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TELEVISION

Swiss TV pulls plug on Olympic closing gig

Switzerland’s national TV network, SF, received an earful of complaints after the broadcaster pulled the plug on coverage of the closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympic Games before the event ended.

Published: 13 August 2012 10:35 CEST
Swiss TV pulls plug on Olympic closing gig
Photo: Matt Deegan

SF switched to advertising before the ceremonies ended shortly after 1am.

As a result Swiss viewers missed a performance by British group Take That and the extinguishing of the Olympic flame.

The move unleashed a torrent of comments on Twitter from people upset about missing the last moments of the historic sporting event.

“That’s impossible!” tweeted Mark Gillies, editorial director at Tele Züri, who noted that the event was live.

“We are speechless.”

On Monday morning, SF’s customer service department issued an apology for the premature ending of the broadcast.

The finale followed a disappointing Olympics for Switzerland, brightened by gold medals from equestrian athlete Steve Guerdat in show jumping and Nicola Spirig in the women’s triathlon.

Roger Federer, a favorite to win gold in the men’s singles tennis tournament, had to settle for silver after losing to Britain’s Andy Murray in the final.

The match was a replay of last month’s Wimbledon final that Basel native Federer handily won.

Guerdat received a hero’s welcome when he returned to Switzerland late last week to a boisterous reception at the Zurich International Airport.

Spirig is also being hailed as a national sports icon after her dramatic photo-finish win in the triathlon on August 4th.

Over the weekend, the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that Swedish triathlete Lisa Norden would not be awarded a joint gold medal with Spirig.

The tribunal denied an appeal made by Sweden after the two athletes finished with identical times of one hour 59 minutes 48 seconds.

Spirig was given the nod for first place in a "field of play decision" by officials who ruled that her torso breasted the tape ahead of the Swede.

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TELEVISION

Norwegian reality show introduces sexual consent rule for contestants

The latest series of Paradise Hotel in Norway has introduced an on-screen consent requirement for contestants planning on having sexual contact following allegations of abuse on the Swedish version of the show.

Published: 21 September 2021 11:55 CEST
Norwegian reality show introduces sexual consent rule for contestants
The show has introduced on-screen consent requirements. Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Contestants in the latest series of Paradise Hotel, which aired on Monday night, will require contestants to demonstrate on-screen with a thumbs up to the camera that they consent to any sexual activity.

“We were told from day one that if we were to have sex, we had to consent with a thumbs up to the camera from both parties,” Stian Trulsen, a contestant on the hit reality series, told newspaper VG. 

Earlier this year, it was alleged that a male contestant abused two female participants on the Swedish edition of the show. Swedish prosecuting authorities are investigating the alleged abuse. 

Christian Meinseth, program manager for production company Nent which makes the show, said the new rules weren’t directly introduced because of what happened on the Swedish programme. 

“No, but we have, of course, worked with the series and looked at our practices around the format, so we ensure that Paradise Hotel is both a good watch and fun to be a participant in,” Meinseth told VG. 

“We are very concerned about the participants’ safety, and we have not had any challenges around the new rules,” Meinseth added. 

The program manager added that the production company wanted the show to reflect a more modern approach to sex. 

“At the same time, we are also careful to monitor language use and how the participants describe each other. Everyone should show respect for each other, and there will be more focus on the game itself. Viewers can look forward to an exciting and entertaining season,” he said. 

The 15th season of the show, which has been on Norwegian tv screens since 2009, will also include a “paradise talents” week where there is a focus on inner values as part of several on-screen and off-screen measures to try and promote more healthy sexual relationships.

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