What The?

The Nine Network has gone too far with a current affairs program about a spate of teenager suicides in Geelong, according to Victorian Premier John Brumby.

The premier on Tuesday said the government would join the national depression initiative beyondblue (Chaired by Jeff Kennett, who always liked to dictate to the public. Remember, that's why he got unanimously kicked out of office in the end) in a legal bid to stop the 60 Minutes program going to air.

Beyondblue won a last-minute injunction to stop the story, about the suicides of four students at a Geelong school, being broadcast last Sunday.

The network will seek to have the injunction lifted at a hearing in the Victorian Supreme Court on Wednesday.

Mr Brumby said the government had strong views about the issue.

"The reality is that the issues in relation to suicide are very, very sensitive issues indeed," he told reporters. "The last thing you want to do with this issue is normalise it. The last thing you want to do is create an environment where copycat behaviour becomes the norm - that is the best professional advice."

Mr Brumby said the government strongly supported the freedom of the press (Ed note - apparently not) but occasionally it had to step in to protect the public. (Ed note - No, Mr Brumby, "the freedom of the press" doesn't work that way)

He said he had not seen the program (Ed note - What? Brumby hasn't even seen the footage. This current batch of politicians are just idiots) but had been told it contained deeply disturbing footage.

(Ed note - Jeff Kennett had not seen the footage either when he went to court for the injunction)

"We don't believe the public interest is served by the presentation of this material," Mr Brumby said. (Remember, material he hasn't even seen) "On occasions, there will be times when we think something has overstepped the mark and overstepping the mark puts ... the health and welfare, and potentially the lives, of people at risk - and this is one of those circumstances."

What is it with the governments of Australia, lately? Just balance the books, guys. You are elected pen pushers. You are not there to censor or socially engineer. The public don't care what your (uninformed) personal views are. If the public don't like a TV program they will stop watching. We don't want you interfering.

Freedom of speech!

Freedom of the press!