Mel & Michael Suspend Themselves After The Nurse They Pranked Commits Suicide
Mel and Michael, the Australians radio hosts behind the Duchess Kate hospital prank, have put themselves in time out after the nurse who transferred them to Kate's nurse killed herself today. SCA, the company that owns 2Day FM released this statement to TMZ:
"SCA and 2Day FM are deeply saddened by the tragic news of the death of nurse Jacintha Saldanha from King Edward VII’s Hospital. SCA and the hosts have decided that they will not return to their radio show until further notice out of respect for what can only be described as a tragedy."
Mel and Michael also hit the delete button their Twitter accounts and are refusing to open their mouths to the media about this. A rep for King Edward VIII Hospital said that Nurse Jacintha Saldanha was a good nurse and liked by all her co-workers, and they also said that she wasn't punished for transferring the call. I said this in my other post, but Nurse Jacintha only answered the phone, because the receptionist was away.
There seems to be two reactions to this. Some people are screaming that Mel and Michael need to be fired, skinned alive and turned into poopy bags for the Queen's corgis. The others are saying that no, it wasn't not funny, but it was just a dumb prank and the DJs shouldn't be blamed. As for me, I'm on the side that isn't saying shit, because THE QUEEN is not the one and has 007 on speed dial.
• 
Submitted by Who Datt on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 9:49pm.
So the low-rent Opie and Anthony of the Outback didn't understand basic cause and effect? The should be fired for their seemingly boundless stupidity and not the prank-heard-round-the-world. I can't wait to see 2Day's permanent replacements for them. I hear Donald Trump, Stephen Baldwin and Ted Nugent have a lot of free time.
*********************************
Umm, they may be dickheads but you're clearly the stupid one if you think Sydney is "outback".
Submitted by EdmundLangdown on Sat, 12/08/2012 - 9:05am.
And what did they think would happen to the nurses they tricked? Obviously not suicide, but acute embarrassment, disciplinary action and damage to their careers was always likely. Clearly they didn't give a shit about possibly fucking them over.
-----------------------------------------------------
Exactly. They didn't care if the nurse or other personnel were fired, disciplined, etc. Don't feel sorry for those two DJs anymore. NOT one bit.
This poor Jacintha woman was unstable to begin with. First of all, she's not the one who gave the information out. She's the one who played operator and forwarded the call to the ward nurse where Kate was. The ward nurse was the one who gave out the medical information and she seems to be out of sight, probably slightly embarrassed, but no one outside the hospital knows her identity. I don't know how Britain operates, but here, if you were to say that you were the grandmother and needed information, they wouldn't tell you a thing over the phone. Only if you were the spouse (for a married woman) or parents (if you're a minor).
Submitted by Migraineuse on Sat, 12/08/2012 - 5:03am.
These same DJs played another "prank" on a 14-year old girl and made her admit live on the air that she had been raped.
They're scum.
No mercy.
*______________________________________*
NOT THE SAME DJ. Pitchforks down peeps and check your facts. Geez
________________________________________
America.. fuck yeah!
Killing yourself over this when you have small kids says this woman was unstable to begin with.
Fucking cunts.
Of course calls like this should be banned.
Using a false identity to obtain a stranger's private medical information from a hospital should be very illegal.
What business did they think they had getting a pregnant woman's private medical information? What if they'd been told there were problems?
What if the nurse had told them Kate had miscarried? Would that just have been a great scoop for them, live on air?
And what did they think would happen to the nurses they tricked? Obviously not suicide, but acute embarrassment, disciplinary action and damage to their careers was always likely. Clearly they didn't give a shit about possibly fucking them over.
<"Submitted by Migraineuse on Sat, 12/08/2012 - 5:03am.
These same DJs played another "prank" on a 14-year old girl and made her admit live on the air that she had been raped.">
No. It was a fired DJ on the same station from way back. But they breathe the same air and should be killed.
How obvious is it that this "Edward VI" Hospital is a 60 bed private all suite luxury hotel slash hospital that the very wealthy of London and Royalty pay out of pocket to stay at (no NHS money accepted here!) and everyone involved there with this stunt had their asses chewed off because of the bad publicity?
