LEAD STORY: TV3 doco forced girl into hiding | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

It was just a 15 minute snippet of current events TV but it was enough to force one Flaxmere man's daughter into hiding out of fear she will suffer more beatings, ridicule or even take her own life.

The man, who did not want to be named to protect his family from retribution, said the documentary aired by TV3 in April last year had "torn his family apart".

The 60 Minutes segment entitled Girls' in the Hood purported to shed light on an issue of girl gang culture in Flaxmere.

The show followed the story of 'PT', a troubled teen who was trying to make steps toward a better way of life.

Four teens aged between 12 and 16 were shown wearing gang-style clothing and reinacting burglary and tagging offences disguised only by loose bandannas which slipped down during the show.

The girls, one the 14-year-old daughter of the Flaxmere man, were not interviewed but the reporter said they had told her they were drinking and getting into fights.

They were also portrayed to be in gangs, have gang-affiliated families and would be "prepared to take on anyone", her father said.

Some viewers took up the challenge soon after the show aired, he said.

"She's been beaten, she's been ridiculed and she's had death threats," the man said.

"It's just not safe for her around here so I had to send her out of town to family. She had no idea what she was getting herself into at the time."

The solo father coaches disadvantaged children in sport. His church pastor came to visit while Hawke's Bay Today was at his home.

The man said his daughter had also attempted suicide twice.

"She's no angel," her father quickly admitted. She had gotten into a bit of trouble after her mother died from cancer in 2000 but did not have a criminal record.

"We'd had trouble with her before but nothing like we had after that show," he said.

"It's ruined us. These were just kids, How were they to know what they were getting themselves into?"

He made his daughter apologise to her family but he would like a public apology from TV3, a request he said was ignored by the station in the past.

"I want my family back. I want my girl back. This isn't fair. No-one cares about what we're going through or what the other families are going through for that matter," he said.

"You can't just come into Flaxmere, stir all of this up then pack your bags and leave town leaving us to clean up the mess."

The Hastings District Council laid a complaint with the Broadcasting Standards Authority on May 21 last year, citing a breach of privacy and fairness standards which were upheld yesterday.

The authority ordered TVWorks Ltd to broadcast a summary of the decision within a month and to pay the complainant costs of $3560.12 and the Crown costs of $2500.

The man also alleged his daughter and the other girls on the show were paid $25 for their services but he had not been contacted by the BSA or the Hastings District Council to confirm that fact.

The man said while he did not care about monetary reparation, he hoped to get that public apology and to see the money the council was awarded put toward a good cause.

TV3s legal counsel confirmed the TV station would not appeal the BSA decision.