A YOUNG Australian woman is caught up in an overseas drug scandal and a media frenzy ensues.
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Cheque books are drawn at 50 paces as the television networks square off to pay for the best “exclusive”.
The only real one in the gun, in the end of it all, is the young Australian behind bars.
The loser is definitely not the television stations despite the fact their once proud flagship journalism shows more often resort these days to gutter journalism than anything resembling a “real” investigation.
So what did we learn from Sunday night’s expose on Cassandra Sainsbury and investigation from 60 Minutes and the Nine Network?
Apparently Cassie once worked as a brothel in western Sydney.
Well, there you go. That explains everything.
Watching the 60 Minutes report it involved every trick you could think of in the television journalism playbook.
The Nine Network and 60 Minutes were clearly out to squeeze every bit of blood of the stone. They wrung that stone dry.
The feeding frenzy around this whole episode has resembled the same unhinged circus that surrounded another young Australian abroad caught up in a drugs scandal.
As the lady tagged by the television networks as “Cocaine Cassie” (really?) has the focus on the television hounds, one Schapelle Corby plans to return home.
The frenzy around Sainsbury and Corby share a remarkable resemblance.
Different drug, different country, same scenario, same hysteria and shameless media antics.
When 60 Minutes posted the link to the Cassandra Sainsbury story on their Facebook page on Monday afternoon one comment immediately jumped to the top as the most liked comment.
It was from Damien McEvilly and it read:
“Talk about kicking a fellow Aussie while they are already down. How dare you feel it fit to open up someone's past like that,” he said.
“It's hardly like the the whole 60 minute team of reporters, producers and channel owners are beyond approach themselves and have plenty of ghosts in their own closets they wouldn't like been aired to a whole nation! How dare you feel it fit to profit from what is a sad story guilty or not.”
Well said, Damien, well said.