Campbell outted out of politics
Transport and Roads Minister David Campbell was last night forced to resign, after a Channel 7 expose filmed him leaving a gay sex-on premises venue.
On Tuesday night Campbell was filmed leaving Ken’s Karate Klub, a sex-on-premises venue on Anzac Pde, Kensington. It has also been alleged that Campbell had used his ministerial car to drive to and from the club.
The revelation forced Campbell to submit his resignation to Premier Kristina Keneally yesterday evening. Keneally accepted.
Campbell, who is married and has children, issued a statement that the decision was in large part based on a need to spend time with his family.
He is expected to remain in Parliament as a member for the Wollongong seat of Keira.
In response to Gong Lad, sadly the only way dirt could stick to Adam Waters would be if it was shown he too was gay. Digging up heterosexual affairs would enhance his status in the male-dominated media.
This whole episode shows the worst thing in world you can be, as far as commerical media is concerned, is being homosexual – even in 2010. That’s what really depresses me.
Being of the same generation I sympathise with David Campbell.
When he started in politics homosexuality was illegal and the mere suggestion would have been political suicide.
He has not lied to or decieved the public about his gay tendencies, he merely has not mentinoed them and why should he.
He has also done nothing wrong by using his ministerial car as it is allowable for a minister to use it after hours.
One positive factor is that the outcry from the public is against the reporter (who has a less than savory background & reputation) and the 7 network & it’s bosses not Mr Campbell.
Another positive factor is that for over 20 years he (and many others in the public spotlight) have frequented gay bars, beats and saunas and has had his privacy protected by the gay community.
Adam Waters the Ch7 journalist who reported this story is no ‘clean skin’ himself and was described today by his own colleagues in another forum as a “pants man”. One can only hope someone digs some of his skeletons up and makes them public on prime time TV. I have known Dave Campbell as a personal friend for many years and not even I knew of his ‘double life’ as it has been reported, though I had suspected, but that was none of my business. He is a dignified and humble man who I have always respected, even more so now. To do this to not only him, but his sick wife and lovely family is simply the lowest of low acts by a gutless, hypocritical journalist and a desperate, homophobic media outlet. Shame on them all.
Sounds like double-standards to me: when you’re a straight-acting regular family man and you attend a sex-on-premises venue for men you can expect to be humiliated by Kerry Stokes and co.
When you’re a straight, church-going Opposition Leader (apparently a regular family man) you can attend a go-go bar in NYC, get drunk, pretend to be sorry when you get outed, then go on to become the 26th Prime Minister of Australia.
further to my above comment, it’s interesting how many of the media refer to him as ‘gay’. Isn’t bisexuality still on our coalitionist platform? Go into the chatrooms and see how many openly advertise themselves as eieither married or bi.
Love from Hell xo
Has anyone read the article by Paul Kent in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph, May 22?
He ventures into Ken’s to give the straight world a view on what goes on inside a gay men’s sauna.
Before you know it, Ken’s will be the most popular sex venue in Sydney!
I would like to comment about Seven reporter Adam Walters and his total lack of humanism, heart, feelings, whatever you wish to call it in the handling of news relating to Mr Campbell.
He was fully aware Mr Campbell had a wife that was critical ill with cancer, two children and a career. What does Mr Walters do? he goes ahead with the news about Mr Campbell living a double life! Worst still: Channel 7 fully supports him and goes ahead with this revolting story.
You both should be totally ashamed of yourselves. I sincerely hope nobody ever does to you what you have done to Mr Campbell.
And by the way how many wives have you Mr Walters had and why have you been so unsuccessful in keeping them? If you were so gutsy as to “out” Mr Campbell, why aren’t you “gutsy” now and tell us about your failed marriages! Shame on you Mr Walters, shame on you!!!
Shame Channel 7. Shame.
The reporter involved is a self effacing small person who has only thought of himeslf and his own career in “Scooping” this fundamentally boring story. His actions have only caused hurt and unnecessary damage to the man and his family.
Peter Meakin as director of News has defended a grubby and indefensable act by a silly little man.
Shame on them all!
Keep your chin up David – you’ve handled it with great dignity so far!
“He has been promoting himself as a politician with “family values””
Has he really? Where? Urban myth this one I think. If he really has then is that justification for the outing and public humiliation? It’s almost as bad as a third world country the way the Oz media manipulate and control politics and the masses. I just wonder what the hidden agenda was. Why get rid of him now? Election coming up. Et tu Brute?
Well guys. There it is for you. All the hard work over 30 years to get equality, protection and break down homophobia….this is still where we’re at in 2010. This grubby and revolting reporting has shown clear homophobia exists in the Channel 7 newsroom in Sydney.
Are we all gonna sit here and take this shit? Get out there and DO something about it.
Use the channel 7 newsroom number above to call and tell what you think.
Tell the advertisers buying airtime during Today Tonight that you will no longer buy their products.
Who’s up for a Sunrise protest Monday morning in Martin Place?
Unfortunately all Ch7 journos and prrsenters are tarnished by this disgusting journalistic effort.
I have just deleted Channel 7 from my Digital Tuner. The only way to hurt these scumbags is in the pocket. Goodbye to “Better nomes with hard-ons” and no more “Sydney Weekender” for me. Bones will now be replaced in my viewing schedule with Boner! My heart goes out to David and his family and I hope they come through this in one piece.
