News At Six's very own golden couple of news.
Please welcome the magnificent
Miss Helen Norville and Mr Dale Jennings.
Geoff, Saturday's the first time
that you'll be in direct competition
with your former colleagues at the News At Six.
With Kay back from London, I'll be doing all the favourites.
People say I'm a bit like Keating, actually,
just a sort of, uh... certain gravitas or something.
I thought you wanted to start telling the office post-election.
Well, not the very next day.
You've maintained a dignified silence.
It's time the truth about her emerged.
Helen...
It's just she's so shrill and aggressive.
I reckon we give her a couple of months to pull it in.
If she can't...
we talk replacements.
My father was a print newsman.
To him, a broadsheet under one arm
was the mark of the refined gentleman.
Hear, hear.
To me, it was like a wall that he put up every morning at breakfast.
Oh. Mm.
See, TV news is not like that. Not anymore.
Television...
is for the whole family.
So, I'd like to propose a toast
to the News At Six family.
To us. Cheers to you all. News At Six family.
News At Six. To us.
- Welcome. - Cheers.
Which brings me to the main event. Marta, if you wouldn't mind.
Here we go.
Drum roll, please, Robert. Ah.
Well done, son.
Hey! Yeah! There you go!
That's another promo.
Nice. Yeah. Our biggest yet.
Especially for the '88 bicentennial.
Yes. 1988. Yep.
The year Australia is gonna chuck itself a year-long birthday party.
How good? Mm.
We are going to be central to Bicentennial Cup.
Actually, we're gonna BE the bicentennial.
That's right, we are. We are going to be the bicentennial.
That's completely right. And, Dale, you will be covering the pageantry.
Now, mate, if it floats, flies or flounces, it's for you.
You'll be all over it like a rash, mate.
And, Helen,
you'll be covering Prince Charles and Princess Diana, of course.
- Oh, come on. - Oh, come on yourself.
It's a major international event
and they're major international celebrities.
And speaking of international celebrities,
we welcome the newest member to the News At Six team.
Gerry. Hey! Good to have you, mate.
Now, you will be in charge of the international perspective.
You will be doing a shitload of
satellite interviews all over the world.
And some of the guests we've got lined up for you, Gerry,
they are top shelf.
We've got Jackie Collins, Joan Collins, Barbara Cartland.
Uh... Mel Gibson... our Mel.
- That's good. - Zsa Zsa Gabor.
Zsa Zsa Gabor,
Cliff Richard and Danny La Rue.
And it's gonna be called...
Celebrity...
Smorgasbord.
Bloody good, though, right?
So, is this gonna be the whole year
or just the days leading up to the event?
All... year...
- long. - Actually it's gonna start in December.
Of course. December. Hence the promo.
What we want is, when you sweep over to us,
we want to feel it coming home.
Yeah.
Mm.
What about the Aboriginal perspective?
Well... Uh...
I didn't check.
And, uh...
Ernie Dingo was taken, so...
Well, we have the... the Irish comedian perspective,
but we can't have a single Aboriginal person?
Oh, come on!
Helen, honestly, look,
Ernie Dingos... they don't grow on trees.
Come on. Come on. Don't worry about them, alright?
We don't need them.
We've got the team here to cover all the bases.
Come on, Helen. Mm!
We've got the newsman, the sportsman, the comedian.
And a woman.
The perfect cross-section of Australia.
Yes. The faces of a nation, right?
Actually, that's bloody beautiful.
Um... You might wanna write that down.
I don't think anyone at this table is gonna forget that one, Charlie.
'A' or 'the'?
'A'. "Of a."
"Of a." "Of a." Yep.
Mm. That's good.
- Synced and corrected by naFraC - - www.addic7ed.com -
I am not gonna go trawling up and down the East Coast
- looking at fucking dresses. - Oh, yes, you are.
And you're gonna do it with your lovely Helen Norville smile
because, if you don't, little Chuck's gonna turf you out.
Me or you?
- Excuse me, sir. - I've got a drink, thanks.
- No, there's a telephone call for you. - What do you want?
- It's the newsroom. - Oh, my God.
I've got some deeply distressing news.
Charlie Tate has a double jacuzzi in his en suite.
- What? - Yeah.
And a two-metre-wide chandelier down that hallway.
He does get a lot of things imported.
Um...
I've got a little source in Charlie's office.
