There is nothing a campaigning politician likes more than a good photo opportunity and a flattering image. Scott Morrison, who has long had his own personal photographer on staff, has perfected the art.
Take the black and white portrait of a studious PM working diligently as he flew west for an election campaign visit on Monday. The shot was taken by former News Corp photographer Adam Taylor, now the PM’s personal snapper, and published on the front page of the West Australian under the headline “PM’s Blueprint for Perth”. It was in stark contrast to the front pages lampooning Anthony Albanese’s election campaign, like “Does he Know his A*** from his Albo” and “Albasneezy”.
Adam Taylor was credited on the photograph but there was no indication the photo was supplied by the prime minister’s office. An average reader would assume Taylor was working for a media organisation.
The front page of tomorrow's The West Australian. pic.twitter.com/U5mrjykN3G
— The West Australian (@westaustralian) April 17, 2022
Now Barnaby Joyce has joined in, appointing another highly skilled former News Corp photographer, Brad Hunter, to his personal staff to shoot his colourful antics on what is known as the Wombat Trail.
And haven’t the Murdoch mastheads embraced the images. The Courier Mail published a pic of Joyce with a horse at the Paradise Lagoons Campdraft in Queensland on Easter Saturday. The Daily Telegraph ran no fewer then seven of Hunter’s photos in one story, six of them of the deputy PM frolicking with his two young boys and partner Vikki Campion at a water park. All the photos credited the deputy prime minister’s office. Of course the Daily Mail loved the water park pictures too.
The Australian ran a portrait of a statesman-like Joyce in an Akubra in a rural setting, crediting Brad Hunter, but not adding the disclaimer that he worked for the deputy prime minister.
A spokesman for Joyce confirmed that Hunter, who was on Tony Abbott’s staff in 2015, was recently put on the Nationals leader’s payroll.
“Unlike the Labor party, which gags its MPs and staff, photographic content produced by the deputy prime minister’s office is freely available upon request,” he told Weekly Beast.
“You’ll never see Penny Wong and Kristina Keneally in front of a coalmine, but the Nationals are proud to support regional industries and we’re not afraid to show it.”
Anthony Albanese has digital producers who make content for social media platforms but does not employ a former newspaper photographer, a spokesman said. However, Bill Shorten did employ Andrew Meares, a former Sydney Morning Herald staff member, when he was leader.
The Sydney Morning Herald and the Age have a policy of not publishing the handout photographs, a Nine spokesman told Weekly Beast. Under “exceptional circumstances” – such as Morrison meeting Joe Biden – a photograph may be used but would be clearly marked as from the PMO. Guardian Australia has a similar policy, only publishing handouts when the prime minister is overseas and no other image is available.
In the Klink
On Friday the Daily Telegraph splashed with a story that condemned a Labor party branch for “offensive posts” which included memes using Nazi imagery – from the 60s TV show Hogan’s Heroes – on its Facebook page.
“In one post, dated March 4, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is seen photoshopped into a Nazi uniform under the caption ‘Bogan’s Heroes’,” the Tele thundered.
“Mr Frydenberg’s mother was a Holocaust survivor and a number of his relatives died in Hitler’s death camps.”
Another post featured Peter Dutton, Michaelia Cash and Linda Reynolds dressed as Nazis under the headline “Scomo’s Heroes”.
But you only need to go back to the 2013 election to find when the Tele was very fond of a Hogan’s Heroes-inspired Nazi photoshopped images itself.
The Daily Telegraph famously photoshopped then PM Kevin Rudd in Luftwaffe uniform with Nazi eagle and swastika, and Anthony Albanese in Wehrmacht helmet and greatcoat on its front page in 2013, prompting international outrage. Earlier the paper likened then communications minister Stephen Conroy to Joseph Stalin on page one.
Sampson under fire over extremist interview
ABC Gruen panellist Todd Sampson is making a two-part documentary for Ten and Paramount+ on “love and hate” in which he explores how the internet has polarised society.
A photograph of the advertising executive-turned-filmmaker standing next to far right extremist Blair Cottrell has sparked renewed debate on Twitter about whether the media should platform far-right figures.
You may have seen this photo going around - it's Blair Cottrell with Todd Sampson.
— Tom Tanuki (@tom_tanuki) April 21, 2022
Todd makes documentaries, and is working on something re: radicalisation and social media.
I was invited to potentially contribute to the project with an interview, perhaps help w/ research etc. pic.twitter.com/7b7QIVnXGe
Weekly Beast understands Cottrell does not feature in the film but tagged along with his friend, neo-Nazi Tom Sewell, who was interviewed at length on camera by Sampson.
Sky News Australia and Triple J’s Hack TV program were both heavily criticised for giving Cottrell a platform to espouse his far-right views in the past.
Sampson and his producer Rebecca Le Tourneau are now under fire from anti-fascists and some people who research the far right who they approached to help with the film and later found out they had spoken to Sewell and Cottrell.
Guardian Australia is not suggesting that Sampson or Le Tourneau in any way support the views of Sewell or Cottrell.
Sewell is saying on Telegram that he is involved in a project which will “ruffle feathers” and if Sampson backs away he’ll post the interviews he recorded in full.
