Just to follow up on revelation yesterday about Neil Mitchell, he was seen on 7 News and 
Today Tonight pumping his own tyres and then Neil “Helen Lovejoy” Mitchell wrote in the Heraldv Sun asking us to “Will someone please think of the children?” It was enough to make me write to Mr Mitchell (or is that Lovejoy). Here is the letter:
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From: Phillip Malone [mailto:mollyfud@gmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, 30 August 2007 10:36 AM
To: nmitchell@3aw.com.au
Cc: mollyfud@gmail.com; sportstoady@3aw.com.au; dhoward@seven.com.au; jsmith@3aw.com.au; slbradford@3aw.com.au
Subject: Main game is our kids and the Drug story Debate.
Hi Neil,
Long time listener first time writer. I can’t how you are reporting this issue especially with the conflicting arguments you are making in the article you wrote in the Herald Sun. In it you argue the Kids are important that because of the AFL players taking drugs that kids are talking about taking drugs. You then argue for the naming of players and public punishment. Interestingly (from my reading anyway) no were in the article do you mention that one of the priorities should be helping the players (some would argue in a lot of cases kids themselves).
You also interestingly use this line:
“Sadly, at the moment some of them are endorsing illegal, insidious and potentially fatal products that are cooked up in some crook’s drug lab.”
Wow! Such power in those words yet, so inaccurate! Unless I missed it, I have never seen a player on an ad promoting drugs. They don’t seem to be the ones that are bringing up the issue at press conferences, to me that seems to be the media! In fact if your issue (as you state) is to protect the kids from hiding out about drugs and the AFL players use of them, I don’t see how naming and shaming players is going to solve that argument. In fact perhaps better and fairer reporting by the media would be a better remedy to keeping the kids safe from the message that AFL players are taking drugs.
Also while I am writing to you I want to touch on your strong defence of Channel 7 and ask why? You do mention that they have done the wrong thing yet let them off with a “little scamps” type rub of the head, saying they should do better! Why would you do this? Then I hear that you are on 7’s Sunrise program flaring up the debate (at a time I am sure kids are around the TV while getting ready for school). Then last night I see you on the News and Today Tonight (channel 7’s alleged “Current Affairs” show (the quotes on Current Affairs are there for a good reason)) . A little search of the 3aw site shows, shock horror that you have a commercial arrangement with channel 7! Now in all the clips on the 3AW website and on the 7 news and TT no mention is made that you are a paid employee of Channel 7. Don’t you think this is important information when defending to the hilt there telling of the story?
Now I am not trying to say that this is the main reason that you are making the argument that you are any more then I really believe you think the main problem is the kids finding out (The kids argument makes you sound a little like Helen Lovejoy from the Simpsons). I put your main motivation down to the almighty ratings!
Now on other matters. I am inter
ested that your having a go at the AFL (including Andrew Demetriou) and the AFLPA for being the “arbiter of journalistic standards” yet your not having a go at chief Commissioner Christine Nixon, Premier John Brumby, Eddie McGuire just to name a few that agree with the AFL’s point of view on the deplorable nature of Sevens report. You say that it brought new evidence to light but apart for naming the club, it didn’t. The AFL have published the number of players testing positive to drugs so this is not new information and would have been published (except for the club which if you agree (as you have stated) that you don’t want the players named, you must agree that naming the club is also wrong) in the fullness of time anyway.
Also back to your playing of a clip with Andrew Demetriou that also noticed was played in the puff piece on Today Tonight, you failed to set up correctly that Andrews beef was as much for Dylan Howard’s lying by in an interview with Tim Watson on Seven that went Live to the Ground and a number of states (and that was blocked out in the delayed coverage in Victoria from what I could tell) that the AFL supported 7’s running of the story. This is a huge omission and changes the whole context of the story. I bet if someone did that to you, you would go right off!
Also laughed when they compared the handling of Ben Cousins to Wendle Sailor and saying that the ARU is handling drugs tougher then the AFL. I hope someone as educated as your good self would know better then believe this. I am sure when you discussed this with the TT people you would have pointed out that if Ben Cousins was caught in the same situation that Sailor was, he would have been given the same punishment as the AFL also signs up the WADA drug code to which Sailor fell guilty too! I also would have thought you would have pointed out that if sailor was doing what the players where doing that where reported on last Friday that he wouldn’t even been tested let alone given the support of his Club, Union (AFLPA) and competition that he is in to recover and beat this terrible problem that conflicts our community.
So in conclusion, if you are truly worried about the kids and the glorification of drugs amongst AFL footballers perhaps you can take advice from another man that has had a checked past in the last few years but did make a great point when he sang “Start by looking at the man in the mirror, ask him to change his ways” as it is the media that is glorifying drugs not the players!
Thanks for you time.
Phillip Molly Malonehttp://afl.mollyzine.com
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http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22324140-25717,00.html.
You know your going bad when even Andrew Bolt is giving you a kick!
Molly
Looks like I am not the only one that thinks Neil is wrong on this one:
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22324140-25717,00.html.
You know your going bad when even Andrew Bolt is giving you a kick!
Molly