Erin Molan denies mocking the names of Pacific Islanders on live radio and claims her 'hooka looka' jibe was an 'inside joke' between her co-hosts - but NONE of them are laughing
- Erin Molan made the 'joke' on 2GB's Continuous Call radio show on Saturday
- Panel was discussing pronouncing NRL player names during broadcasts
- Molan put on an accent and said 'hooka looka mooka hooka fooka'
- She has since clarified that it was a reference to a story told on the show in April
Erin Molan has denied she mocked the names of Pacific Islander NRL players or their accent on radio station 2GB's rugby league show.
During a discussion about pronouncing the names of NRL players, Molan, 36, seemingly used an Polynesian accent to say 'hooka looka mooka hooka fooka'.
Instead of laughing, fellow hosts of Saturday's broadcast of The Continuous Call, Darryl Brohman and Mark Levy, sat in awkward silence.
'What? I'm not sure what she said there,' a confused Brohman said about Molan's comments, before Levy quickly moved on to an unrelated topic.
Their confusion comes despite Molan insisting to Daily Mail Australia she was actually referring to an 'in-joke' between the commentary team.
Molan also denied putting on an Polynesian accent during the exchange.
Erin Molan (pictured left) appeared to mock the names of Pacific Islander NRL players live on 2GB radio's The Continuous Call on Saturday
Molan said she had 'no idea' why no-one laughed, and suggested they were distracted by the busy studio.
Both Nine Entertainment, owner of 2GB, and Molan herself said she was referencing a story Brohman told on an April 5 broadcast, about a debate between father and son commentators, Ray and Chris Warren.
The pair were debating how to pronounce the name of reserve Manly forward of Tongan decent, Haumole Olakau'atu.
'His name had about 30 letters in it and I had trouble pronouncing it so I asked Chris "how do you pronounce this bloke's name?" Brohman said.
'He said "well dad and I have been discussing this today... and dad thought his name was Chuka-lala-lulu.
'And I said, "well, dad, I think it's Chuka-lala-lulu-lulu, and he says, Chris, that's incorrect - it's Chukaka-lulalulalo".
The story continued along those with the names getting increasingly complicated until Brohman suggested 'let's just call him Sevi'.
Brohman relayed the story in a voice that mocked the speech of both Ray and Chris Warren, which Molan said she imitated on Saturday.
He appeared to be exaggerating a serious discussion between the Warrens for comedic value and not recounting it word for word.
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On Saturday, Levy said Warren would 'run through all the pronunciations' of players before Saturday night's match.
Molan then interjected by twice saying 'Dad!' in a strange voice, before launching into the nonsensical phrase.
Nine told Daily Mail Australia any perceived racial insensitivity was a misunderstanding as Molan was just referencing a story regular listeners would be familiar with.
Molan on Wednesday night made an Instagram in solidarity with the protests over George Floyd's death, showing white and black hands intertwined
'Erin was was jokingly mocking the difficulty Chris and his father had, going back and forth figuring out how to pronounce a complex name,' it said.
'The Big Marn (Brohman) retelling the story in his very best Ray and Chris Warren voice.'
Molan's repeated interjections of 'Dad!' were referring to this dynamic, Nine said.
Molan on Wednesday night made an Instagram post in solidarity with the protests over George Floyd's death, showing white and black hands intertwined.
'I understand that I will never understand. However, I stand with you,' her caption stated.
Forty-five per cent of NRL players have Pacific Island heritage, swelling from 30 per cent in 2011.
League players come from 116 different countries, and have family ties to 145 through their parents and grandparents.
Molan said she had 'no idea' why no-one laughed, and suggested they were distracted by the busy studio
This is not the first time Molan has used questionable dialogue during a broadcast.
On TV show, 20-to-One, she was widely condemned for mocking K-Pop group BTS.
Molan expressed surprise at the group's chart-topping success in America, because 'only one band member actually speaks English'.
She and co-host Nick Cody took things even further by mocking the group's work with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
While playing a clip of BTS discussing their philanthropic work in a speech to the UN last year, the pair remarked that they must have been speaking about 'hair products'.
