Jeremy Kyle

[julian_craster]

From The Times

September 25, 2007



The judge, the daytime chat show and a case of ‘human bear-baiting’



Adam Sherwin, Media Correspondent



The judge, the daytime chat show and a case of ‘human bear-baiting’ - Times Online

Britain’s most popular daytime talk show was condemned as a human form of bear-baiting by a judge yesterday after a husband was provoked into attacking his wife’s lover in front of a studio audience.

David Staniforth, a security guard, brought the ITV1 Jeremy Kyle Show to a halt when he headbutted Larry Mahoney, a bus driver, on stage. His former friend had had an affair with his wife of 26 years after moving into their home as a lodger. Mahoney was left with blood pouring out of his nose.

Staniforth, 45, claimed that he lashed out because he had become emotional at seeing his wife again and was furious at seeing Mr Mahoney, 39. He also cited criticism from Mr Kyle during filming at the Granada studios in Manchester as provocation.

The show specialises in confrontations between love rivals and warring families. It was seen by about 1.5 million viewers, but the attack was edited out. Mr Mahoney contacted the police and Staniforth was arrested. He admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm but was spared jail after the judge said the producers of the show should have been in the dock too.

Alan Berg, the district judge in Manchester, said: “The circumstances of this case are exceptional and the provocation involved seems to be paramount. I have had the misfortune of viewing The Jeremy Kyle Show and I feel bound to make some observations.

“It seems to me that the whole purpose of the show is to effect a morbid and depressing display of dysfunctional people who are in some kind of turmoil. It is for no more and no less than titillating members of the public who have nothing better to do with their mornings than sit and watch this show, which is a human form of bear-baiting under the guise of entertainment. The people responsible for this, namely the producers, should in my opinion be in the dock with you, Mr Staniforth.”

Staniforth was fined £300, plus £60 costs. The judge said: “These are wholly exceptional circumstances and the degree of provocation was so substantial that I propose to deal with you in an exceptional way. Violence can never be excused but there was no serious injury caused to the victim and some people may say that this was justice – although I would not put that forward.”

Gareth Hughes, for the prosecution, said: “Mr Mahoney walked towards Staniforth, who got off his chair and there was a brief argument. All of a sudden and without warning Staniforth headbutted the victim in the face, causing his nose to bleed.”

A video of the incident showed Mr Kyle shouting at Staniforth to get off stage and telling the guests to be calm as security staff rushed on the stage.

Staniforth, a father of two, told the court that the producers had called his wife and daughter to persuade him to go on the show. He had repeatedly tried to meet his wife of 26 years since their split but she refused. This was the first time he had seen his wife or

“ Mr Mahoney since they left the family home. He said: “I feel totally manipulated by the producers who took advantage of the fact I wanted to see my ex to find out what was going on. Jeremy was having a go at me. He was getting me in a state. I would warn anyone to steer clear of these programmes. They aim to provoke you: that is what they are there for.

“While I was out working my guts out on a night shift to pay the mortgage my wife was at home in bed with the lodger. When Larry came out I had no intention of getting up but he started pointing at me and shouting and before I knew it I was on my feet and I headbutted him.”

Broadcasting rules state that television shows must not place participants at risk of violence. Ofcom could not take action because the attack was not broadcast. ITV said that guests were always told from the outset who else would be on the show. “The aim was to help everyone resolve their preexisting conflict.The programme never encourages or tolerates violence.”

Deadly precedents

–– In 1995 Scott Amedure told his friend Jonathan Schmitz on America’s Jenny Jones Show that he had a crush on him. Three days later Schmitz shot him dead

–– In 2000, Nancy Campbell Panitz was beaten to death by her exhusband hours after appearing on the Jerry Springer Show

–– Springer’s guests sign waivers accepting responsibility for whatever happens. He said: “If there’s going to be a surprise, the guests are always told”

The Kyle phenomenon

–– The Jeremy Kyle Show attracts almost a third of viewers between 9.30am and 10.30am

–– Kyle, 42, was poached from Capital Radio, where his live call-ins on relationship issues were a hit. His ITV show replaced Trisha

–– The show’s most popular topics are addiction, out-of-control teens, abuse and infidelity

–– Guests are offered help from a psychologist

–– One guest on the talk show threw a chair at Kyle

–– ITV is expected to offer him a £1 million deal to secure his future

–– He has been spoofed on the BBC comedy show Dead Ringers

–– A current appeal for guests asks: “Are you a mother who is desperate to find out who the father of your child is? Do you need a DNA test?”