Last week, I took a look at some audience testing.
You're getting very promising audience scores.
Do you have a copy?
No.
But I can say you're almost at 30, on par with Helen,
which is astonishing after only a year.
You're cited as...
'trustworthy' and 'consistent'.
Were there negatives?
Oh, yeah, but everyone gets negatives.
What are they?
'Robotic' and 'stiff'.
Uh... Right, there's been a shooting.
There's gunmen in... in Clifton Hill.
- What? - Clifton Hill?
Dennis said first shots were reported 15 minutes ago
and they're firing into traffic.
- Are we breaking into... - Can I use this phone?
There's little information,
- there's no footage. - That's fine. Dale?
You're going in blind. I'm just gonna...
We should avoid Plunkett and Hoddle.
They'd have closed those roads off.
Come on, Noels. Pick up. Pick up.
Pick up.
G'day. You've reached Rob...
Shit!
Thank you, Charlie.
- Thanks for having me. - No worries, mate.
Dennis!
Dennis! Who have we got at the scene?
Brian and Ross. I sent them straight there.
How many shooters are there?
Well, the cops reckon there's at least two.
What? They don't actually know?
Well, it could be a gang from the sound of it.
Locals are calling us non-stop. They reckon Hoddle Street's a war zone.
- When are we gonna get some footage? - I don't know.
Even without footage, we've got enough for a three-minute brief.
More if we cover recent shootings.
Yeah. I mean, people who want the information sit at the phones.
We can be on the desk in 10.
Reports of shootings have emerged.
Several civilians have reportedly been hit
with the total number of casualties unknown, as ambulances await...
No, no. Sorry, mate, this road's closed.
Agh!
Shots fired. Shots fired.
Back into your car! Sir, get back into your car!
We need back up.
- Shit! - Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
- Sorry, mate! Sorry! - You right there?
- Sorry! - Get out of here. You can't be here.
Noels!
Noelene!
Fuck me!
So, how many casualties are there?
None confirmed yet, but reports say there's a few.
- Is the gunman still at large? - Yes, and still armed.
One just fired at a police helicopter.
10 seconds!
And six!
Five!
Four!
Good evening. I'm Helen Norville.
And I'm Dale Jennings.
We interrupt our programming
with breaking news from the heart of Melbourne
as terror unfolds on a Clifton Hill street.
Sustained gunfire on Hoddle Street.
Witness accounts described an armed gunman firing indiscriminately
into passing traffic.
There are reports of multiple casualties,
but no confirmed death toll at this stage.
It's also unclear as yet how many perpetrators...
Noels, have you contacted St Vincent's Hospital yet?
- Um... Not yet, but I will hurry up. - Police are advising stay inside
and motorists to avoid the area entirely.
Our understanding is that the shooter or shooters
have fled the scene
but are still at large and heavily armed.
A manhunt is currently underway.
The timing of police-radio reports
suggest Hoddle Street endured heavy gunfire
for approximately 45 minutes.
Dale? Dale. Dale.
Murray's in. They've got the footage.
We're just about to go through the tapes.
- OK. So, this would be what time? - This is when we first got there.
It was just before you could hear the helicopters, so...
It was 9:45 when the initial gunfire died down.
- That's when I left to head here. - Yeah, right.
Wait, I thought you lived out in Burwood?
I was... visiting a friend.
OK, so, now we're moving up the scene.
Shooters had already split, but we got the smashed-up cars, the ambos.
OK, so, you guys were the only crew out there?
- Yeah. For ages. - Yeah, right. Bloody heroes, eh?
First on the scene.
Is that a dead body?
Yeah, they just left him there.
Am I cutting around that or...
No, I mean, we should keep it, right?
- What? - He's in every second shot.
Yeah, because no-one fucking moved him for hours.
Yeah, Jean, is Lindsay... Yeah. Alright. Thanks.
We're not showing dead bodies.
We can show dead bodies, man. We've shown dead bodies before.
That Beirut footage was worse than this. Vietnam definitely.
- On a Melbourne street? - So, it's OK to show overseas bodies
- but not local ones? - We can just stay on the wider shot.
- Alright, what have you got? - A shot of a body.
Ooh. Body.
Right, if we're gonna make the hour, we've got to hurry up.
So, Lindsay, what do you reckon?
Um...
We're the only network with these images?
