I intensely disliked Alan Jones for his divisive role in society, amplifying unacceptable (to me) opinions.
But your piece just now makes me realise again that things, and people, are just complicated. Well done for sticking your neck out Josh, you’re of a rare and brave breed.
I used to drive taxis in Sydney in the nineties, and was hit on frequently by gay men because like you I was young and strapping.
I’m totally heterosexual, investigated that and that’s just the case.
But I actually felt quite flattered, and of course I had agency to slap it away. And there would be laughs.
What I’m trying to say is that you very thoroughly gave a much needed insight in how humans work. Or not. It’s complicated.
Thank you for sticking your neck out, big fan, don’t hear too many people brave enough to speak the unspeakable.
This is a great episode. So much to think about. Once again, you bravely wade into a subject with intelligence and grace. Among other things, this made me think about the Kevin Spacey documentary that came out this year. Spacey's childhood seemed horrific –– maybe one of the most horrific things you could imagine may have happened to him (his father is alleged to have raped his brother, and it's implied Spacey as well). So it wasn't hard to see the connection between his sociopathic behavior and his past, and feel a lot of sympathy or at least understanding for how he came out. But I also thought a lot about his victims --- especially the ones who weren't in the biz and weren't gunning for roles – like the theater usher (if you've seen it, you'll remember him). Spacey's predatory groping and the power differential between the two them appeared to crush that guy's spirit in a really intense way. And it wasn't hard to hate Spacey for doing it. All of which is to say, as you point out – unwanted sexual advances are always wrong, but they can be a lot 'more' wrong, so to speak, depending on the power dynamics and the emotional state of the person at the receiving end of them. As you point out, you were a confident up and comer who even benefited from his attention without having to give anything up. I guess we will see if you were the exception or were other interactions more fraught and destructive...
If a 30yo man gropes a 20yo guy in a bar it might reasonably be construed as a pass. They’re in a bar where people go to meet and it’s not out of the realm of possibility the younger man might respond positively. When a 75yo man gropes a 20yo guy (esp if he’s straight!) in the workplace the chance that it is welcome is vanishingly small. He would have to know that if someone does respond it’s not because of mutual attraction but coercion. To pass it off as a clumsy pass is incredibly naive.
Jones was surrounded by advisors and PR people. He wasn’t some doddery sheltered old queen still living in 1940 but a well informed immensely powerful a figure at the peak of his influence.
You’re bending over backwards to minimise his behaviour here Josh.
Remember Josh is talking about a man who stated publicly that an Australian Prime Minister’s father …”died of shame”… of his daughter ( the first female Prime Minister of Australia and a fellow human being Julia Gillard) not three weeks after his passing. Vicious and petty. There is a list as long as his years in public of offensive and bigoted attacks on others that did not appear to be moderated by his own, personal, intimate experience of being one of the so called ‘despised’. And as you have made clear Josh, he was well aware of his sexual preference and identity, publicly denied it, feared the judgement and loss of power but never held back from ruthlessly judging others. Total hypocrite and coward.
I’m not sure what this podcast was aiming to achieve. Humanising a nasty individual, fine. I’m sure Lenin had great table manners.
Excellent to see this nuanced, intelligent commentary on this very difficult topic - when most of the media is beside themselves with malicious glee, celebrating Jones' downfall.
Bettina, I’ve several times seen mention of public “Glee” regarding the current accusations against Alan Jones (AJ) . I read about 10 national and international news outlets daily and I have to say none that I’ve seen have treated this story with glee. Can you provide the names and relevant details to the stories you are referring?
I feel like I’m going insane seeing all the positive responses to this. The same argument could potentially made for George Pell no?
We’re not talking about events that happened a long time ago - some of these events happened within the last decade. Despite all your mentioning of his upbringing and the environment he grew up in theres plenty of time to reign in these behaviours and seek help if needed. He was a loud and powerful moral figure- so he knows what’s right and wrong. waving his actions away like this just boggles my mind.
