Triple M reassures staff after Barry Hall’s vulgar on-air comment

TRIPLE M has sent an internal memo in a bid to reassure staff about its standards as the fallout from Barry Hall’s appalling on-air comments continues.

TRIPLE M has sent an internal memo in a bid to reassure staff about its standards as the fallout from Barry Hall’s appalling on-air comments continues.

Hall was sacked for making a vulgar joke about a pregnancy procedure, with the station sacking him over the comments at the weekend. Mike Fitzpatrick, the network’s head of content, wrote of his disappointment in an email to staff, which was seen by the Herald Sun.

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“Barry Hall was on the commentating team and he made an unacceptable comment about a fellow commentator, Leigh Montagna’s, wife,” Mr Fitzpatrick’s email said.

“On hearing the comment, we immediately suspended Barry Hall from calling the game and promptly terminated his contract with Triple M.

“We are extremely disappointed that this incident happened and we have chosen not to speak further publicly out of respect for Leigh’s wife.

“I’d like you to know that this is not a standard we accept at Triple M and we will be reinforcing our expectations regarding the standards we require from everyone who represents the station.

“Just because we are a male-targeted brand, does not mean language and discussions of this nature are acceptable on or off the air.

“Triple M has an opportunity to authentically speak to men, not take a step backwards.”

Mr Fitzpatrick invited the CEO of women’s group Our Watch to tune into Triple M on Monday to hear broadcaster and commentator Meshel Laurie discuss the issue with fill-in breakfast hosts Anthony “Lehmo” Lehmann, Seb Costello and Paul Roos.

Laurie said Hall’s offensive comment to his sidekicks Montagna, Mark Howard, Damian Barrett and Nathan Brown was “an unguarded moment”.

She said Hall’s off-colour remark was “a normal joke that would’ve been heard at any barbecue around the country”.

But she warned: “To my ears, that was a joke about sexual assault and I don’t think that Barry knew that.

“To me, it was a joke about a doctor taking advantage of a woman.

“The thought of something like that happening to us is really scary and horrible …

“We need to educate people that it’s inappropriate.”

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