Mm-hm.
Run the bloody things in with a big graphic...
"First on the scene."
I can't cut a story in 15 minutes.
No, you just use the raw footage and we'll talk over it.
Oh...
Come on, let's go, man.
- 15 minutes. Hurry up. - Alright, alright, alright.
Do you wanna do this together?
I don't think rolling raw footage
just hours after the event has happened
- is a good idea. - Oh, Christ Almighty.
Hey, they've released the identity of the shooter.
- It's just the one? - Yeah. He's alive and in custody.
Oh, my God. He's just a kid.
Discharged from the army about a fortnight ago.
Also, the official death toll just hit six.
Alright, no, we both haven't slept. We're exhausted.
I think we should wait until the footage has been cut.
No, I'm going on now. You can do the edited version later.
And in six!
Five!
Four!
Good morning. I'm Helen Norville.
Police have now arrested a 19-year-old former military cadet
in the wake of last night's shooting spree,
which has left six confirmed dead
and another 18 people wounded.
News At Six was the first on the scene,
and we can now reveal exclusive footage of the aftermath.
We're now seeing Hoddle Street in the wake of the massacre.
They're airing the footage already.
They're the only ones airing footage.
Shattered glass.
Shocking reminders of a night of terror,
where motorists going about their lives were caught...
The kids wouldn't have left for school yet.
Yeah, I know.
If it bleeds, it leads.
None of the victims have yet been named.
But we do understand a formal identification process
is currently underway.
God.
And we're out!
It may be better to call the police or to...
- Bludging. - We do understand.
- I might need you to take this. - What do you mean?
I'm so sorry. Would you mind holding for just one moment?
I promise I'll be right back.
A family's called in. They're very distressed.
Well, just say we appreciate the call and we apologise.
They were watching the news
and they think they spotted their father's sedan in the footage.
Oh, not our footage?
They saw their father dead on television.
Oh, for...
_
- Jen, stop. - What's going on?
_
Anyway, I should make tracks.
Here, take some.
Oh, no, I can't, I can't, Mrs Kim, I'm driving, but, uh...
Gamsa hapnida.
Noels, can I have a quick word?
Mm.
They're still looking.
They're driving me around the bend.
Oh, they just want you safe.
Yeah, and I am. I am safe.
Yeah, I know. I know.
Hey, listen, um...
Dennis asked me today if we were a couple.
When?
Hey? Uh... This arvo. He just pulled me aside and said,
"Are you and Noelene an item?"
What did you say?
I said there was nothing going on.
Yeah, and what did he say after that?
I don't know, Noels, he... he didn't ask about it again.
He had a million things happening.
If you don't see us having a future together, just tell me.
- What? - Well, you never wanna tell anyone.
You know what's at stake for me if we tell the office and...
You didn't think your parents would be alright with it,
- and they came around. - They accept it,
but they haven't told our community or my family back in Korea.
Oh, brilliant. So, THEY think I'm bad for you too?
- No! I... - No.
No.
I'm just being cautious
because I care about us and I want to protect us.
Yeah, so do I.
I...
Look, maybe I'm just... it's catching up with me,
the lack of sleep or something, but I should go.
I'm afraid this is all we've got for tonight.
It's great. Thanks.
Mate, uh... I know you probably get this a lot,
but, uh...
you were a brilliant player.
Yeah.
I reckon the Saints could do with a few more guys like you.
Oh, thank you.
That's, uh... Anyway, listen, what do I owe you?
- Oh, 20 bucks. - 20 bucks?
20 for the night. Five extra for guests.
But, for you, I'll waive it.
- What? Oh, no, no. It's just me. - No, it's alright, mate.
We're very discreet.
OK, great. Good, good, good.
So, now, what do we have on the background on the shooter?
I think I found one of his old schoolmates.
She's pretty nervous to speak, but I think I can get her there.
Yes, do it. Do it, do it. Keep finding others. OK?
I wanna know everything about this guy...
childhood trauma, drugs, trouble getting laid.
OK? Anything that made this guy a bloody psycho.
I think that we should interview Stephen Bramhall.
- Who? - Gun lobbyist?
- Yeah. - Who, Noelene?
We interviewed him when they caught the Kimberley killer. Gun rights.
Yeah. Nearly every letter to the editor this morning
is about tightening gun control.