I was on the fence about resubscribing to the substack and I think this has made my decision to let it lapse.
Really? Pell was accused of being a paedophile and failing to act on knowledge he was accused of having of other now convicted paedophiles in the church (one of whom was his flatmate).
So if the same podcast came out when the allegations came out you would be fine with it? His fiddling with boys was just a misguided way of flirting from
Pell was acquitted on appeal so his matter was fully decided by the court system and the charges against him could not be sustained. So what’s the analogy exactly?
Unacceptable discussion no matter how well sugar coated it was. This is the sort of speil that belongs in the court room from the defence, not pre trial from a well known radio host who happens to also be a dear friend of the accused. Failing that, post verdict where it cannot influence potential future jurors or magistrate for that matter. I acknowledge the points you are making Josh but still feel this has the potential to compromise a criminal investigation which is best left to the justice system to deal with. The public's view is actually irrelevant, this is a criminal matter and should be treated as such.
Is there a gag order on discussing any topic pertinent to a criminal complaint until that complaint is adjudicated? If so, you’d better let the rest of the news media know that half their business is illegal.
There are contempt of court laws, which prohibit publications which have a tendency to interfere with the administration of justice. Personally I’m not sure this meets the threshold for such an offence, but reasonable minds may differ.
I'm not an Australian lawyer, but I don't see how someone who is not a party to this case or somehow directly involved in it could ever be held in contempt of court. Josh isn't actually in court.
And while he spent about 20% of this episode repeatedly stating that he makes no claim with regards to these specific legal charges, so what if he did? The tendency of news broadcasters to say "allegedly" when talking about a crime that hasn't yet been adjudicated is a standard of journalistic integrity, not a legal standard.
I don't see what reasonable mind could conclude that talking about court cases while they are ongoing is illegal.
You’ve hit the nail smack bang on the head - again - Josh. This needed to be said. I have waited a long time to hear someone say that some sexual misdemeanors are just that. A groped bottom should not ruin lives. Women have been dodging / managing unwanted sexual advances for millennia. It’s an annoying, tiring part of life. (And I also feel the need to add all the caveats about guilt/innocence, power imbalance, cruelty, violence, circumstances etc.). Bravo!
What a disgraceful commentary. So- just because Jones’ groping of YOU did not perturb YOU, then any abuse to others is of no importance? Get real! There are many, many people- including me- who know people who were victims, whose lives have been grievously affected, and who were too terrified by Jones’ power and vindictiveness to come forward. Your apologist stance is disgusting. You speak only for yourself and you are on the wrong side of what is right, what is decent and what is just.
Society changes and we need to accept that. Whatever is acceptable before might not be acceptable now. The power AJ had is a product of a failed society and whatever he was possible to do without checks and balances is just beyond comprehension. Misuse of power comes with people who have it. I am sorry to hear about your ordeal, and dispite you're justifying it, this is not behaviour that we should accept as the norm. Powerful people do this without scrutiny and without ethical standards.
Powerplay is emotional blackmail mostly, whether or not you're from rural QLD. It's not an excuse, we have too many excuses anyway in current society. People can present themself as a survivor, instead of continuing the self-hate.
Thanks you Josh, though, to light up the shadows. Appreciated.
The police is here to uphold the law, whatever the law is of the day accepted by society. No point to compare that.
You can blame the Catholic/Christian/Judism/Muslim in fact most religions for all the gay hate (and many other) of the last 1500 years.
There’s no way this is more uncomfortable than the one with the lady who called you racist, in which you spent an hour+ being way too polite and deferential as she berated you for having different opinions.
I have an abhorrent dislike of Alan Jones; the way he has abused his power and influence, and often for personal gain. This is not to undermine some of the good we can attribute to him over his long career.
