He most certainly did know he was on the air. If you recall, he gave several print interviews at the time as well.
As to Bill OReilly, hes wrong. People did give a damn. Not as big a damn, he was a minor figure, but he came in for a great deal of criticism. As has the Adelaide Institute with which hes occasionally associated. But no, in the US he wasnt known much, even after moving here, a quarterly newsletter, occasional shortwave interview, but not a lot of prominence.
Like it or not, the film brought him some prominence. A higher profile, keynote speeches at a couple Holocaust denial events, even mainstream print interviews at which he could express his despicable views.
And yes, his higher profile and access to the mainstream media brought more criticism. As it should.
Name one Holocaost denying event he appeared at??
You can say whatever you want, but all of Mel's people say that he did not know that he was on the air. And these media creeps have no reason to be calling him. Again, it says more about you that you think it is all right for these creeps to be callling a senile 90 year old parent of a celebrity than it does about Hutton Gibson.