@Anima I don't know what hospital or clinic you did your "project" at, but no hospital staff is monitored for psychiatric disorders here in my state. That's totally discriminatory to not hire someone because they have depression, ADD, bipolar disorder, etc. Many disorders can be managed with counseling, therapy, and medication. None of that necessarily keeps people from working in healthcare.
I am a nurse, and I sure as hell get depressed sometimes when I get home from work; but no one there "monitors" me at all. I may panic when I get home and realize I forgot to do something. I don't know if the UK has a law about patient privacy; but if someone's privacy is breached in the U.S., you could lose your license, go to court, get fined, and pretty much kiss your career goodbye.
These same DJs played another "prank" on a 14-year old girl and made her admit live on the air that she had been raped.
They're scum.
No mercy.
*______________________________________*
Submitted by Darknight on Fri, 11/09/2012 - 4:27pm.
THE TRUTH. Making the world a better place.
.
I don't know, Dave, and I don't think any confirmation from the police has been released, and her death is being investigated. I don't care that she wasn't a celebrity, I hope MK gives us an update on the cause of death. Because if this was murder, we're more screwed than we thought we were.
Submitted by CodeRed on Sat, 12/08/2012 - 2:06am.
Oh Dave she was found unconscious, most likely an overdose.
_____________
That's what I read, too, but I'm imagining the police or coroner and asking what would make them say suicide. I don't know if the police actually said "suicide" or if the media assumed. But why would the media assume? No one knew the woman's name. And the police would have no reason to know her name. So a dead body on it's own would not be called suicide.
Submitted by oh dave on Sat, 12/08/2012 - 1:45am.
****************************************************
she was found unconscious, most likely an overdose. No gunshot or anything. maybe they're waiting for an autopsy to release the cause or are still investigating. It would appall me if she was murdered.
also... the DJ's are idiots. I don't think that "prank" and "hospital" go together in the same thought.
I don't want to seem like I'm pushing a conspiracy theory but how does someone wind up being found dead, labeled a suicide, and yet cause of death is not part of the story? When someone is found dead they always say pills were found or whatever.
this reminds me of the prank, what's her name, Amber Rose Tamblyn, pulled on Tyrese Gibson, in pretending that she was Amber Rose. Big time hippie, peace chick. although it was hilarious, thank god he or no one killed themselves over it.
link: http://dlisted.com/2012/03/03/time-amber-tamblyn-pranked-tyreses-ass
and I'm still laughing at the absurdity. and it was far worse.
iSubmitted by Hekki on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 5:12pm.
This link tells the story of how they made a 14 year old girl admit to being raped when she was 12. They have a history of crossing the line.
http://m.guardiannews.com/world/2012/dec/07/2dayfm-australia-shock-jock-...
Not that they caused that woman's suicide, but they're assholes, picking on people who don't deserve it.
------------------------------------------------
goodness Hekki that's horrifying-these two fuckheads should have been taken off air long ago for that first prank imo.
Wowo Hekki great investigative journalism.. WRONG DJS DUMBASS Completely different DJ's but same station. Kyle Sandilands is a massive cunt and many Australians have been asking for his head on a stick for years. But hey..shock jocks get the ratings. A bit like bitching about Diana or some fuckin celeb's right to privacy and then buying People magazine. Hypocrites.
These two are not the 14 year old rape incident and I am appalled that you would even think that the cases are similar.
_______________________________________
America.. fuck yeah!
Submitted by fookyoo on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 9:20pm.
FFS PEOPLE CALM THE FUCK DOWN
_______________________________________________
...totally agree...
...there is a concept in law about reasonably foreseeable consequence...there is no way those DJs could have had any idea it would end like this...
Period.
...and who knows if it wasn't some creepy, punitive M16 cretin who decided to 'suicide' this poor woman just out of spite and to 'set an example'...
...very sad for the nurse and her family no doubt...
...Still...Team It Wasn't NOT Funny here...
________________________________________________
...'Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason '...