Undiplomatic relations
David Llewellyn-Smith, the editor of Macrobusiness, bills his online publication as “Australia’s leading business and investment blog” but he has some strong opinions when it comes to foreign affairs.
An article about China’s deal with the Solomon Islands contains more than just intemperate language – it calls for Australia to “bomb Honiara”.
“Whatever it takes now to prevent this outcome must happen,” Llewellyn-Smith wrote this week. “Either we undertake to destabilise the islands politically using whatever means necessary or we openly bomb Honiara into submission.
“A smoking crater to Australia’s north is not what anybody wants but it’s transparently preferable to a weaponised Chinese satrap that all but ends Australian freedom.”
Llewellyn-Smith defended his language in the context of how “extreme the risk” is.
“Basically, if a Chinese naval base is allowed to develop in the Solomons it represents a clear and present danger to Australian sovereignty,” Llewellyn-Smith told Beast.
Mea culpa
Crikey’s economics correspondent, Jason Murphy, posted an apology on Twitter this week that was so detailed it won him a great deal of sympathy.
“I wrote a bad article,” Murphy said at the beginning of a very long post. “This thread is my apology, and tells the story of how I went from defensive to accepting that yep, I screwed up.”
I wrote a bad article. This thread is my apology, and tells the story of how I went from defensive to accepting that yep, I screwed up.🧵 1/n
— ☔Jason Murphy (@jasemurphy) April 19, 2022
The apology was in relation to a story about JobSeeker that Murphy now accepted was offensive to many people.
Murphy explained his internal processes about the story from being defensive, “spiky and dickish” online to realising he had failed in his piece.
Instantly, all the abuse he was getting online turned into praise for his courage and openness.
“I owe it to readers to reflect deeply on how I wrote a story containing ideas I disown,” he wrote in Crikey. “It’s not something a person who prides themselves on clear thought should forgive themselves for.
“For me, the revelation is in the term ‘lazy tropes’. Behind deadline, I wrote the article too fast and with too little reflection. In doing so I relied on ideas that came to mind fast, rather than actually searching for the truth.”
Back from ‘holiday’
Some six months after taking a “social media holiday” after posting content which breached the broadcaster’s guidelines, SBS board member Warren Mundine has thrown his support behind Katherine Deves’ controversial campaign about transgender women’s participation in single-sex sports. On Twitter, Mundine said Zali Steggall’s concerns about Deves were “rubbish” and the Liberal candidate was only concerned about “fairness and safety” in women’s sport.
Zali Steggall dismisses parents’ concerns about their daughters in sport as “transphobia”. Rubbish. It’s about fairness & safety. Why should other girls & women not have what you had, Zali? pic.twitter.com/CKmIXl6wLW
— Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO (@nyunggai) April 18, 2022
Last year the SBS board asked Mundine to delete a tweet in which he called journalist Ben Eltham a cunt, saying the tweet was in breach of the board’s code of conduct and did not align with the broadcaster’s values. Mundine apologised for the tweet.
“SBS board members are expected to behave in accordance with the SBS code of conduct and social media protocols,” a spokesman told Weekly Beast about this latest post. “Mr Mundine is aware of his obligations as an SBS board member.”
The image Mundine posted is contested as it appears to show three swimmers formed their own podium against US trans athlete Lia Thomas.
An AAP FactCheck found the image was misleading because the swimmers have spoken of their support for Thomas and footage shows them applauding her victory moments before the photo.
Devine intervention
Murdoch columnist Miranda Devine loves New York so much she has made it her adopted home, joining the New York Post permanently. It appears some New Yorkers, Young Republicans and Donald Trump’s former attorney Rudy Giuliani anyway, love her back.
The former Daily Telegraph columnist headlined alongside Giuliani at New York’s Young Republican Club this week.
Flanked by American flags and underneath chandeliers, Devine looked positively presidential as she addressed the crowd about her book Laptop from Hell, about Hunter Biden’s laptop.
Thank you @mirandadevine for coming out tonight and talking about your groundbreaking reporting and bestseller #LaptopFromHell pic.twitter.com/e294FpwNNu
— New York Young Republican Club (@NYYRC) April 20, 2022
“Are you tired of Fake News journalists?” the club asked. “We are too!”
Up for debate
The ABC is in negotiations with Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese’s camps for an ABC-hosted election debate, which, if it goes ahead, would have a much better chance of being seen by the voting public. The first debate was of course held by Sky News and the Courier Mail in Brisbane, and although it was streamed for free on some platforms, it was not broadcast on free-to-air television, apart from Sky on regional broadcasters. It was also tightly controlled by News Corp, with the non-News Corp travelling press banned from recording or photographing it. The only photographers in the room were from News Corp or the prime minister’s office.
Images by the News Corp photographers were shared with photo desks including wire service AAP, which Guardian Australia used for its coverage.
Every federal election the ABC invites leaders of the main political parties to take part in a debate and this year it has had discussions with both the Morrison and the Albanese camps.
“The proposed debate will be broadcast live across multiple ABC platforms to provide all Australians with an opportunity to hear both leaders express their views on the issues and policies that matter to voters,” a spokesman said. “It will be hosted by experienced political journalist and presenter of ABC Insiders and Q+A David Speers.”
