This Is New Zealand On Air?

A complaint has been upheld against TVNZ Breakfast presenter Paul Henry for his despicable, overgrown frat-boy style demeaning of a guest on national television.

But what was the substance of the reprimand?

Henry had been spoken to and told on-air editorial decisions were not his to make and that he must adhere to the executive producer's decisions.

TVNZ had met with senior Breakfast staff to insist on the need for more care and discretion around editorial decisions about what the programme covered.

So, nothing along the lines of: 'stop being such an immature asshole if you want to have a job', or even more pertinently, 'for crying out loud, learn to show some basic human decency', then? Rather, the corrective lesson is obey your manager.

Compare and contrast: on the one hand, an internationally-renowned scientist with over 25 years of public service, summarily dismissed for commenting on his area of expertise. On the other, a monumental dickhead, an embarrassment to what remains a publicly-owned organisation, slapped on the wrist for not following procedure.

What was that about wanting to retain our best and brightest?