I think Josh’s podcast about Alan fills a void left by Chris Masters “Jonestown” in providing a first hand account of Alan’s closeted gay persona, sheds light on the persecution of homosexuals and how this has impacted Alan. Josh also treads the treacherous waters of exposing an elephant in the room; the counter power balance that exists in some work forces whereby some employees trade their youth and attractiveness for opportunity with those in positions of power. However, Josh fails to identify this as a form of abuse, which probably requires some deeper conversation and analysis. It's a dynamic, however, that plays out in many walks of life.
In all this though, I think Josh missed something of vital significance. Although we do not yet know the nature of the charges and allegations against Alan, to suggest that we can seperate his behaviour with consenting adults in the form of PERSiSTENT unwanted advances with the actions of more nefarious actors is possibly naive. Josh also toys with the idea that Alan suffers from an arrested sexual adolescent development which has driven his penchant for much younger men. Let that sink in for a minute…
For decades we have known about Alan's questionable conduct with school boys. Chris Masters outlines some of this in Jonestown. This is one elephant in the room. The other is why he is not directly named in the Royal Commission tasked with investigating this type of thing.
Whether Alan Jones turns out to be Australia's equivalent to Jimmy Saville is anybody's guess. Alan Jones is in a criminal justice sense, innocent until proven guilty, but there are many, many reasonable questions that are in the public interest to be answered, and if it turns out there is a fire amongst the billows of smoke, there are a lot of powerful enablers who should also go down with the sinking ship.
Unbelievably well framed Josh. "growing up in rural queensland...." was the moment I stopped multi-tasking and listened with intent. It helped me better understand something enough to change my starting position on this. Thank you.
I intensely disliked Alan Jones for his divisive role in society, amplifying unacceptable (to me) opinions.
But your piece just now makes me realise again that things, and people, are just complicated. Well done for sticking your neck out Josh, you’re of a rare and brave breed.
I used to drive taxis in Sydney in the nineties, and was hit on frequently by gay men because like you I was young and strapping.
I’m totally heterosexual, investigated that and that’s just the case.
But I actually felt quite flattered, and of course I had agency to slap it away. And there would be laughs.
What I’m trying to say is that you very thoroughly gave a much needed insight in how humans work. Or not. It’s complicated.
Thank you for sticking your neck out, big fan, don’t hear too many people brave enough to speak the unspeakable.
This is a great episode. So much to think about. Once again, you bravely wade into a subject with intelligence and grace. Among other things, this made me think about the Kevin Spacey documentary that came out this year. Spacey's childhood seemed horrific –– maybe one of the most horrific things you could imagine may have happened to him (his father is alleged to have raped his brother, and it's implied Spacey as well). So it wasn't hard to see the connection between his sociopathic behavior and his past, and feel a lot of sympathy or at least understanding for how he came out. But I also thought a lot about his victims --- especially the ones who weren't in the biz and weren't gunning for roles – like the theater usher (if you've seen it, you'll remember him). Spacey's predatory groping and the power differential between the two them appeared to crush that guy's spirit in a really intense way. And it wasn't hard to hate Spacey for doing it. All of which is to say, as you point out – unwanted sexual advances are always wrong, but they can be a lot 'more' wrong, so to speak, depending on the power dynamics and the emotional state of the person at the receiving end of them. As you point out, you were a confident up and comer who even benefited from his attention without having to give anything up. I guess we will see if you were the exception or were other interactions more fraught and destructive...
If a 30yo man gropes a 20yo guy in a bar it might reasonably be construed as a pass. They’re in a bar where people go to meet and it’s not out of the realm of possibility the younger man might respond positively. When a 75yo man gropes a 20yo guy (esp if he’s straight!) in the workplace the chance that it is welcome is vanishingly small. He would have to know that if someone does respond it’s not because of mutual attraction but coercion. To pass it off as a clumsy pass is incredibly naive.
Jones was surrounded by advisors and PR people. He wasn’t some doddery sheltered old queen still living in 1940 but a well informed immensely powerful a figure at the peak of his influence.
