Throng

TVNZ said it makes nothing from Dancing With The Stars voting but is refusing to reveal exactly where the money goes. The broadcaster has reacted angrily to calls from former contestant Georgina Beyers to announce what proportion of each 99 cents vote goes to celebrities' charities.

TVNZ executive Andrew Shaw is reported to have said the former Labour MP should "stick to being a bad politician". But yesterday Beyers, who appeared in the first series, said viewers had a right to know and the secrecy even extended to contestants.

TVNZ spokeswoman Melanya Burrows said the state-owned enterprise had always been up front about how money was divided.

"TVNZ takes nothing," Burrows said. "There are charges from the telecommunication and vote-counting companies but how much is commercially sensitive and confidential."

Source: NZ Herald. Read more »