I think that there's about to be
a really big shift with gun legislation.
- In Victoria? - No, nationwide.
- Ha! Good luck with that. - This gun lobbyist is pro guns?
Yeah, he's... he's pro shooter.
Ah, I don't think we should putting a shooter on the desk right now.
I think now's exactly the time we should be doing that.
I mean, it's... it's making somebody answerable.
- Dennis! - Uh... In here.
OK, Helen, look, we'll just send a crew out.
No, I think we should do it on the desk live.
Right, we, uh...
We are softening our approach to Hoddle Street.
- What? - Last night a family rang in.
They recognised the body of their father in our footage.
They learned about his death by watching us.
That... That angle was so wide
there's no way that they'd be able to identify a...
Oh, shush up, Helen. Shush up.
They recognised the car.
I think we should apologise on the desk.
No, no. Christ, no, no, no.
We're dealing with this privately. I don't want this going public.
And no-one in this room wants this going public.
Jean is dealing with them directly.
I think maybe I should call the family personally and...
Oh, Christ, Helen, take a breath!
Honestly.
I mean, haven't YOU done enough already?
You are the last person
that should contact that poor, bloody family.
You were the one that signed off on that footage.
You see, now, I remember someone
that looks a lot like you running around the newsroom,
pointing to the phone, saying, "People want some information!"
Well, THEY'VE been giving US some information, Helen... complaints,
hundreds of them about our coverage...
too confronting...
but mostly they're complaints about you.
Too uncaring. Too abrasive.
Too cold! You!
OK, so, gun lobbyist off the table then, eh?
Tell me that's a fucking joke! If it's not, I'm strangling someone!
It was an interview. It wasn't gonna be traumatic.
It wasn't gonna be confronting.
- Jesus, Helen! - We have to talk about gun laws.
I think it's one thing to cover gun laws,
I think it's another thing to put a gun nut on the desk.
Dale, thank you. He is gone.
Alright, we are going to take
a gentler approach to this story, a softer approach.
We're going to be doing bios of the victims.
We're doing hero stories on the first people on the scene.
Mm. Orders from little Charlie?
Well, Helen, that's the way it's going to be tonight.
You didn't have to cut me down like that.
We should never have shown that footage.
I agree. OK? The footage was a mistake.
But to be fair, the police really should have told the family by then.
They will never get that image out of their heads.
Dale, I have been doing this much longer than you.
Now we can back away from confronting footage,
but we cannot back away from gun laws.
The whole country is on the brink of a colossal change,
and it is our job to report it.
And you really think the best way to do that
is by putting a gun lobbyist on the desk tonight?
I do.
I'll talk to Lindsay.
Great.
I can't tell you how much I appreciate this, Cheryl.
This event is so ill-timed.
No, it's good to have a distraction.
I can't listen to it anymore.
The details are just ghastly, aren't they?
Yeah, I had nightmares about it.
Hey!
In here, darling!
Promised she'd be here by 10:00.
Anyway, let's not talk about it anymore.
- Talk about what? - Hey.
The madness on the streets.
What?
The shooting spree in Clifton Hill.
Is this the first you've heard of it?
Your father dedicated his entire program to it.
I got rid of my telly.
What?!
That's all Scott and I ever did,
we just sat there every night getting square eyes.
Was it... I mean...
How many people...
Uh...
At least six dead and dozens wounded.
Jesus.
I must say, I was shocked at your coverage.
Airing a dead body on morning news.
I know.
Oh, and you wanna know the worst thing?
That man's family,
they saw it and they rang in.
What?!
Yeah. That's how they found out he was dead.
- That's awful. - Oh!
Goodness!
Oh, uh... look,
why don't you get started on Kay?
Mm.
What can I get you to drink?
Yeah, I'll have a white with three, please.
I'll just have a vodka, please.
Do you have to watch it?
I mean, can't you just stay in the make-up room?
Uh... Well, Helen does most of it,
so, I've got to be there for touch-ups.
Shit.
Yeah, I try and look away, but she describes it all.
I don't know how she does it. It's like it doesn't affect her.
Mm.
I'd be a mess if I had to talk about it all.
Yeah.
Sorry.
I know you're busy, but can I run something by you?
Sure.
It's a personal question.
Um...
I know that you and Dale are...
so, I thought you might be a good person to...
Rob and I are together.
Yeah.
