Do we like Dr Chris Brown?
Our score: 7 out of 10. Nothing harmful turned up in his words or the company he keeps, and he seems decent, but the record is thin on causes.
Chris Brown is the vet you've seen on telly for two decades. He told one interview he was “obsessed with animals from a young age”, and he made it his career: he hosted Bondi Vet from 2008, then moved through The Living Room and I'm A Celebrity. He also runs a pet supplement and cleaning products company called Drool.
The latest news is a big swerve into radio. ARN has confirmed he, Amy Gerard and Jack Charles will take over KIIS 1065's Sydney breakfast slot from 9 November. They inherit it after a messy, very public falling-out between Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O Henderson that ended in legal action. Brown promised “a huge dose of real life, warmth and (hopefully) humour”.
Sandilands, who isn't known for gentle reviews, told his own show he didn't know Brown well but found him “a bit vanilla”, adding that it was alright. Brown hasn't replied that we could find. For a bloke taking over a shock-jock seat, being called nice and bland is a compliment our house would take.
The harm check came up clean, but honestly short. We found no campaigning against LGBTQ+ people, women or migrants, no conspiracy theories and no grievance-merchant slide, and nothing about who he works with that raised a flag. The coverage we could open mostly doesn't touch politics at all, so this is a pass on what's there, not a pass earned by speaking up.
So would we back him? Yes. He appears to be a genuinely decent bloke who treats people as well as animals, saying a good vet's job is as much about people as pets. He isn't a campaigner for anyone, and the record is thin, so seven out of ten is fair: a safe pair of hands.