Sacked shock-jock Jon Gaunt is taking legal action against talkSPORT over his firing for calling a councillor "a Nazi" after peace talks with the station failed.
Gaunt, who is also a Sun columnist, says on his website last night: "I have tried to offer an olive branch to Scott Taunton (talkSPORT managing director) but he has declined my overtures. He claims he will not reinstate me despite the tens of thousands of e-mails that you have sent in and that he and his press boy, Farmer, have struggled to reply to.
"Therefore he has left me with no choice but to take legal action and that has now started." Gaunt also claims that according to Ofcom's own website there were only 16 complaints about the broadcast that led to his sacking.
Surprisingly, given Gaunt's staunchly right-wing views he has been given the backing of civil rights campaign group Liberty and its director Shami Chakrabarti, who he once dubbed the “most dangerous woman in Britain" in a Sun column.
Liberty says Gaunt's firing is a freedom of speech issue and called for his reinstatement. In a letter to talkSPORT management, Chakrabarti wrote: "I urge you to reinstate Mr Gaunt’s programme without delay and have offered him support in the unlikely and unfortunate event that recourse to the Human Rights Act proves necessary.”
Showing posts with label Liberty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Liberty. Show all posts
Monday, December 22, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Jon Gaunt: '20,000 want me back at talkSport'
Sacked shock-jock Jon Gaunt has said in an e-mail to subscribers to his website Gaunty.com "There have now been the best part of 20,000 emails sent in to talkSPORT of support, so thank you very much. Plus the press are also supporting me and I am delighted that Liberty have taken up the case."
It was revealed yesterday that civil rights group Liberty had written to talkSPORT bosses urging Gaunt's reinstatement. This was despite the fact that Gaunt, in one of his Sun columns, had described Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti as the “most dangerous woman in Britain.” Gaunt, sacked for calling a local councillor "a Nazi", claims talkSPORT chief executive Scott Taunton is sending out a standard email to his supporters, stating: "Following a thorough internal investigation into events surrounding Mr Gaunt`s interview with Redbridge councillor Michael Stark on 7th November, he was found to be in breach of a significant number of obligations he made in a signed agreement with the station. I have, of course, set out each of these in a letter to Jon. As you are no doubt aware, Jon has stated his intention to take legal action over the matter and I am therefore unable to comment further to you at this stage."
Given, Gaunt's forthright right wing views he is attracting an unlikley alliance of liberal supporters which include Guardian columnist Mark Lawson. "He is nowhere near as right wing in real life as his on air persona would suggest," one of his supporters tells me.
It was revealed yesterday that civil rights group Liberty had written to talkSPORT bosses urging Gaunt's reinstatement. This was despite the fact that Gaunt, in one of his Sun columns, had described Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti as the “most dangerous woman in Britain.” Gaunt, sacked for calling a local councillor "a Nazi", claims talkSPORT chief executive Scott Taunton is sending out a standard email to his supporters, stating: "Following a thorough internal investigation into events surrounding Mr Gaunt`s interview with Redbridge councillor Michael Stark on 7th November, he was found to be in breach of a significant number of obligations he made in a signed agreement with the station. I have, of course, set out each of these in a letter to Jon. As you are no doubt aware, Jon has stated his intention to take legal action over the matter and I am therefore unable to comment further to you at this stage."
Given, Gaunt's forthright right wing views he is attracting an unlikley alliance of liberal supporters which include Guardian columnist Mark Lawson. "He is nowhere near as right wing in real life as his on air persona would suggest," one of his supporters tells me.
Exclusive: Liberty's 'Most dangerous woman in Britain' backs sacked shock-jock Jon Gaunt
Shami Chakrabarti, director of civil rights group Liberty, is backing sacked shock-jock Jon Gaunt who was fired by talkSPORT radio for calling a councillor "a Nazi".
In a letter sent to talkSPORT on behalf of Gaunt, the Liberty director said: “…As someone who has been on the receiving end of Jon Gaunt’s blunt polemic in print and on the radio, I believe that the airwaves of a great democracy would be the poorer for his absence. I urge you to reinstate Mr Gaunt’s programme without delay and have offered him support in the unlikely and unfortunate event that recourse to the Human Rights Act proves necessary.”
Gaunt, also a Sun columnist, is known for his right-wing views. He called Shami Chakrabarti the “most dangerous woman in Britain,” in his column in the Sun newspaper on June 19 2007 and has often voiced his opposition to the Human Rights Act. He told The Independent on Saturday he was the "antidote to the lefty consensus". Gaunt has already won support from another unlikely source, Mark Lawson in The Guardian. You can read the full text of Liberty's letter to talkSPORT here. Gaunt claims on his website Gaunty.com that 15,000 supporters have called for his reinstatement.
In a letter sent to talkSPORT on behalf of Gaunt, the Liberty director said: “…As someone who has been on the receiving end of Jon Gaunt’s blunt polemic in print and on the radio, I believe that the airwaves of a great democracy would be the poorer for his absence. I urge you to reinstate Mr Gaunt’s programme without delay and have offered him support in the unlikely and unfortunate event that recourse to the Human Rights Act proves necessary.”
Gaunt, also a Sun columnist, is known for his right-wing views. He called Shami Chakrabarti the “most dangerous woman in Britain,” in his column in the Sun newspaper on June 19 2007 and has often voiced his opposition to the Human Rights Act. He told The Independent on Saturday he was the "antidote to the lefty consensus". Gaunt has already won support from another unlikely source, Mark Lawson in The Guardian. You can read the full text of Liberty's letter to talkSPORT here. Gaunt claims on his website Gaunty.com that 15,000 supporters have called for his reinstatement.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