Source: Times database

[faginsgirl]

Sorry to lower the tone with this post, but I have been wondering.......



Why does our society feel the need to air dirty washing in public? I mean lets face it, how the bleep do you venture back home and face your neighbours after THAT?!!!!! Who rings up these shows and says I have a problem I`d like to share with 3 million people ?



Who turns to another person in an arguement and says `RIGHT I`VE HAD ENOUGH......I`m taking you on the Trisha show:!!!!!!!!!!`



I DO happen to believe that some people who have lost a love one through terrible circumstances share thier stories so that these things dont happen again. BUT why do other people do it? To be the centre of attention for a while? To be famous in thier neighbourhood or just for a chav laugh?



ANOTHER thing, speaking of chavs, 90 perc of these people dont even bother to dress up for t.v, they come on in the scruffiest clothes and track suits etc



And I dunno how we managed in the past without lie detector tests

Does our society generally not care about self respect anymore?



I read that people like to watch these programmes as curtain twitching because there is no community anymore as in the past so we get our gossip by watching these shows!



Fagins girl xx

[Marky B]

name='faginsgirl']Sorry to lower the tone with this post, but I have been wondering.......



Why does our society feel the need to air dirty washing in public? I mean lets face it, how the bleep do you venture back home and face your neighbours after THAT?!!!!! Who rings up these shows and says I have a problem I`d like to share with 3 million people ?



Who turns to another person in an arguement and says `RIGHT I`VE HAD ENOUGH......I`m taking you on the Trisha show:!!!!!!!!!!`



I DO happen to believe that some people who have lost a love one through terrible circumstances share thier stories so that these things dont happen again. BUT why do other people do it? To be the centre of attention for a while? To be famous in thier neighbourhood or just for a chav laugh?



ANOTHER thing, speaking of chavs, 90 perc of these people dont even bother to dress up for t.v, they come on in the scruffiest clothes and track suits etc



And I dunno how we managed in the past without lie detector tests

Does our society generally not care about self respect anymore?



I read that people like to watch these programmes as curtain twitching because there is no community anymore as in the past so we get our gossip by watching these shows!



Fagins girl xx

It's trash tv,thanks to Jerry Springer.

Ta Ta

Marky B

[CaptainWaggett]

The only one I've ever seen is Jeremy Kyle which is always on in my doctor's waiting room though I am always called in before I find out which brother is having an affair with his cross-dressing nephew. However I thought this interview with Trisha in today's Guardian was quite interesting.

Are shows like yours and Jeremy Kyle's "human bear-baiting"?



Jeremy Kyle comes from a totally different angle. I have two or three pages [of notes] on each guest, and a psychological profile on all of them. I do a lot of assessing. We have three qualified counsellors, and often we work with the guest for much longer than goes on air. I understand that Mr Kyle has a card - that's all he gets. He doesn't know what a person's upbringing was. I can tell when I watch his guests, and he is calling someone a slut and a sleeparound. I never label the person. My thing is conflict resolution.

She may be talking bo****ks though.

[batman]

name='CaptainWaggett'] However I thought this interview with Trisha in today's Guardian was quite interesting.



She may be talking bo****ks though.

Tricia used to go to the same gym as me. She used to talk bollocks whilst there, so I wasn't surprised to see that her interview is full of bollocks as well.

[Dame Starry]

name='batman']Tricia used to go to the same gym as me. She used to talk bollocks whilst there, so I wasn't surprised to see that her interview is full of bollocks as well.

Every one of these 'presenters' (I use the word very loosely) are self-opinionated and patronising in the extreme.



I wouldn't waste the electricity watching them or the energy reading their interviews either.



DS x.

[Steve Crook]

I thought Jennifer Saunders caught them all very well in The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle. No matter how much they pretend to do so, the only thing the presenters and producers of such trash TV are interested in are the ratings and the awards they give each other.



Steve

[Dame Starry]

name='Steve Crook']I thought Jennifer Saunders caught them all very well in The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle. No matter how much they pretend to do so, the only thing the presenters and producers of such trash TV are interested in are the ratings and the awards they give each other.



