maybe miquita should stop talk, talk, talking that blah, blah, blah

so miquita oliver has been temporarily suspended from t4 for calling tik tok singer ke$ha a very rude name after interviewing her at the nme awards. within the earshot of her management. not a very good idea, of course but should we be surprised? should channel 4 be surprised? should she have been suspended?

my initial kneejerk reaction was 'no' to all of the above. alongside glossy hair, interesting cardigans and general good looks, something which all t4 personalities have in common is their irreverent, awkward and arrogant presenting style which often strays from edgy into downright offensive.
take simon amstell, former popworld presenter and miquita's co-host on the show which launched her career, whose gloriously enjoyable, surreal interview technique ensured interviewees and viewers alike were never quite sure what to expect. i remember he once asked busted which of the sugababes they thought "smelled their fingers" the most - a ridiculously crude, offensive line of questioning of course, but compared with the inane "if you could have anyone round for a dinner party..." type line of questioning from fellow pop presenters ant & dec & cat & fearne & co., simon and miquita's cutting approach was refreshing and entertaining and gained them a cult following, along with a t4 contract for miquita which would run for years to come.

add to this the fact that miquita was also sacked from radio 1 for branding fearne cotton a "devil" and calling for her to be sacked, it seems to me that this recent episode is not entirely out of charcter. it seems frustrating to me that t4 would simultaneously exploit and reprimand the one quality in miquita which attracts so many viewers and fans.

but does this excuse miquita's abusive behaviour? no, of course it doesn't. and despite the fact that the comment was muttered under the presenter's breath and the popstar was never meant to hear the insult, the incident took place in the workplace and therefore for channel 4 to ignore the complaint and not enforce any form of discipline would appear negligent, irresponsible and encouraging of abusive behaviour.

therefore i agree that there must be consequences for irresponsible, unprofessional behaviour whether or not it is deemed entertaining or not. but i wonder how all the other popstars and celebrity interviewees who have endured the t4 treatment without the grace of a public apology feel in the light of this...? like britney, for example, who broke down after a particularly persistant "are you nuts?" line of questioning. poor britters - she got a rough deal compared with ke$ha if you ask me...