Um... Hm...
We've tried to keep it quiet,
but now Dennis suspects,
and Rob wants to say something,
but I'm worried it would change things in the office,
how I'm seen.
Well, it will.
So, I guess you just have to ask yourself, "Is he really worth it?"
He is.
OK. Well, just be prepared for a lot of gossip, a lot of innuendo.
And they're gonna look at you like you're Rob's little girlfriend.
I'd recommend investing in a suit and stop dressing like a schoolgirl.
You're a producer now, Noelene.
Be assertive and stand your ground.
Anything else?
- No. - OK.
- Thank you, Helen. - Mm-hm.
A fellow Duntroon cadet described him as an immature boy
obsessed with fantasies...
Christ, I better not regret this, Dale.
... discipline required of a soldier -
a toxic combination that erupted into violence.
As the initial shock of Hoddle Street subsides,
the community now turns its gaze to gun legislation.
Joining us tonight is Stephen Bramhall,
chair of the Australasian Firearm Alliance.
- Stephen, welcome. - Thank you for having me.
Stephen, could you talk us through
the firearms used in the shooting on Sunday night?
Well, the thing you have to understand about those guns
is it's not unusual to have a spread of firearms like that.
The Mossberg pump-action shotgun
and the Ruger semi-automatic rifle...
farmers might typically use them to control vermin.
And, Dale, you're Bendigo stock, you'd know that.
And the third weapon?
It was another rifle, a Norinco M14.
And the Norinco is military-grade, correct?
Yes.
I assume he was qualified from his time in the Army Reserve.
And all three weapons were owned legally.
Well, the facts about the gunman
paints a portrait of a rather angry and volatile young man.
How was he able to gain a gun licence in the first place?
Well, Helen, psychological unfitness is hard to catch.
This is a man who scored 100% on the test for his licence
and who passed the psych evaluation
for Australia's finest military academy.
I mean, it does cause grave concern about Duntroon's screening process,
- don't you think? - Well, you'd have to ask them.
- He's a slippery bastard, isn't he? - It's good, it's good.
If there are calls to toughen firearm legislation, Stephen,
what restrictions would you welcome?
Mm. No, none of them.
Ah. But we've...
We've already tightened gun laws, and this still happened.
Restrictions just allow the state to better control its citizens.
Mm. So, you believe that civilians
should be able to just walk around with military-grade weapons,
- even if that means something like... - No, no, no, no, no, no, easy, Helen.
- Jesus. - At the end of the day
responsible gun owners aren't to blame for this, that looney was,
and I think you in the media also bear a lot of responsibility...
- Go to sports now. - ... for what happened...
Now!
- Yeah? - Cheryl, get Rob onto the desk now.
Now!
They want you on the desk.
- What? Already? - Yeah, yeah, right now.
- What? - Come on.
Here!
You know, it's a common response for gun lobbyists, isn't it,
to blame everyone and everything
except the readily available firearms?
Sick minds do this kind of thing for one reason alone...
attention, attention that you give them.
When this happened, you lot couldn't have been more excited.
- That is not accurate at all. - You literally put his name in lights.
What a shitshow.
This happened because a civilian was able to walk into a shop...
- Ohh... - ... on High Street
and walk out with a military-grade weapon made for war zones.
Now, if you condone that,
are you not essentially condoning all the deaths on Hoddle Street?
Do you know what your network was broadcasting on Sunday
when all those people died?
A crime thriller with a body count, I'm told, in the double digits.
Now, you said yourself this boy's head was full of fantasies of war.
Where do you think they came from?
Well, I'm afraid that's all we have time for.
- Can I have an answer? - Thank you very much,
Stephen Bramhall, for a very spirited debate.
But right now we're joined by Rob Rickards
and all the latest in sport.
Jesus, Dennis.
Why did you agree to this?
Why?!
Australia's highest test run scorer, Greg Chappell,
has won a place on the tountry's cock...
rather, the country's top cricket admin...
Let's try that again, shall we? He's won a place on the...
Get it out, you cloth-haired bastard. Get it out!
Sorry.
The former test captain is already a national selector. Chappell...
This is a fucking debacle!
A fucking debacle!
I wanna see that rabble in my office as soon as his bulletin is over.
Get him in!
Brett McKenna has more.
