Diary: Stories we could tell ... Inspired by HK's naked news anchor

This time around, we've taken our inspiration from Hong Kong's communications giant turned entertainment provider. PCCW, itself borrowing a fig leaf from Canada's nakednews.com with the launch of the Cantonese Fire/Ice News on its adult channel.

The supposedly altruistic gesture - you'll have to nod your head with tongue firmly in cheek when you hear the reason - is to turn locals onto the news with the city's first naked anchor, 18-year-old Chan Long, a one-time model of an adult magazine.

Diary can only surmise that all those interminable debates on patriotism that dominate local news these days have finally forced PCCW to take matters in hand and perk up Hong Kong's flagging attention spans. Still, Diary can't help wonder where local tastes run to when it comes to anchors in the buff, since Chan looks more school librarian than Lan Kwai Fong Lolita.

Then again, what do we know about naked anchors. One media executive watching the news (all in the name of research, of course) believes there were only two types of people who will tune in - those "curious" to get to the bottom of the programming, and "perverts".

On that note, let's get back to the more serious issue at hand which this development has so brilliantly inspired. In honour of PCCW's broadcast innovation, Diary thinks it's time we had the Naked Agency of the Year awards. What better way to trump the pesky Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which has forced ad gencies to hide their light under their own bushel.

Let's give new meaning to the industry's favourite buzzword - transparency - by sending submissions for the awards in the buff, birthday suits, that sort of thing.

To get the ball rolling, Diary has unearthed a print ad from 1992 calling for agency entries. Despite coming in for some flak back then, we're sure the 4As won't begrude its use since Diary's taking the competition to a whole new level.