"Authorities decided to pursue the investigation after listening to a tape of the Jan. 12 "Morning Rave" show that was obtained by The Sacramento Bee. On the tape, disc jockeys can be heard joking about the possible dangers of consuming too much water. They even alluded to a Chico State University student who died during a hazing stunt in 2005 after drinking large amounts of water. "
Sounds like the DJs knew the danger.
The issue it the large consumption of water in a short time, NOT if it was voluntary or forced.
I am saying that the DJs knew it was dangerous and did not have medical personnel available to monitor the health of the patients. Their main failure came after the contest was over and not ensuring the contestants were medically screened to determine if they needed to be sent to a hospital.
Not to me, considering the sources were a) a caller who claimed to be a nurse and b) a story of a student who was forced to drink (how much?) water.
Now, if you want to say the DJs were ignorant of the danger and should have known better, that is something I can agree with. But knew the danger? C'mon.