Poor-taste skit puts Hamster in hot water THE Australian Broadcasting Corporation has launched an investigation into the final episode of The Hamster Decides 12 days ago, following complaints about a segment involving journalist Chris Kenny. Kenny, a Sky News presenter and associate editor of The Australian, was depicted as having intercourse with a dog while strangling it. The segment then showed the doctored picture of Kenny again, with the label "dog f . . ker." An ABC executive producer viewed the segment prior to going to air, but it was not referred upwards to a more senior level of management. This appears to fly in the face of procedures outlined by ABC managing director Mark Scott after the Chaser team controversially parodied the wishes of dying children in 2009. The ABC suspended their War on Everything program for two weeks after that segment, with the skit causing a huge furore. Amanda Duthie, then head of arts, entertainment and comedy, was demoted for not referring it upwards; she was removed as head of TV comedy. "Where staff are concerned about the potential for satirical material to cause harm they should refer the matter to the next level of management," Mr Scott said at the time. Mr Scott said this was "clear and amply set out in the ABC's editorial policies," but it would appear this process did not take place prior to the segment involving Kenny going to air. Jennifer Collins, the head of entertainment, television told Media Watch the segment was not referred upwards as "it had a clear editorial purpose." The ABC declined to elaborate on what was the "clear editorial purpose" of depicting a journalist, known for being critical of the ABC, having sex with an animal. The piece drew complaints from viewers and is now being investigated by the ABC's audience and consumer affairs division. ABC TV's Media Watch also queried the offensive nature of the piece. "No doubt the Chaser team's defence is that it's satire," Paul Barry said on last week's program. But I can see nothing satirical or clever in the suggestion that Kenny - who is one of the ABC's noisiest critics - has sex with animals. The piece was the subject of legal advice before broadcast, but the ABC declined to comment when asked by The Australian whether anyone in senior management was made aware of that legal advice before the segment went to air. Mr Scott has so far declined to comment on the segment, and the ABC did not answer whether anybody inside the broadcaster actively monitors content to ensure compliance with its code of practice, as opposed to waiting for viewer complaints to take action. The ABC is advertising The Hamster Decides episode involving Kenny as having a "G" rating - suitable for children - although when viewing the program on iView, the MA15+ rating appears. Under the ABC's code of practice for MA15+ ratings it states: "Coarse language that is very strong, aggressive or detailed, should not be gratuitous." The Australian asked the ABC on what basis labelling someone a "dog f . . ker" could be considered not to be gratuitous. In reply the ABC spokeswoman quoted an editorial written by The Australian about free speech. The spokeswoman said the ABC's editorial policies acknowledge that some content may offend viewers and that "the ABC must be able to provide content for targeted audiences with standards that differ from 'generally held' community attitudes." "Chaser programs have long been known for their combination of stunts, satire and at times absurdist humour," the spokeswoman said. The cartoon was shown within the context of an MA-rated, adult satirical comedy. The depiction of Kenny was not a cartoon, but a doctored image. The spokeswoman also said: "There is a long history in Australia of using provocative images to convey messages," and referred to a controversial cartoon that ran in The Australian in 2006.