It is an old piece of advice – de mortuis nil nisi bonum – don’t speak ill of the dead, at least on the day of a funeral. Good sense and a decent respect for the deceased’s family require the sort of restraint which is almost always given. But uber republican Mike Carlton not only flouted this on the very day of the late Stan Zemanek’s funeral, he seems unable to admit his error. [See this column, “ A despicable act”18 July,2007]
As Fiona Connolly wrote Sydney’s Daily Telegraph on 21 July , 2007, “Mike Carlton signed off his "statement" this week (note: it was not an apology) with the words of a raging egomaniac :’I thank those many listeners who have offered me their support.’ Reading like a victim's impact statement, here was a radio star posing as the maligned party, the target of a rubbishy smear campaign by a tacky, trashy tabloid but gallantly rising above it all thanks the support of his devoted fans.”
Wasn't this all supposed to be an apology to a grieving family, Ms Connolly asked. “In reality,” she said “nothing but an extravagant concern for one person – Mike Carlton.
But spare a thought for 2UE's middle management “with the task of dealing with such an ego on a week like this.” .
”Younger, far less vocal and on a smidgen of Carlton's inflated salary – said to be about $1.8 million – imagine the poor program director or general manager copping the superstar's rage as he rants on the other end of the phone,” she concluded