Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8360092.stm

I think this should become a much more regular occurence.The only way for people with disfigurement to feel really part of society is to be doing such high profile jobs and it just to be a normal matter of fact occasion.:)

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

it will be interesting, will people hear the news or see the disfigurement? imo it will be the latter and a pointless exercise.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I seriously doubt this will make any difference to peoples desire to see a "nice" news reader.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I have seen him on tv before and he comes across very well and will probably be better than 5's present newsreaders as he actually has a personality.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

So, the news organisations who have spent the last 15-20 years hiring ever more pretty news readers, and slowly getting rid of the ugly ones (John Snow, Alistair Stewart and Trevor McDonald being three exceptions, although none are really ugly as such), are now going to show someone who is disfigured for one week on probably their least viewed bulletin?

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

There'll be complaints....

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Well since some people complain about just about anything, I guess there will.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

if channel 5 feel that strongly this then why not hire someone disfigured permanantly instead of for a week ?

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Well I think the point is to stimulate discussion about this issue and possibly open the gates for it to become a normal occurrence.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I bet there'll be people claiming that he "scared the children".

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

i appreciate that but to me it smacks of experimenting with people who already have things a bit hard ,and how will they feel if at the end of the week they are told that "sorry we won't be doing this again because the public don't like looking at you"

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

So we shouldn't even bother?And yet these people have to already put up with ignorance and stupidity in their everyday life.I guess they shouldn't bother leaving home in that case.:rolleyes:

The fact is if we don't start here when do we start?It's called pushing the boundaries and challenging people to alter their viewpoint.That's never going to happen unless you just take a leap of faith and try it.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

like i said (if you bothered reading properly) Maggie hire him permanantly it will stimulate the same discussion possibly more ,and won't appear as an "experiment"

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Well yes that would be my way but it has to be baby steps in the media.Look at the complaints about the one armed children's presenter.There was no 'experiment' there.

Anyway this chap is always doing stuff like this.There is a superb portrait of him in the National Portrait Gallery in London.It's brilliant.:)

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Reading the lunchtime news bulletin on Channel Five is hardly high profile. ;)

But I can see a similar abhorrent campaign leveled at Cerrie Burnell from CBBC. Some of the comments made by the public were very, very disturbing and bordering on the criminal. I cannot understand some people's attitudes to this sort of thing. I wonder if they were ever to be in this situation, that they would want to treated in such a way?

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

So what?It's still a job on a major TV channel.:rolleyes:

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

:shocked: :confused:

He isn't even that bad. what they going to do, ask us on a scale of 1 to 10 how scary he was, and depending on the results either stop the experiment, or stick another one on that's worse?

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Why not just read the article and stop being so emotive.:erm:

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I was being emotive about your statement. not so much about what they're doing.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

It's not too long ago there were parents "concerned" about their kids having nightmares because one of the Cbeebies presenters was born without one of her hands.

She's a very good presenter and I'm pleased to say that I actually forgot about her physical disability until this thread. My children have accepted her for what she is - a talented young lady - and provided me with the opportunity of explaining to them about people less fortunate than them. ;)

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I think what CH5 are doing is really great but he is going to be on at a time when most people are out, would be very bold of them indeed if they had put him on at 5.00pm my favourate CH 5 newsreader was Helen Fospero.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I'm afraid some people in this world will not be budged on their viewpoint, no matter what is presented to them. this may end up being a complete waste of time if those people only see their way as being correct.

aesthetics plays a big part in acceptance by individuals, and society as a whole. a pretty face is much more appeasing and can be related to more readily than a disfigured one, purely because of day to day exposure by average Joe, who is more likely to see pretty than heavily scarred.

personally, I think it is a good move by channel 5, but I fear it will progress no further than this apparent week-long PR stunt as there are too many people who are so tunnel-visioned and wallow in their own belief system that they will outrightly refuse to accept anything different that does not concur with their own utopia. which is a shame. they may learn something about others and themselves if they dared to welcome new and different things.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I don't trust Ch5's motives in this but if it gains more acceptance in media for people who look different from the mainstream then it's a good thing.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I too would be sceptical about their motives. I wonder how this was conceived.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

I would support this if i thought for one second it would achieve something but sorry it won't. Why simple because most people cannot and will not understand his position or imagine themselves in it, they never do till it personally affects them. Also doing it for a week why so if it goes wrong they can quietly back away from it so if they were really interested in the stated agenda then hire someone permanently. Pr stunt for a channel that wants more viewers at a certain time and they will get them even if it is only the people out there looking for something to complain and these days in the UK there is plenty of them.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

It's a start.

It's those attitudes we have to change. It won't be a quick process, but hopefully this (and featuring other presenters who don't quite fit in with our ideas of acceptable TV presenters) will help.

I have to admit, I may have sounded a little anti-five in my previous reply in this thread. That wasn't the intention. The intention was to highlight the fact that the media in general (not five specifically) has been putting ever more "pretty" people on our screens..

I think the fact the five is doing this is good. OK, so it's only for a week, but it's a start. Maybe they are just trying to avoid the problems the BBC had.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

Why only a week though and why are they scared of the so-called problems the BBC had? If they were serious about this, they would contract the newsreader and have him on permanently. I enjoy seeing Cerrie on the screen and she is is very competent at the job. I just find it reprehensible the things that were said about her and I applaud the BBC for ignoring them. I don't have the same confidence with Channel Five I'm afraid. Perhaps that's the cynic in me, borne by the fact they call this "an experiment." But hey, that's just me.

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

The problem for Five is simple. If they suffer problems, advertisers may back away from the channel (nothing scares advertisers away like even the slightest whiff of bad publicity). This isn't a problem with the Beeb (thanks to the licence, they have a guaranteed income), but for any commercial channel, it can be fatal. This may be why they are being a little more cautious than the beeb were.

Now, I don't personally see why they should have problems, but then I have a simple view of which people are suitable for a job. Assuming they are capable of doing a job (or learning how to do it), they should be given the chance to do it regardless of race, sexuality, gender, disfigurement or any disability. I try to see the person and not their race, sexuality, gender, disfigurement or disability..

Re: Disfigured newsreader for Five
 

:clap: