(Yet another) attempt by Australia’s ruling Labor party, ALP, to crack down on information it considers “disinformation, lies, fake news” – is producing a bit of comic relief.
“I’ll be sure to report all the Labor posts I find so they can investigate themselves,” one social media user commented, summing up the sentiment among both citizens and politicians opposed to the current government and its policies.
Namely, the party has created a reporting page on its official site, where members can submit links to social media content, or upload other “evidence” of “disinformation” – along with providing the APL with their personal details, such as names and emails.
These submissions will then be “reviewed” by the APL, it was announced. Who will do this, and what the “response” might be, is not clear. However, opponents are branding this effort as an example of “hypocrisy and dishonesty.”
And now, some social media users have decided that APL’s own campaign ads are ripe for “review” – and since the page is up, it might be just the place to report them. In this instance, a pro-nuclear energy campaigner reported Labor’s anti-nuclear ads for a “fact-check.”
In the face of growing global energy uncertainty, a number of countries, such as France, are either firmly holding on to nuclear power, or are considering reversing previous anti-nuclear policies.
One of the political “wars” raging in Australia is precisely over whether or not to build nuclear power plants. Leader of the opposition Peter Dutton is a key proponent of nuclear energy, and the Labor ad now reported as “disinformation” expresses the party’s vehement – and overtly alarmist – stance against it.
Perhaps a little too vehement, and incorrect, as nuclear campaigner Will Shackel suggested on social networks, where he announced he’d reported the Labor ad to – Labor.
The ad shows imagery depicting two nuclear cooling towers emitting (black) explosion mushroom-like clouds. Except, what in reality rises from such towers is (white) water vapor.
That’s lie number one, opponents say, and then there’s the claim that Dutton’s proposal is to build these plants “all over Australia.” The number is seven, none anywhere near the Opera House, or a number of other locations shown in other similar ads.
“For months they’ve spread blatant disinformation about nuclear energy and refused to take action against high profile Labor politicians who have done the same,” Shackel told Sky News, adding:
“Whether it be falsely implying nuclear cooling towers emit smoke in mushroom clouds (rather than water vapor)… Dan Repacholi and Jacinta Allen posting images of 3-eyed fish or (Chris) Bowen using a photo of yellow barrels on grassy hills to depict nuclear waste storage.”
