Howard backs Jones in vilification dispute

Prime Minister John Howard has backed embattled Sydney radio identity Alan Jones a day after he was found to have incited violence and vilified people of Middle Eastern descent in the days before race riots in Sydney.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) yesterday found Jones breached the Commercial Radio Code of Practice during his breakfast program between December 5 and 9, 2005.

The authority said the comments broke the code by being "likely to encourage violence or brutality" and "likely to vilify people ... of Middle Eastern background". 

"I am not going to get involved in comments on individual decisions, but let me say this; I think Alan Jones is an outstanding broadcaster," Mr Howard said.

"I don't think he's a person who encourages prejudice in the Australian community, not for one moment, but he is a person who articulates what a lot of people think," he said.

Mr Howard and Mr Jones are very close politically and his support puts him in conflict with the media regulator which now has to determine what penalty to apply.

Mr Howard's support came after Mr Jones attacked the ACMA's determination.

"Anyone who knows me knows I've never encouraged violence or brutality in anything ... and I did the exact opposite but our defences counted for nothing," Mr Jones said this morning on his radio show on 2GB.

 "On countless occasions ... I had as I have regularly on this program opposed violence and brutality and urged people to allow the law to take its course," he said today.