapic’s request, a disclaimer was added to the start of each episode, stating: “This is a comedy that features some dramatisation and the stories are told from James’ perspective, based on his recollections.”
However, Dan Mustapic was not satisfied with the network’s response and took his case to the BSA for review. The BSA found TVNZ’s edits to the programme had adequately addressed its breach of the privacy standard, but the broadcaster’s response had still fallen short.
“To date, there has been no public acknowledgement by TVNZ of the breaches, which we consider would contribute towards remedying potential damages to the complainant’s reputation arising from the broadcasts,” it said. “On this basis, we uphold the complaint the action taken by TVNZ was not sufficient to address the harm caused to the complainant by the broadcaster’s breach of the fairness standard – notwithstanding the steps it has taken to prevent ongoing or repeated harm.”
Dan Mustapic told the Herald he was satisfied with the outcome, which he believes draws a clear line in the sand. “When, for the entertainment of others, a person needs to defend their privacy and integrity, that has crossed the line,” he said. “I just thought if it can happen to me, it can happen to somebody else.”
James Mustapic, who is performing a return run of his solo show You Mustapicked the Wrong Guy to Mess With from mid-September, said he hasn’t been in touch with his father since 2020.
“Dan hasn’t made any contact with me at any stage to discuss any of this, but I hope he got the outcome he was looking for, and if he’d like to reach out, then I suggest he books tickets to my upcoming NZ tour.”
In a brief statement, TVNZ said the network accepts the BSA’s decision and would consider whether further steps need to be taken when reviewing local programmes.