Why would you kill yourself over this? The hospital supported her and no harm done? What the holy fuck? The Beavis and Butthead radio dudes I'm sure had no idea that they would get through and pull this off. Fuckery all the way around.
Submitted by SANS FARDS on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 6:00pm.
huh? People work with depression all the time. Is it different for healthcare people?
________________
Yes, specially if they work in a hospital. I had to do a research project on that subject, and the staff (doctors, nurses) gets constantly monitored for any sign of emotional problems.
Not that it always works, their job is very demanding, they face incredible amounts of stress every day, so a lot of them collapse or die at a very young age.
I can't imagine what made this lady commit suicide, but then again, we don't know what truly went on behind the scenes. I truly pity her family.
Anyway, I wish these royals wouldn't reproduce. Does the world really need this archaic bunch to continue on?
I don't have a problem with Kate, but I wouldn't care if I never heard or read another royal story again. This pregnancy is getting ridiculous amounts of coverage and I don't see this stuff ending for years. She'll have one, the press will go nuts, they'll wait a year and look for a bump, she'll have another, and who knows when it will stop. Maybe it won't end until she is no longer of reproducing age.
And on a petty note, I'm sick of those damn "special edition" royal magazines crowding out the good mags at my local Barnes and Noble!
Get the torches! Gather the townspeople! The monsters must be hunted down and PUNISHED!!!!!
**********
Shiitake happens...
So the low-rent Opie and Anthony of the Outback didn't understand basic cause and effect? The should be fired for their seemingly boundless stupidity and not the prank-heard-round-the-world. I can't wait to see 2Day's permanent replacements for them. I hear Donald Trump, Stephen Baldwin and Ted Nugent have a lot of free time.
FFS PEOPLE CALM THE FUCK DOWN
This has gotten out of control. Reals of Diana tunnel incident. Put the pitchforks down and breathe.
1. Silly harmless call made without malice.
2. Hospital and royal household know they've fucked up and pointing fingers at each other. Prince Charles plays it down by making a joke about when questions by the British press.
3. Nurse commits auicide due to previous mental illness but the fallout of this prank pushed her over the edge.
4. Royals and hospital look for scapegoat. Spin doctors suggest the DJs
5. The world turns into a fuckin stadium full of Maude Flanders only reading the Daiky Mail (Royal biased ) for their information.
Take a deep breath. Go to bed and look at it the situation again. Radio DJ s have pulled shit like this for years. Unfortunately the woman who put through a call tops herself.... and they're to blame ?????
Seriously.
_______________________________
America.. fuck yeah!
Whoa! She killed herself?! Just telling the husband earlier about this prank, but I missed THAT part.
Dear lawd.
*************************************
"Marriage is what you do when you decide one cock is good enough to let the owner annoy you for the rest of your life." - TrashyWilma
I can only imagine the stress she was going through. Though she was not reprimanded, it was at the least a career limiting move. Perhaps she felt she lost the respect of her co-workers, who knows? What a shame that a couple of idiots could cause such a thing.
Fucking idiots.
.
This is the correct answer. The idiot monarchy needs to go.
---------------------------------------
Submitted by Poopele on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 7:42pm.
You have to blame this on the concept of 'royalty'.
If you didn't have these over-blown thieving inbred leeching pieces of shit fronting for your pathetic
has-been country in the first place, then there would have been no nurse feeling shamed for getting duped by a couple of people whose grandparent's had the good sense to get half a world away from your backward land of princesses.
The only Emperor is the Emperor of Ice Cream.
Submitted by Poopele on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 7:42pm.
You have to blame this on the concept of 'royalty'.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wrong. This might have happened had it been Angelina Jolie, Taylor Swift, or some other hot celebrity of the moment. Royalty has zero to do with it.
People seriously listen to this tripe? And all the endless screaming commercials?? Why would anyone subject them self to this idiotic form of "entertainment"?? It's for dim witted brain damaged meth heads at best. Jeez people, get a grip. You only have so many minutes on his earh. Put in a cd or plug in the iPod.
Submitted by sugar free on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 7:33pm.
