Kyle Sandilands is under investigation following comments he made on air on his 2DayFM show in April, regarding a disabled child.
“I can confirm that an investigation is underway,” spokeswoman for The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), Emma Rossi said on Tuesday, according to Fairfax newspapers.
The radio host referred to a Pakistani baby born with extra limbs as a “spider baby”.
Southern Cross Austereo (SCA), 2Day FM’s parent company, have made the following comment on the inquiry: “We are aware that ACMA is investigating these comments and we will submit our response as required. We do not believe there is any substance to the complaints.”
Earlier this year, ACMA launched a two-month investigation after Sandilands called a female journalist a “fat slag” and threatened to “hunt her down” on his 2Day FM radio segment The Kyle and Jackie O show.
The media watchdog announced on May 16 it has imposed stricter licence conditions on the station, prohibiting the broadcast of any content that “offends generally accepted standards of decency”.
ACMA said the licence requirement would stand for five years and applied to the entire station, not just content broadcast by Sandilands. ACMA chairman Chris Chapman said the sanction handed down on Wednesday provided a more wide-ranging licence requirement.
“The authority felt that this was the tightest licence condition that can be imposed on this licensee concerning matters of decency,” he said in a statement.
In response, SCA said the company was looking at its options following the ruling.
“SCA finds the decision broad-reaching and its lengthy term unprecedented,” CEO Rhys Holleran said in a statement.
The station can appeal the decision, which would take the matter to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Sandilands’ remarks prompted a number of sponsors and advertisers – including Jenny Craig, Coles, Bunnings and Vodafone – to withdraw their support from 2Day FM.
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