Newspaper's fighting bear debunked | Media Watch

Key Concepts:

• Election 2025: Federal election, campaign strategies, use of influencers.
• Budget Lockup: Government's detailed plans for the next 12 months.
• Influencer Marketing: Utilizing social media personalities for political messaging.
• Ben Robert Smith Case: Defamation case, war crimes allegations, legal challenges.
• Ethical Journalism: Boundaries, conflicts of interest, source protection.
• Media Misinformation: Doctored images, lack of due diligence, impact on public perception.
• Vojtek the Bear: Historical figure, misrepresented image, lessons in media literacy.

1. Election 2025 and the Rise of Influencer Marketing

• The next federal election is anticipated, with both major parties actively engaging in social media strategies.
• A new trend involves inviting influencers on the campaign trail and into the budget lockup.
• The Labor party paid travel costs for as many as 13 influencers to come to Canberra and conduct interviews.
• The rationale is that traditional media is losing reach, especially among younger demographics (18-24 year olds, almost 2/3 access news via social media).
• Millie Rose Banister, an influencer, believes they can reach audiences traditional media cannot.
• Peter Dutton also enjoyed an easy run from Olympic diver Sam Fricker last week.
• The concern is that parties will use these channels to "manipulate and spin and propagandize."

2. Budget Lockup and Influencer Access

• Tick-tockers, podcasters, and Instagrammers were invited into the budget lockup for the first time.
• They were given early access to the government's detailed plans for the next 12 months.
• They were granted one-on-one interviews with ministers and MPs.
• The labor party was so thirsty for the attention of these newbies it paid the travel costs for some of them to be there.
• The experience can be intimidating, especially with little experience or institutional backing.

3. Ben Robert Smith Case: New Legal Challenge and Ethical Concerns

• Ben Robert Smith launched a fresh legal challenge appealing a defamation judgment over war crimes allegations.
• Recordings emerged where journalist Nick McKenzie is heard claiming to have admitted Ben Robert Smith's ex-wife and a friend were briefing him on the War veterans legal strategy.
• An anonymous email containing a recording of Nick McKenzie was sent to Ben Robert Smith's lawyers.
• The recording captures McKenzie in conversation with "person 17," a witness in the case.
• McKenzie is heard saying he "breached my ethics" by revealing information to person 17.
• The information concerned Emma Roberts (Ben Robert Smith's estranged wife) and Danielle Scott being on their side.
• McKenzie had been instructed by his lawyers not to disclose this information.
• Ben Robert Smith's camp alleges that Emma Roberts secretly accessed her ex-husband's emails and fed information to McKenzie.
• Robert Smith had previously sued his ex-wife seeking to restrain her access to a jointly controlled email account.
• McKenzie also mentioned a sensitive police investigation, potentially jeopardizing it.
• The West Australian gave the story significant coverage, but its proprietor, Kerry Stokes, had funded Ben Robert Smith's case.

4. Ethical Considerations and Journalistic Integrity

• The recording raises questions about Nick McKenzie's ethical conduct and potential breaches of legal privilege.
• Nine maintains full confidence in its reporter and denies any breach of legal privilege or ethical concerns.
• Sher Markson is criticized for not contacting person 17 for the full recording and for omitting important context about her defamation evidence.
• The court ruled against person 17, finding some of her evidence not sufficiently reliable.
• The testimony of Robert Smith's former Brothers in-arms brought him down.

5. Vojtek the Bear: Media Misinformation and Due Diligence

• The Australian newspaper published a story about Vojtek, a bear who accompanied Polish troops in World War II.
• The story was accompanied by a doctored image showing Vojtek alongside Nazi paratroopers.
• The image was created by German film student Pascal flks for a film unrelated to the real Vojtek.
• The Australian removed the fake photograph from its website after being contacted.
• The incident highlights the importance of due diligence and fact-checking in journalism.

6. Notable Quotes

• Nick McKenzie: "No I shouldn't tell you I've just breached my ethics doing that."
• Sher Markson: "I would have thought you'd be asking your long-term friend and former colleague Nick McKenzie what he meant when he said he'd breached his ethics rather than trying to identify the source of a recording that a federal court judge found significant enough to schedule an urgent hearing for."
• Pascal flks: "The film tells the story of my grandfather's past as an artistic choice I abstracted my grandfather into the figure of a bear to convey the story."

7. Synthesis/Conclusion

The video covers diverse topics, from the evolving landscape of political campaigning with the rise of influencers to serious questions about journalistic ethics in the Ben Robert Smith case and the importance of media literacy highlighted by the Vojtek the Bear misinformation. It underscores the need for critical evaluation of information, especially in the digital age, and the responsibilities of journalists to maintain ethical standards and conduct thorough research. The use of influencers in politics raises concerns about manipulation, while the Ben Robert Smith case highlights the complexities of reporting on sensitive legal matters. The Vojtek the Bear story serves as a cautionary tale about the spread of misinformation and the importance of due diligence.