You’re bending over backwards to minimise his behaviour here Josh.
Remember Josh is talking about a man who stated publicly that an Australian Prime Minister’s father …”died of shame”… of his daughter ( the first female Prime Minister of Australia and a fellow human being Julia Gillard) not three weeks after his passing. Vicious and petty. There is a list as long as his years in public of offensive and bigoted attacks on others that did not appear to be moderated by his own, personal, intimate experience of being one of the so called ‘despised’. And as you have made clear Josh, he was well aware of his sexual preference and identity, publicly denied it, feared the judgement and loss of power but never held back from ruthlessly judging others. Total hypocrite and coward.
I’m not sure what this podcast was aiming to achieve. Humanising a nasty individual, fine. I’m sure Lenin had great table manners.
Excellent to see this nuanced, intelligent commentary on this very difficult topic - when most of the media is beside themselves with malicious glee, celebrating Jones' downfall.
Bettina, I’ve several times seen mention of public “Glee” regarding the current accusations against Alan Jones (AJ) . I read about 10 national and international news outlets daily and I have to say none that I’ve seen have treated this story with glee. Can you provide the names and relevant details to the stories you are referring?
I feel like I’m going insane seeing all the positive responses to this. The same argument could potentially made for George Pell no?
We’re not talking about events that happened a long time ago - some of these events happened within the last decade. Despite all your mentioning of his upbringing and the environment he grew up in theres plenty of time to reign in these behaviours and seek help if needed. He was a loud and powerful moral figure- so he knows what’s right and wrong. waving his actions away like this just boggles my mind.
I was on the fence about resubscribing to the substack and I think this has made my decision to let it lapse.
Really? Pell was accused of being a paedophile and failing to act on knowledge he was accused of having of other now convicted paedophiles in the church (one of whom was his flatmate).
So no. Not the same argument at all.
So if the same podcast came out when the allegations came out you would be fine with it? His fiddling with boys was just a misguided way of flirting from
Someone who was told he was a monster?
Pell was acquitted on appeal so his matter was fully decided by the court system and the charges against him could not be sustained. So what’s the analogy exactly?
Unacceptable discussion no matter how well sugar coated it was. This is the sort of speil that belongs in the court room from the defence, not pre trial from a well known radio host who happens to also be a dear friend of the accused. Failing that, post verdict where it cannot influence potential future jurors or magistrate for that matter. I acknowledge the points you are making Josh but still feel this has the potential to compromise a criminal investigation which is best left to the justice system to deal with. The public's view is actually irrelevant, this is a criminal matter and should be treated as such.
Is there a gag order on discussing any topic pertinent to a criminal complaint until that complaint is adjudicated? If so, you’d better let the rest of the news media know that half their business is illegal.
There are contempt of court laws, which prohibit publications which have a tendency to interfere with the administration of justice. Personally I’m not sure this meets the threshold for such an offence, but reasonable minds may differ.
I'm not an Australian lawyer, but I don't see how someone who is not a party to this case or somehow directly involved in it could ever be held in contempt of court. Josh isn't actually in court.
And while he spent about 20% of this episode repeatedly stating that he makes no claim with regards to these specific legal charges, so what if he did? The tendency of news broadcasters to say "allegedly" when talking about a crime that hasn't yet been adjudicated is a standard of journalistic integrity, not a legal standard.
I don't see what reasonable mind could conclude that talking about court cases while they are ongoing is illegal.
You’ve hit the nail smack bang on the head - again - Josh. This needed to be said. I have waited a long time to hear someone say that some sexual misdemeanors are just that. A groped bottom should not ruin lives. Women have been dodging / managing unwanted sexual advances for millennia. It’s an annoying, tiring part of life. (And I also feel the need to add all the caveats about guilt/innocence, power imbalance, cruelty, violence, circumstances etc.). Bravo!