How is it any different if let's say you're at a restaurant and you complain about your waiter's lousy service and he goes home and kills himself, is that your fault? Should we assume everyone we're in contact with is emotionally fragile?
+++++++++++++++
Once you try to be nice to everybody, it comes naturally. You should try it. Complaining about lousy service is pretty high up there on the First World Problem Scale.
I don't get it. She wasn't reprimanded, everyone was supportive, no one got hurt and no one leaked her name. Chalk it up to a having a bad day. Now, EVERYONE knows her name. Maybe it's just a coincidence it's the same nurse? I can't believe someone would leave their kids motherless especially during the holidays, over a prank call?
Complaining about bad service isn't nearly the same as humiliating someone in front of the whole world. It's not even a similar situation.
Submitted by Bree on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 7:29pm.
Exactly. I'm not against all pranks but I definitely think you should "know your audience" before trying to trick someone, otherwise you just never know what they're going to do.
You have to blame this on the concept of 'royalty'.
If you didn't have these over-blown thieving inbred leeching pieces of shit fronting for your pathetic
has-been country in the first place, then there would have been no nurse feeling shamed for getting duped by a couple of people whose grandparent's had the good sense to get half a world away from your backward land of princesses.
The only Emperor is the Emperor of Ice Cream.
Radio personalities are usually on the low end of the entertainment business however this stupid prank was evidently the tipping point for the nurse. They played the wrong person and lost.
............................................
I couldn't give two shits about these DJs, I just don't hold them solely responsible. How is it any different if let's say you're at a restaurant and you complain about your waiter's lousy service and he goes home and kills himself, is that your fault? Should we assume everyone we're in contact with is emotionally fragile?
.
Considering Kate's pregnancy was primarily to bury her NUDE PICS stigma, and give her/the monarchy good PR.
The phone prank was well warranted. Perspective!
.
I fucking hate radio DJs. They barely make more than your average fast food worker and yet they put themselves on pedestals because they have people listening. There's so much scandal in radio, and it's all because of ego trips.
Submitted by tonicbitch on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 6:48pm.
I'm definitely on the side of the people who say this prank was out of line. No, of course the DJ's aren't going to know that she was unstable or on the ledge. But you do have to expect that not everyone is going to react to a prank in a rational or pleasant manner. They need to accept the consequences and move on.
----------
My view exactly. Everybody keeps saying she must've been unstable, must've had other issues, must've been depressed, etc. So? The DJs still probably triggered her by humiliating her in front of the entire world with their irresponsible, unethical joke. They are still partly responsible for what happened, whether she was stable beforehand or not. This is a lesson in why people need to be careful in what they say and who they say it to. People are at different places in life and handle a variety of things very differently, due to personal experiences, emotional/mental issues, what have you. They are still responsible for their actions, period. What they did was wrong anyway, whether or not someone killed themselves as a result, but this makes what they did extra shitty.
As for me, I'm on the side that isn't saying shit, because THE QUEEN is not the one and has 007 on speed dial.
**************************************************
that's saying it all, on which side you stand. Clearly, it was not a funny prank to pull, but to blame it all on them (and they feel terrible enough as is) would be misguided.
One of my best friends ex boyfriends, who was bipolar, committed suicide because she had enough and finally decided to leave him. Was it her fault? I know she felt a lot of guilt, but it wasn't. And he was in the hospital at the time he killed himself, being treated. It's godawful and tragic.
and, considering this poor soul worked in a hospital, it makes it all the more sadder, that she had to suffer what she did, when help, psychiatrists and psychologists were at her fingertips. Then again, if you admit you're ill, or were, you cannot perform at that profession. Poor woman.
ps- coming from someone who makes fun of others all day, even after the tragedy, judgement is irrelevant. I like your site and reading you, but after, ''As for me, I'm on the side that isn't saying shit.'' would have been sufficient.
pps- or maybe I was wrong, and MK is on neither side, swaying to the pranksters, but the queen could get you killed for screwing with her, so don't. good one. ;)
I do believe it was a legitimate suicide, until proven otherwise. sad. it's all fun and games until someone kills themselves over stupid shit.
edited.
