AFR you sure? This morning The Australian Financial Review ran a story, nominally about the “crusade of women journos” making trouble for the Morrison government. But more specifically it’s about news.com.au’s Samantha Maiden — a journalist whose work has formed the spine of the current historical moment, shattering the cone of silence that has so long existed around harassment in Parliament House.
The profile has been characterised by some as a hit piece, though it seems to allude to more than it’s willing to explicitly state. As a result, the tone lands extremely strangely, typified by the fact it initially included deeply private details of Maiden’s life (since removed).
Certainly if a man were producing one blockbuster story after another, setting the national debate and having a big part in bringing about changes that have already seen ministers moved and a backbencher offer his (quite ridiculously elongated) resignation, it’s hard to imagine an AFR profile describing him as “difficult” or “spiky”, or referencing the “anger” or “activism” behind the stories.
We called AFR editor-in-chief Michael Stutchbury, who denied it was a hit piece. “I think it was a very reasonable ‘both sides’, if you like, look at one part of what are extraordinary times,” he said.
When we asked about the public interest of publishing private details of Maiden’s life, he defended the inclusion and when we asked why then it had been removed he said “I’m not up with that”. We didn’t hear back from Maiden.
Who’s in command of that? On Monday, the official US Strategic Command Twitter account posted a string of seemingly unrelated letters and punctuation. Lest we thought it may have shared the launch codes or some such, an apologetic follow up “please disregard this post” swiftly followed.
Via a Freedom of Information application from The Daily Dot’s Mikael Thalen, we now know that their Twitter manager had left his computer unattended, allowing a “very young child” to take charge of the keyboard.
First, we hope the manager doesn’t have any older kids who think it might be funny to start talking smack online about Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities. Second, an FOI application answered in a day? What a country.
The Canavan rolls on Yesterday Senator Matt Canavan stepped out in defence of his constituents (by his own admission, coal companies) and took exception to an ABC story that provided evidence Adani was doing business with the military junta in Myanmar.
“More systemic racism from the ABC,” he tweeted. I mean, we’re not sure who this is supposed to be racist against — the giant multinational coalminer or the leadership of a military coup?
Then again, Canavan has never displayed a great deal of understanding or curiosity about systemic racism. Remember when he thought it would be funny to post a photo of a ute with the slogan “black coal matters” pasted on the side?
Read the article about Samantha Maiden in the AFR. Disgusted, and have emailed the AFR to say so. If we don’t like the message we have to shoot the messenger! Porter going after Ms Milligan for the same reason. Do male reporters get the same treatment?
All these issues make me wonder when Morrison will meet his Porterloo.
… AFR editor-in-chief Michael Stutchbury, who denied it was a hit piece. “I think it was a very reasonable ‘both sides’, if you like, look at …
No I do not bloody like. I have been very impressed by the range of women journos who have kept up the calling out of appalling behaviour for more than six weeks now. I was pleased to see Sam Maiden on ABC on Monday evening introducing the Australian Story article on Kate Ellis’s book following earlier appearances on The Drum and Insiders.
Stutchbury is a dinosaur and it’s attitudes like his that are a big part of the problem.
Good example of what is wrong with our nativist conservative legacy media and politics; even the supposed centre left Tingle, when at the AFR and on the ABC, came across as centre right or right on many issues adhering to the LNP line.
However, Stutchbury provides a good example of what’s wrong and how little self reflection goes on…. ‘both sides’ semantics or linguistic gambit is used too often nowadays.
It’s also used as ‘oppositionism’ in denigrating any Labor, Greens etc. policy or MP; ‘both sides’ is merely a revamped version of the Soviet and now Russian political media tactic of ‘whataboutery’ (possibly introduced by GOP grifters).
“Second, an FOI application answered in a day? What a country.”
Yes, indeed. Even under Trump the USA continued to enjoy a genuine, healthy FOI process that allowed journalists, citizens and citizens’ rights organisations access to real information.
Our so-called FOI process is such a sad, debauched, neutered creature it should be taken out the back and, out of kindness, shot.
Senator Cosplay is one of the dumbest rocks in a quarry full of them.
“More systemic racism from the ABC.”
OMG, that’s gold. A light has dawned upon me, I now understand, the words, the behaviours, all of it.
These LNP geniuses don’t understand words, or that words convey meanings. On that basis they cannot be held accountable for anything they say, and because they don’t understand words, the word ‘No’ holds no meaning. Nor do they understand ‘get your hand off it’.
Everything is clear now.