WBTV Producer Defends Portal 2 "Adoption Controversy" Story

The producer of an American news programme has defended his team's coverage of "insensitivity" in Valve's first-person puzzler Portal 2.

Charlotte, Carolina-based WBTV News originally ran a story that suggested Valve were mocking players for being adopted. An out-of-context clip showing robot companion Wheatley was aired, along with a family who were distraught at their adopted Chinese daughter being called "fatty fatty no-parents."

Producer Josh Roberts later told SPOnG that he aims to follow up on the story with comments from fans of Portal 2, and highlighted that the family in question still enjoy playing the game.

"I believe our coverage was fair - and it continues," Roberts said. "First, the young girl in this story is 10-years-old, and the game is rated E10. It was age-appropriate.

"Second, we are not taking sides in this story. This is one father, who contacted our station, and complained about an issue that he felt other parents should know about. We did try to contact Valve yesterday, and will continue to solicit their side of the story today.

"Third, tonight we will share many comments from our viewers who support this game. I agree that it's important for all sides to be heard - and we look forward to continuing the conversation."

That story was aired on US TV last night, and can be found here. Unfortunately, this follow-up also provides the Wheatley "fatty no-parents" scene out of context. The dialogue that immediately precedes and follows the controversial line is drowned out in the news story - however, the piece does go out of its way to showcase the point of view of "angry" gamers.

You can see the original WBTV News clip here. Below, here is the exact clip that kicked off the furore in the first place - including Wheatley's reasoning for being nasty and the smackdown from GLaDOS that follows.