Sex abuse hoax may spur tighter TV regs in U.K.
Ratings over taste, critics accuse
The creators of "Brass Eye," aired on pubcaster Channel 4 on Thursday and repeated on Saturday, say it was a satire on investigative docus that claim to expose matters of public importance while pandering to salacious tastes.
The government's culture secretary, Tessa Jowell, whose department is responsible for broadcasting, does not agree. "If this is considered acceptable material then we are tearing down all the boundaries of decency on television," she said.
She suggested that television watchdog the Independent Television Commission needed more power.
C4 logged more than 2,000 complaints. Scotland Yard said that its Internet and Obscene Publications Unit had also received complaints, and had obtained a copy of the hourlong show "for reviewing purposes. There is no investigation at this stage."
In the show, celebrities including Phil Collins were lured into spouting nonsense onscreen by "Brass Eye" front man Chris Morris, a notorious gagster. Former soccer star Gary Lineker showed a picture of a hillside with a tiny blue speck representing a child. "If you attempt to show this to a pedophile he will try and attack it in an attempt to get to the child," he said.
C4 has defended the show, which critics allege pushes the boundaries of taste in pursuit of higher ratings.