Steve

Ab-so-lutely spot on, Steve!



DS x.

[batman]

YouTube - Vivienne Vyle

[Carmel]

Jeremy Kyle has a cheek to lecture anyone on rights and wrongs when it was in the newspaper not so long ago he tried to seduce a 16 year old girl. Another thing anyone that lowers themselves to air their dirty laundry in public like that are from the dregs of society.

[julian_craster]

I was amused to read that Einstein Trisha doesn't that that there is anybody in Norfolk (the neighbours in her village) of her intellectual calibre......the show is taped in Norwich !

[DB7]

It's a horrid human bear pit hosted by a self-righteous prick that only abuses his guests because there's a few bouncers ready to leap to his rescue. I've no idea why some people put themselves through it, I do know of a local women that went on it twice as an audience member and once as a guest; maybe some get a kick out of the infamy of washing their dirty linen in public? For others, the unemployed etc, maybe it's the attraction of a free DNA test? As for those that require a lie detector, if there's little trust in your relationship it's probably ultimately screwed.

[batman]

name='julian_craster']I was amused to read that Einstein Trisha doesn't that that there is anybody in Norfolk (the neighbours in her village) of her intellectual calibre......the show is taped in Norwich !

She used to lord it (lady it?) over all and sundry at the gym, real prima donna stuff. She used to come out with the most ridiculous guff about any subject. If her pronouncements are a measure of her own intellectual calibre she is probably right about us in Norfolk not being of that same cailbre...... we are all much smarter than she is!

[geeoro]

These tv "shows" make us realise that we haven't moved on from Roman Times. This is our Gladiators Arena. We want to watch the slaves being thrown to the Lions. This is our form of public hanging. This "reality" culture that we now have is pathetic. We are turning into a culture of "nosey neighbours". Is this what we are teaching our children. Do something stupid or horrific and you can be a "star".

[faginsgirl]

I always imagine in ten years time with these `whos the daddy shows`, these desperate sad people playing back the show to the kid in question as they will probably be proud of BEING ONTHE TELLLLLYYYY!



Oh those poor kids, screwed up from an early age! God help them!



`Look Romeo Grapefruit, this is what mum and dad did when we were courting`!

[faginsgirl]

name='geeoro']These tv "shows" make us realise that we haven't moved on from Roman Times. This is our Gladiators Arena. We want to watch the slaves being thrown to the Lions. This is our form of public hanging. This "reality" culture that we now have is pathetic. We are turning into a culture of "nosey neighbours". Is this what we are teaching our children. Do something stupid or horrific and you can be a "star".

It has been reported by teachers that some kids in the classroom have said that they didnt need to do the given subject as when they leave school they are just gonna go on Big Brother and be famous!

[Marky B]

name='geeoro']These tv "shows" make us realise that we haven't moved on from Roman Times. This is our Gladiators Arena. We want to watch the slaves being thrown to the Lions. This is our form of public hanging. This "reality" culture that we now have is pathetic. We are turning into a culture of "nosey neighbours". Is this what we are teaching our children. Do something stupid or horrific and you can be a "star".

Very good point,geeoro!

Ta Ta

Marky B

[geeoro]

So true Faginsgirl. When you look at the money now being earned by talentless, wittless, ignorant people without a shred of talent, it makes you cringe. Our kids today want to be like these people. There are so many realy talented people out there, working themselves silly every week in clubs, pubs etc, with no recognition. If they went on a reality show and made a fool of themselves they could be "superstars". Don't the kids realise that the real money is being made by the people who are behind the shows and they are being exploited.

[Carmel]

Its sad that these kids have been brought up to think this is the right thing to do, to air your dirty laundry in public, sleep with someone on television ie: Big Brother. Who knows in time brothers and sisters will marry and have children never knowing who their real parents are because so many women know have children to different people. There's a girl that comes to a clinic that i do that has 5 children to 4 fathers and she cant even remember the name of the father from the last child, she was drunk, god help the next generation with people like this about. where are family values now.

[Dame Starry]

name='Carmel'] There's a girl that comes to a clinic that i do that has 5 children to 4 fathers and she cant even remember the name of the father from the last child, she was drunk

It's not Ulrika is it, Carmel? You can tell us you know - it won't go any further............



DS x.