Harassment allegations at The Rock radio station spark MediaWorks investigation

Station renowned for ‘taking the piss’ has toxic culture, industry insiders claim. Ali Mau reports.

News and radio company MediaWorks has launched an investigation into allegations of serious misconduct by an employee at The Rock radio station.

The action was sparked by social media posts this past week accusing an unnamed radio employee of sexual harassment. Industry sources have confirmed the allegations.

In response to questions from the Sunday Star-Times, a MediaWorks spokesperson said the company would hire an independent investigator to conduct ‘‘a thorough review of historic events and our current workplace culture and practices’’. It said the terms of reference for the investigation were still being determined.

One industry worker told the Star-Times the employee had made sexualised comments to her on numerous occasions, and she remained ‘‘terrified’’ of potential repercussions from speaking out. The woman was one of those whose comments were posted on social media this past week.

The Star-Times has agreed not to publish details of the alleged harassment, because it could identify her.

In her experience, The Rock station was ‘‘a tornado of toxic masculinity’’, she said. Another source with knowledge of the culture at The Rock claimed the employee’s behaviour was well-known at MediaWorks. The company spokesperson did not respond to specific questions about who knew what and when.

Earlier in the week, an Instagram social media account set up after a StarTimes investigation into the Aotearoa/New Zealand music industry published anonymised allegations about the employee.

The post included ‘‘four different accounts of the same radio station and its [employee]’’.

One of the accounts alleged an employee it called ‘‘XXXX’’ had been ‘‘forever creeping people out’’ and that ‘‘it’s gross watching his behaviour and how accepted it is’’.

Another accuses the man of saying ‘‘some really sexually aggressive things to me’’ and that she ‘‘would not be comfortable being alone with him’’.

The posts also criticised the ‘‘sexism’’ of the station’s playlist, saying ‘‘I can think of only one Kiwi female band that they play.’’

On Thursday, MediaWorks head of human resources Alex Nicholson sent an email to staff referencing the Instagram posts.

‘‘I wanted to get in touch with you following some posts on social media made in recent days in regards to the radio industry. The posts are a call to action, for people to share stories of potential incidents of bullying or harassment within the radio industry’’ Nicholson wrote.

The email ‘‘reminded’’ staff of support channels available to them and ‘‘the ways they can come forward and report any concerns confidentially’’.

Asked whether the employee at the centre of the allegations would be suspended or stood aside while the investigation took place, the spokesperson said MediaWorks ‘‘does not comment on individual employees and with an internal investigation

still pending, is unable to comment further’’.

Two days after the initial Instagram post, the same account ran another saying: ‘‘Same network, different radio station. Show of hands if you’ve heard numerous accounts of [another employee] who has allegations of rape, sexual assault, sexual coercion, and blackmail of wahine as young as 16?’’

The Star-Times has opted not to name either man at this time but put questions to MediaWorks about both posts. Those specific questions remain unanswered.

Also on Thursday, New Zealand Media and Entertainment (NZME) head of radio Wendy Palmer sent an email to its radio teams, an NZME spokesperson confirmed.

The email advised staff that NZME was aware of the recent social media activity.

‘‘The email was sent out of a duty of care to our people reassuring them that the alleged behaviours have no place in our organisation,’’ the spokesperson said.

‘‘We are not aware that the allegations on the social media site involve any NZME staff, past or present.’’