The thing I think most people are dissapointed about is not that he’s gay, but that he’s cheating on his wife who is battling cancer, and using a government car to do it, him having sex with men just adds to the story.
If he had have gone in his own personal car, he might not have even been followed.
I feel bad for him though, but the funny thing is, if he were going to a straight brothel, the gay community would be judging him the same way as everyone else, as a cheater, but because he’s gay, should we feel sorry for him?
I feel sorry for the family and for him, but he shouldn’t have cheated in the first place, if he realised he’s gay, he should have divorced his wife. I highly doubt he’s only just realised he’s gay since she began battling cancer.
David Campbell did no wrong. Is being Bi a crime. No. Being Bi is a blessing. Chanel 7 have just taken their form of journalism back to about 1943. Great move 7.
Shame on Channel 7. David Campbell was a supportive police minister to the gay and lesbian community and attempted to bring about a better working relationship between the police (particularly Surry Hills) on issues of homophobic violence. He walked with Maxi and Clover down Oxford St to hear the concerns of the community about homophobic violence.
His choice whether to come out or not was his choice alone. That he actually supported gay and lesbian causes in his own public way make this episode particularly unfair.
The gay community should boycott channel 7. All I can think when I see David Campbell on tv is “you poor bastard”. It was illegal to be a gay male in this state until 1984, and many of us of the generation following him can only imagine the hell growing up gay would have been for him.
I was almost in tears thinking about the pain, trauma and frustration this guy would have faced in his life leading up to this point.
I would hope that David Campbell and his family receive some kindness in this world that is still very harsh to gay people, I would certainly hope to see a lot of kindness and good will coming from the gay community towards one of our own who has suffered a great deal from homophobia.
PROTEST – ring the Channel 7 newsroom 8777 7804 and register your disgust.
I hope , if you print comment at all, that you , the GAY PRESS, handle coverage of David Campbell’s resignation as sensitively as possible.
Channel 7 have humiliated a man and destroyed a career, and I would think, brought huge shock and stress to him, his family and friends
Read the many many comments already posted on news.com and smh.com.au this morning and also the SSO own web site.
I agree totally with the comment above by Tony
Back to the 1950’s we go. Shame on you channel 7. Kerry Stokes needs to be made accountable.
Can SSO please do some investigations and see where he voted on issues that affected our community. I think thatwill be the most telling part of this story.
He wasn’t a morals crusader.
There was no public interest in outing him.
Shame on Channel 7.
This morning the journalist, Adam Walters admitted on 2UE the Minister had done nothing illegal, but that
A sad day for all Gays and Lesbians
This is just ugly homophobia at its worst.
The only thing Mr Campbell did wrong was to be found out he was gay.
Those of you like me who thought that homophobia was slowly dying out I think we were just fooling ourselves.
I feel sorry for David and Edna Campbell. Premier Keneally’s judgemental excuses today were pitiful. It is not her job to weigh in as a morality cop and commentator-in-chief on the lawful activity of ministers in their private lives. If she is proposing that marital fidelity and/or being “out of the closet” are conditions of office, then she is living in an alternate reality. As for Channel 7, this is a dirty deed, done apparently for no genuine good cause in the public interest. If Campbell was a homophobe in public and trying to use the power of the state to persecute gays while leading a very different private life, there would arguably be a public interest basis for exposure but this does not appear to be the situation here. The only person who has any dignity intact is Barry O’Farrell who has rightly and responsibly declined to make any comment. He doesn’t need to, with Premier Keneally on her soapbox.
I am angered and upset about David Campbell’s ‘outing’. He’s done nothing against us. I’m pleased the first two comments, above, were so balanced. Gawd, if you can’t have discression & privacy at Ken’s where can you?
Love from Hell xoxoxo
Resigned because he has been living a double life – for whatever reason. He has been promoting himself as a politician with “family values” as his prime cause and at the same time leading the double life of so many others trapped by the trauma of trying to be something that they aren’t. He was the Mayor of Wollongong – and like some others before him in that position – leading a life that was contradictory, hypocritcial and destructive (for the individual, and devastatingly so for his wife and children, and those who have supported him in his political life).
It would be good if other politicians and commentators could look beyond the sensation of this and recognise the difficulty faced by Campbell and many others like him, in coming to terms with his sexuality, living a dual existence to meet others expectations, and at the same time, speaking out against that which they really are. Feel sorry for him? A bit. Feel sorry for his wife, children and supporters? Absolutely. But also recognise the hypocrisy of his efforts to maintain that double life of deception, and the utter stupidity of someone in his position going to a place like Ken’s and expecting NOT to be noticed and reported by someone!
Invasion of David Cambell’s private life by Ch7 is appauling and they have defamed and victimised innocent children and wife of David. Ch7 in civilised terms should have disclosed this matter privately to David Campbell’s family rather than telecasting to public. David has done nothing wrong to the public by being gay. David only appologised to his family not to the public since he has done nothing wrong to the public. Ch 7 should appologise by damaging his family’s integrity by this dirty act.
Ch 7 news director/team suffer from tall popy syndrome and going for easy and cheap ratings and popularity and is disgusting. They are unable to find popularity in a civilised way means they are moraly bankrupt. Ch7 news director/team should really look at their own private lives and their private secrets the same way if some one crept their dirty nose into their own secret affairs.
Resigned because?