Submitted by Bunny Rabbit on Fri, 12/07/2012 - 6:50pm.
I have my doubts that someone would commit suicide over this. She probably had depression or some other malady.
++++++++++++++
Maybe she did have depression. Maybe a lot of shit was piling up and this was the straw that broke the camel's back. It's possible this was the last thing she could handle and she just decided to check out.
Fucking, fucking bastards (the dj's). Hope their happy with their stupid little prank now. These are usually the types that can dish it out but can't take it in return. People say it's just a joke, but looked what has happened.
I HATE shock jocks, they are scummy bullies. We have a particularly nasty one in Australia, Carl Sandilands. He is an absolute arsehole. Look him up on Youtube. I absolutely loathe Howard Stern as well.
Yeah but this wasn't just a simple prank. This was grand humiliation on a very public and international scale, that also involved some very rich and powerful people. I think a lot of people would freak the fuck out. It's not the DJ's fault that she was obviously unstable, but they had to know that something like this might not end well.
These guys DO cross the line but can't be blamed for the actions of others, IMO. I would imagine the poor woman had other issues in her life that were the real reason, however, this may have been the "final straw".
I love a good prank so I don't want to see them censored... but it's impossible to know the mental stability of the person on the other end of the line, especially a random person that answers the phone by chance... very sad.
----------------------------------------------
"A Muppet and his money are soon parted." ~ Lu32Cy (aka Lucifer Sam)
"I'm back. You're Welcome." ~ Kenny Powers
Submitted by Naughychimp: "We live in a Bully Culture. It's not okay to pull mean pranks and humiliate people, especially those who never signed up for life in the limelight."
Exactly! I'm all for nastiness about Lohan and the Kardashians because they seek attention and they are shitty people.
Targeting hospital staff who have important jobs is just low.
Some of the blame lies with the hospital, because there should have been a meeting explaining how to deal with the media. When my dad was in the hospital there was a list of people who could receive his information and we had a password that was only given to certain people, so the nurses didn't have to guess if that person really was Aunt Laura or whoever.
I feel so sorry for this woman, but I'm angry too. Not at the DJs (who really thought 24 hrs ago that a death would come of this?) but the adulation that royal worshippers believe this family deserves. You know who you are so put down your pitchforks and torches and blame yourselves. So, she made a mistake. I'm sure if it was any minor celebrity, or even the Prime Minister's wife, it would not have been so devastating to her. But because all must be so perfect when dealing with royal protocol...don't touch them or eat your meat before they take a bite first or some stupid shit like that...this woman was probably made to feel that she not only made a faux pas but had to fall on her sword to make it right. Who knows how guilty and like shit her colleagues were making her feel? All because the patient belonged to a high profile family, who by the way, combined have accomplished less in life than this poor nurse. This is what happens when you put people on a disgustingly high pedestal. Fuck that. No royal is worth killing yourself for and I wish I could go back in time, give her a hug and tell her that (you have 2 kids!). Sorry, but I had to get that off my chest. My condolences to her family.
We live in a Bully Culture. It's not okay to pull mean pranks and humiliate people, especially those who never signed up for life in the limelight.
As an aside and on a much less important note, what a sad story for Kate & Will's future child to hear - some woman committed suicide after being tricked into talking about your mother's pregnancy with you.
Submitted by Dgrin: "the also annoying thing is people in facebook begging to gain some likes have taken photos of an alive woman from India who is named similarly and use her photos for RIP groups.."
Oooh! There was a thing on NPR where they interviewed a woman who this happened to (sorry for the sloppy syntax)! Something something, she was alive, but was on protest posters as a martyr for some cause, and CNN reported on the protest and she kept trying to get them to stop running her face as this dead woman and they wouldn't, and they wouldn't run a correction, etc.
As Ali G says: "Techmology..."
Wow Hekki,
After reading that, I hope they're fired for life. How could it be okay for them to come back on air after something like that? I initially thought a break for about a week and an apology would be enough, but they truly are callous people for that one.