As a straight man- I found this pod incredibly thoughtful and insightful. Thank you. I also smell a witch hunt from powerful ‘progressive’ moralists
What a disgraceful commentary. So- just because Jones’ groping of YOU did not perturb YOU, then any abuse to others is of no importance? Get real! There are many, many people- including me- who know people who were victims, whose lives have been grievously affected, and who were too terrified by Jones’ power and vindictiveness to come forward. Your apologist stance is disgusting. You speak only for yourself and you are on the wrong side of what is right, what is decent and what is just.
Or you could listen to what he actually said.
You didn’t actually listen to the episode did you?
Society changes and we need to accept that. Whatever is acceptable before might not be acceptable now. The power AJ had is a product of a failed society and whatever he was possible to do without checks and balances is just beyond comprehension. Misuse of power comes with people who have it. I am sorry to hear about your ordeal, and dispite you're justifying it, this is not behaviour that we should accept as the norm. Powerful people do this without scrutiny and without ethical standards.
Powerplay is emotional blackmail mostly, whether or not you're from rural QLD. It's not an excuse, we have too many excuses anyway in current society. People can present themself as a survivor, instead of continuing the self-hate.
Thanks you Josh, though, to light up the shadows. Appreciated.
The police is here to uphold the law, whatever the law is of the day accepted by society. No point to compare that.
You can blame the Catholic/Christian/Judism/Muslim in fact most religions for all the gay hate (and many other) of the last 1500 years.
A lot to digest in this one, holy shit.
“The casting couch is the casting couch for a reason.”
WHAT IS HAPPENING
There’s no way this is more uncomfortable than the one with the lady who called you racist, in which you spent an hour+ being way too polite and deferential as she berated you for having different opinions.
I had to pause that episode multiple times just to get my uncomfy-o-meter back to a somewhat healthy level. She was the worst 😬
Stop being racist.
At the risk of being accused of racism, which episode was that? Sounds great!
I think this one is more uncomfortable, because sex is more fundamental than race.
I have an abhorrent dislike of Alan Jones; the way he has abused his power and influence, and often for personal gain. This is not to undermine some of the good we can attribute to him over his long career.
I think Josh’s podcast about Alan fills a void left by Chris Masters “Jonestown” in providing a first hand account of Alan’s closeted gay persona, sheds light on the persecution of homosexuals and how this has impacted Alan. Josh also treads the treacherous waters of exposing an elephant in the room; the counter power balance that exists in some work forces whereby some employees trade their youth and attractiveness for opportunity with those in positions of power. However, Josh fails to identify this as a form of abuse, which probably requires some deeper conversation and analysis. It's a dynamic, however, that plays out in many walks of life.
In all this though, I think Josh missed something of vital significance. Although we do not yet know the nature of the charges and allegations against Alan, to suggest that we can seperate his behaviour with consenting adults in the form of PERSiSTENT unwanted advances with the actions of more nefarious actors is possibly naive. Josh also toys with the idea that Alan suffers from an arrested sexual adolescent development which has driven his penchant for much younger men. Let that sink in for a minute…
For decades we have known about Alan's questionable conduct with school boys. Chris Masters outlines some of this in Jonestown. This is one elephant in the room. The other is why he is not directly named in the Royal Commission tasked with investigating this type of thing.
Whether Alan Jones turns out to be Australia's equivalent to Jimmy Saville is anybody's guess. Alan Jones is in a criminal justice sense, innocent until proven guilty, but there are many, many reasonable questions that are in the public interest to be answered, and if it turns out there is a fire amongst the billows of smoke, there are a lot of powerful enablers who should also go down with the sinking ship.
Yeah, wow. That’s an outstanding monologue and a superbly human response, Josh, so full of nuance, empathy and clarity.
Unbelievably well framed Josh. "growing up in rural queensland...." was the moment I stopped multi-tasking and listened with intent. It helped me better understand something enough to change my starting position on this. Thank you.