- And we're out! - Any doubt surrounding Chappell's ability
to sit on the ACB is whether he's had
enough experience as an administrator.
Suggestions he needed to serve an apprenticeship
are rubbish in his eyes.
OK, so, Geoff, we got the latest version of the script is on autocue.
- Sorry, Paul. I've amended it again. - Uh...
I think I've added 40 seconds or so. I'll make the additions as I go.
- OK... - 30 seconds!
Don't worry. I won't mention the News At Six.
At least not by name.
Yeah. OK.
Good evening. I'm Geoff Walters, and welcome to...
Dale!
I wasn't gonna just let him continue
- spouting absolute bullshit. - We agreed to maintain a calm tone.
I wasn't the one losing it.
Hey. Geoff's show just started. I think something's happening.
It's brought out some of the finest qualities of Melbourne.
Unfortunately, it has also brought out some of the worst.
I'm talking about the actions of one television network in particular.
What should be a vital community service provided by the media
has clearly become a race to the bottom,
and the approach taken by the network in question
represents a troubling new low.
Yesterday morning, mere hours after the tragedy,
the network rushed to air,
crowing that they had been first on the scene.
But in their haste
they aired footage of a deceased victim
before the police had a chance to inform his family.
A loving family learned of the senseless murder
of their husband and father
via a TV news program.
I won't further insult this family by naming them
or parading them in front of cameras,
but I do want to offer my condolences
and my sincerest apologies
on behalf of all respectable media.
I want to assure our viewers
you will not see any graphic, damaging images here.
Yeah, that's because you don't bloody have any.
Now, I believe journalists should conduct themselves
with unwavering integrity at all times,
but particularly in the face of a tragedy like this.
Charles Tate on the line for you.
When the pursuit of a story becomes a desperate scramble for ratings,
we lose sight of humanity.
That network and the newsreader in question
was out of line and out of control.
Hello, Charlie. How are you?
She's clearly lost touch with the values of our community.
You know,
I technically might be, but other people did cover the story.
You assured me you go through every
single story with a fine-tooth comb.
So, I'm just a bit confused
how your comb didn't catch this giant fucking knot.
Well, that, um... That incid...
That... That incident occurred
during an update,
uh... and that is...
that's Dennis Tibb's responsibility, I'm sorry to say.
Now, while we're here on this subject, you know,
apparently, the other day, Helen was, um...
But he says it was only due
to quick manoeuvres by the police
that his team could reach the wounded here.
They drove into the line of...
what they thought was the line of fire at the time to protect...
Dale, Helen, in here, please.
Charlie Tate wants you off the desk.
For how long?
Well, for as long as it takes
for the Hoddle Street... story to die down.
She's off.
This is only gonna fuel the critics.
Oh, Dale. Listen, son...
you're doing alright with Charlie Tate.
She's not.
And, between us, Helen is very lucky
this is not a permanent decision.
- Are you OK? - Yeah. Yep.
Just... I hadn't...
I got chucked out there. I just couldn't get my head around the script.
Could we go over a couple of things for tomorrow?
Now?
I'm pretty buggered. Can we... Can we do it in the morning?
"Tountry's cock."
- Good work, Rob. - Fuck.
May I come in for a minute?
Drink?
No, I'm fine, thank you.
No, I mean...
do I need one?
So, you want me off the desk?
For now, yes.
It's a mistake.
We shouldn't have shown that footage. I accept that.
- But we all signed off on it. - Oh, you all signed off on it?
- Yes. - Mm.
And when things like this happen, you...
you have to hold your nerve, you have to keep moving forward...
Something about the story, Helen,
I don't know what it is, your instincts are just off.
How?
I don't know. It's just your whole approach.
I mean, it's just gruelling, it's aggressive,
- it's... - A fucking massacre.
Yeah.
What, you want me to soft-pedal this?
No, it's just that I've seen you cover tragedies in the past, right?
When you were beside Geoff, Geoff was the star,
you were his counterweight.
You let the news affect you.
It was as if you were channelling our emotions for us.
I mean, I've seen you cry on the bloody TV before.
So, because I'm a woman, that's how I'm supposed to respond?
Yes.
OK.
Then I'll recalibrate.
But I can't do that sitting at home. I need to be on the desk.
OK.
If you think you can right the ship,
I will call Lindsay.
But I will be switching on tomorrow night,
and I need to see that change.
Understood?
