National AM station talkSPORT are in trouble with Ofcom for the second time in a month, after a promotional trailer featuring the phrase “mother-crushers” was found to be in breach of the regulator’s rules.
Two listeners believed they had instead heard the phrase “mother-fuckers” during a trail which was broadcast during Jon Gaunt’s show.
The station believed a phrase such as “mother-crushers” was nonsensical, and broadcasting it would be unlikely to cause offense, citing a dubbed tv broadcast of Beverly Hills Cop where the term was used to dub over the phrase “mother-fuckers”.
In their latest broadcast bulletin Ofcom upheld the complaints, on the basis that such a phrase in context could still cause offense, because the phrase was intended to have a similar impact to the offensive term itself.
Last month presenter George Galloway was criticised by Ofcom for attacking a potential political opponent on talkSPORT. The regulator said Galloway used his position as a radio presenter to promote his own possible candidacy in a parliamentary seat, without giving opponents an opportunity to respond.