Brian Rudman: Henry's racist slurs sanctioned by ratings quest

Paul Henry offends viewers consistently. Photo / Greg Bowker

When Television New Zealand bosses sit down to choose a replacement Breakfast host over the next few days, as they surely must, they should take their cue from the question disgraced presenter Paul Henry put to Prime Minister John Key regarding the next Governor-General.

"Are you going to choose a New Zealander who looks and sounds like a New Zealander this time ... Are we going to go for someone who is more like a New Zealander this time?"

Henry's attempt on Monday to buddy up to the Prime Minister with casual racist slurs against New Zealand-born Governor-General Sir Anand Satyanand was vile enough.

But equally repulsive was his assumption that he represented the true New Zealander and that Ponsonby boy, Sir Anand, because of his Indian descent, was the outsider.

What sort of Governor-General does Henry have in mind? One of the minor British aristocracy or retired military gents that were forced on us until the late 1960s, perhaps? Perhaps he fancies recently departed British High Commissioner George Fergusson to revive that particular vice-regal dynasty.

His dad, Brigadier Bernard Fergusson, complete with monocle and feathered headgear, reigned over us as the last non-New Zealand Governor-General in the mid 1960s. Sir Bernard's father, and both his grandfathers, had lorded over us before that.

If Henry had been around in the mid-60s, the proposal he put to Key would have been appropriate.

To ask it now is just insulting.

Which part of Sir Anand's make-up does Henry find un-New Zealand? His long and happy marriage? His distinguished legal career? His battle with the bulge? Or his Indian ancestry?

The worry is that weeding Henry out will be not enough to clean up the rot at TVNZ.

Henry's views are not just tolerated but actively supported at state television. After his comments on Monday, TVNZ spokeswoman Andi Brotherston told NZPA's Maggie Tait that "the audience tell us over and over again that one of the things they love about Paul Henry is that he's prepared to say the things we quietly think but are scared to say out aloud. The question of John Key is the same, we want the answer but are too scared to ask."

Who is the "we" she refers to? TVNZ as a whole? She and her mates? Christchurch skinheads?

There's a deep sickness within the state broadcaster that allows Brotherston the licence to brazenly defend Henry's racist utterances as some act of public service, to argue that Henry was asking the racist questions the rest of us are too scared to mouth openly.

It's not true, and in a multi-ethnic country it's a totally unacceptable stance for a public broadcaster to take.

As for Prime Minister Key, what a missed opportunity. While obviously embarrassed by the question, instead of slapping Henry down and defending the Governor-General and the reality of a multi-ethnic New Zealand, he giggled away the question.

Under questioning later, Key said Henry's comments were "plain wrong" but refused to condemn the man or to boycott his weekly appearance on the show.

Off the hook, Henry first accused his critics as people who "are very easily offended" then, later, as criticism grew, issued a half-hearted apology to Sir Anand - but only "if my comments have personally offended" him.

There was nothing from the man suggesting any regret for his besmirching the reputation of TVNZ or stirring up race hatred in the land.

Yesterday morning, as the outrage spread, he made another attempt at an apology on his show by claiming he was half a "gypo" - a reference to his gypsy background.

This somehow made his slur against the Governor-General's Indian ancestry all right. When is he going to understand that in a multicultural society it's not all right to make slurs against "gypos" or Indians?

Last week, he was sniggering like an adolescent schoolboy at the name of New Delhi Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit.

A month before, it was the lesser abilities of immigrant - read Asian - doctors. And that's just the most recent victims of his mindless bullying.

To its shame, TVNZ has lapped it up. Last month, after Henry sprayed a string of obscenities at an apparently delighted television awards audience, his boss, TVNZ head of news and current affairs Anthony Flannery, told the Herald on Sunday: "He may be polarising, at times he may be controversial, but ever increasing numbers of viewers love watching him."

Audiences numbers would also go up if TVNZ were to add public floggings and the dipping stool to Henry's breakfast show menu. But the quest of high audience ratings wouldn't make these medieval revivals right.

Or a justification for state television's abandonment of any standards in the hunt for an audience.