Rob!
I know it's silly,
I'm just not keen to drive through the city just yet.
It's all clear now, Mum. They had the road opened in hours.
No, I know, I know.
I'm a bit nervy still,
in the car, thinking about it.
It's getting a bit much. Some of the stories...
I've got to go, Mum. I'll call you back, alright?
- Alright, love. - Bye. Bye.
You OK?
Yeah.
Alright, well,
the police have released three more names of the victims,
so, I think we can move away from the specifics
of the night and the killer.
Noelene's already working on a way to contact the families.
Dale, I'm not... I'm not gonna go in today.
What?
I thought you said Charlie backtracked.
Yeah, he did. But I still think that my judgement's just kind of...
just kind of off with this.
- I don't think so. - No, you said it too.
Yeah...
I thought that we focused initially too much
on the horror of the night and the killer,
but now we have the names of the victims.
We can focus on their stories.
And I've seen you interviewing grieving people, Helen, it's...
Dale, I'm not gonna go and talk to the victims' families.
I'm, like, the last person that they'd wanna see.
OK.
Alright.
I'll call you at lunch.
Uh...
Uh... That...
detail that I told you yesterday
about the family that saw their father on the news?
Yes. Tragic.
Oh, you didn't pass that on, did you?
Sorry?
Last night?
It... Mr Walters, on his show,
he did, um... a bit about, like, a speech,
like... quite a long speech...
Cheryl, I would never exploit a family's tragedy like that.
Oh, I know. Of course not.
I'm shocked that you would even...
No, I... I'm not saying that.
Well, what ARE you saying?
Um...
Uh...
Sorry. I don't know. Um...
Well, from what I can gather,
that poor family couldn't get answers
out of the police or the News At Six,
so, they were trying all the networks, including Geoff's.
That's how he became aware of the tragedy
and why he felt compelled to speak.
Oh. Um...
I must've just...
Sorry. I must just still be a bit rattled or...
Can we just...
Hey, ooh, I had a really good idea
for a hairstyle for the Variety Club luncheon.
Oh, well,
we'll see.
- Where were you? - When?
Last night.
I went straight to your place after I finished work. You weren't there.
Where were you?
I was probably...
What time was it? I, uh...
Maybe probably asleep.
It was 9:30.
The house was totally empty. Your car wasn't there.
Where were you?
Uh...
Um...
This is not what it sounds like. I've been staying in a motel.
Not like that.
Not like that. I...
Actually, I just needed to...
This is so stupid.
- What? - You're fine. I'm fine. I just...
At home...
I still can't sleep.
The slightest sound, and it's like it's still Sunday night.
And me not knowing where you are and...
Hearing those shots...
I'm just fucking such an idiot.
- No, you're not. - I am, I...
I was on the other side of the city,
you're fine,
everything that people went through that night, and, uh...
here I am, I still can't sleep in my own bed.
It's OK.
And on this week's show we have...
When Did You Pop The Question?
Oh, my Lord.
I didn't think it was possible, but you look even worse than yesterday.
Have you heard?
About the bereaved family, Geoff's diatribe
or Helen being stood down?
I knew that story wouldn't play well,
I knew it from the minute I saw it,
but I let her just... go with it
because Helen thinks I'm preoccupied
with the viewers or what will be popular,
and she's the serious journalist.
Dale, what you're describing are good audience instincts.
You've got them.
Frankly, yours might be better than Helen's these days.
When I popped the question, I was in a field!
Hello?
Hi. So, get in the shower. Get camera-ready.
I'm coming over with a crew.
No.
I need you to trust me. I've got an idea.
And I'll be there in 20 minutes, OK?
Bye.
We've done the victims, killer, cops, politician,
but no-one has looked at the impact this has had on ordinary people.
You're pitching me vox pops?
I'm pitching a portrait of a grieving city
trying to piece itself back together again.
That's vox pops.
Alright.
Fucking vox pops.
My kids know that street. It's how we get into the city.
And everyone's talking about it at their school.
So, how do you explain it to them?
Um... I just told them that,
"Something really terrible happened, but YOU'RE safe."
I don't know if I believe it anymore.
I think the kids can tell that I don't.
There's posters up on High Street for all the action movies.
Stallone with machine guns.
You can't see them the same way now.
Do you think that media plays a role in real-world violence?
I don't know. Maybe.
