Your say: tell us what you think. ----------------------------------------------



Some have called for the show to be axed. 'We apologise to anyone we have upset' The ABC's director of TV, Kim Dalton, and The Chaser's executive producer, Julian Morrow, said in a statement that they acknowledged the distress the segment caused and apologised to those who were upset by it.

"The sketch in last night’s show ... was a satirical sketch and black comedy.



"The ABC and The Chaser did not intend to hurt those who have been affected by the terminal illness of a child. We acknowledge the distress this segment has caused and we apologise to anyone we have upset.



"As a result, ABC TV will edit the segment out of tonight’s repeat screening on ABC2 and online." The Make-A-Wish foundation said in a statement that The Chaser skit had "misrepresented the motives of the children and families that apply for wishes" with their organisation.

"Make-A-Wish prides itself on the notion that a child's wish is limited only by their imagination.



"Our mission involves granting wishes to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy," said chief executive Sandy Brattstrom. 'Hang their heads in shame'

Mr Rudd said the satirical program was guilty of extremely poor taste, and it was not fair to target sick kids.

"I actually don't mind The Chaser taking the mickey out of me or any other politician at any time or any place, that's fine, that's fair game,'' Mr Rudd told reporters. "But having a go at kids with a terminal illness is really beyond the pale, absolutely beyond the pale.

"These guys collectively should get up and hang their heads in shame, it's just wrong.'' 'This isn't the first time they've done this' There has also been backlash from the Australian Workers' Union, and Ron Delezio, father of young car crash survivor Sophie Delezio who's previously been the subject of a Chaser skit.

"This isn't the first time they've done this,'' Mr Delezio told Fairfax Radio. "Who do I have to go to ... whether it is the Prime Minister or whoever, to put a stop to this show?''

In the skit, child actors wrapped in bandages and with sickly looking make-up were given a stick and a pencil case instead of their wishes to go to Disneyland or meet teenage heart-throb Zac Efron. Viewers vented their anger on an ABC website this morning, with one describing it as the most appalling thing to be aired on television. 'What on Earth were they thinking?'



A father of a terminally ill seven-year-old boy said he had always been a fan of The Chaser but was shocked it would make light of the foundation, with which his family had been involved. "I will now have to go and accompany my wife who is presently consoling our son in his bedroom about his pending fate and agonising death, which this show did nothing but exacerbate the issue," he wrote after the show aired.

He said he would try to have the taxpayer-funded show cancelled. "I couldn't believe it when the 'make a realistic wish' skit came on the show tonight, and particularly the closing line of 'they're going to die anyway'," he wrote. "What on Earth were the people involved with the show thinking? Not only the morons that came up with the idea of the skit but also all the people down the production line who approved it."

Another viewer said the skit should never have been aired. "My God. It's utterly unfathomable that these arseholes could be that callous and unfeeling in the search for a cheap laugh," the post read.

Another said the ABC should immediately end The Chaser team's contract. "The 'make a realistic wish' skit was the most appalling thing I have ever seen on TV," it read. "Are these idiots so insensitive that they would send up children in such a sad situation."

One post simply said it was a "chase too far". "Preying on sick kids and their families for a laugh? Utterly, utterly, utterly repulsive," one post read.

'They shot themselves in the foot' Other viewers who said the rest of the episode was funny still voiced concerns about the controversial skit. "Yes, I found it so funny that I had to remove myself from the room to breath as I was laughing so hard," one audience member wrote.

"However, I think they shot themselves in the foot with the Make a Wish. Death can be funny ... but this wasn't funny, it was way too raw." The episode also featured a skit that mocked a viewer writing a letter of complaint to the ABC about The Chaser.

The Make a Wish Foundation has not yet responded to calls from smh.com.au. with Glenda Kwek and AAP