Well, there's a new Schwarzenegger movie out next week.
It's bloody called Predator.
Are you gonna boycott the film?
No. Probably still gonna watch it.
But for some there is cause for hope amidst the fear and sorrow.
A lot of the victims are my age, early 20s,
so, I guess that really shook me.
I started volunteering at the helpline that they've set up.
There are a lot of calls and a lot of hurt,
but it makes you feel more connected, you know,
because I guess we've just got to stay together,
especially in times like these.
As ordinary people demonstrate such courage and grace
in the wake of such a tragedy
simply by carrying on,
we realise that the spirit of this community
can never be extinguished.
I am Helen Norville, News At Six.
Oh, God. So, when's it gonna be ready?
What? No, no, no, no. I need it yesterday.
Well, hurry up.
What?
Rob and I have something to disclose.
Go on, it's alright.
Oh, great. This is like a guessing game, is it?
We're seeing each other, mate. We have been for a bit.
So, uh... you were right.
You're keeping secrets from me.
This won't affect my work.
- Lindsay's gonna be painful. - I can deal with Lindsay.
Reception girls are gonna eat you alive.
Let them talk.
Oh, Jesus, you two. OK, OK, OK.
So...
as far as I'm concerned...
broadcast it all you want.
- Oh, you prick. - Oh, it's a fluff piece.
OK? It's a non-story.
I wouldn't put it any higher than the fourth segment.
Hello? Dennis. Yeah. Are you done?
Yeah. Yeah.
Uh... Yep.
Oh.
Um...
Me?
Um...
Yeah, yeah, I can, um... I can be there in an hour.
- Goodnight. - Bye.
Charles Tate rang. He'd like you to call him, please.
Thank you.
Yes?
You watched?
As promised, yeah.
As threatened.
And?
Oh, I had a few notes.
Like?
I loved it.
It was exactly what I didn't know I needed.
It was a great course correction, so...
More of that, please.
OK.
Oh, and, Helen, um...
in the future, if any directive of mine rubs you the wrong way,
uh... my door is always open.
You may regret that.
I'll take my chances.
Sorry. I was asked to come by.
Dennis Tibbs.
Dennis Tibbs for you.
Go through.
How do they get in there?
Who made this decision to air the footage of the body?
Who signed off on it?
That was, um...
It was discussed as a... as a... as a team.
There was Lindsay, Helen, Dale, myself,
and... oh, and our producer, Noelene.
She was... She was... She was there.
It's interesting. Um...
This is strange because Lindsay had told me that it was your decision.
And yours alone.
I mean, it was a pretty chaotic morning.
There was a lot happening really quickly.
What are your thoughts about Lindsay, Dennis?
Just in general, you know, as a news director.
Oh, in general, Lindsay's...
I mean, he's my boss.
Yeah, it's not what I asked you, mate.
Lin... Lin... Lin... Lindsay's...
He's hot-headed.
Volcanic...
- Yeah. - ... you might say?
He's a funny bloke, isn't he? It's... It's like...
I don't know. It's like he's stuck in the mid '70s.
I think early '60s.
Yeah.
Dennis, who would you say, in your estimation,
is the best news director working today?
Um...
Some would say Vincent Callahan is the best.
- Oh, yeah? - Yeah, yeah.
I know him. We started out together.
He's really smart. He's full of ideas.
I could... I could...
I could suss him out if you wanted me to.
Mate, forgive me.
I have to ask this question one more time.
Who signed off on that footage?
Well, um...
I was concerned,
so, I called Lindsay, told him to come and have a look at it,
and he absolutely told us to use it.
Yes.
Yes, I'd appreciate it if you could suss out this Vincent for me.
Cheers.
You're welcome.
Tonight, share prices drop around the world.
And stock markets are gripped by frantic selling.
My savings...
that I was relying on, that I put exactly where you told me to, Dad,
they've been decimated!
Lindsay's in trouble, is he? Why didn't you go for the job yourself?
Well, mate, no-one that looks like me is gonna get that job.
That trollop from The Sun, Donna Gillies, the gossip woman,
she's got something going to print, she wants a response.
A couple of years ago, someone was keen
to sell a story to her about me, she needed compensation,
so, now we go to her for every birthday, every announcement.
We need legal advice right now.
- Synced and corrected by naFraC - - www.addic7ed.com -