The Press Council considered whether its Standards of Practice were breached by the publication of a cartoon in the Herald Sun on 21 May 2024 captioned “AUSTRALIA’S FRONT DOOR”.
The cartoon depicts Prime Minister Anthony Albanese winding up a drawbridge with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton striding bare chested towards him saying “STEP ASIDE ALBO”. In the background are people with predominantly brown skin, with some wearing head coverings such as hijabs, and carrying suitcases who are clinging to, clambering over, and marching down the drawbridge that is being wound up. In the foreground there are a number of people also wearing head coverings and carrying suitcases, who are all proceeding past Mr Albanese.
In response to a complaint received, the Council asked the publication to comment on whether the material breached its Standards of Practice which requires publications to take reasonable steps to avoid causing or contributing materially to substantial offence, distress or prejudice, or a substantial risk to health or safety, unless doing so is sufficiently in the public interest (General Principle 6).
The Council noted that the complaint raised concerns that the cartoon suggests that the immigrants are mostly Muslims from the Middle East and Africa and does not portray the reality of immigration into Australia which is led by people from India, China and the Philippines. The complaint noted that in this context, the cartoon’s portrayal of the immigrants’ ethnicity is offensive, and the way they are drawn is a racial stereotype of Muslims from the Middle East and Africa, which is prejudicial. The complaint also expressed concern that the cartoon depicted Dutton as a superhero capable of winding up the drawbridge, and by implication protecting Australia from such immigrants.
In response, the publication said the cartoon should be considered in context of the political debate concerning Australia’s dramatic 73% increase in immigration and whether Australia could sustain such levels. The publication said the cartoon seeks to illustrate the increase in immigration by drawing a crowd of entrants coming in Australia's front door, which is depicted metaphorically as a drawbridge. It said the cartoon is not about who is coming in, but more about the number of immigrants entering, and it depicted a wide range of ethnic groups which are visible in Australian society from India, Africa, Asia and elsewhere. It said the cartoon’s depiction of the immigrants is not critical or racist but simply depicts the diversity of the immigrant intake. The publication said Mr Albanese’s depiction in the cartoon sees him attempting to stem the flow of intake with the visual metaphor of him labouring hard on raising the drawbridge, while Mr Dutton is depicted in a comedic fashion as a ‘hairy chested’ muscle man. It noted that the term ‘hairy chested’ is used in politics when a politician is voicing strongly worded opinions or is ‘gung-ho’ on an issue.
Conclusion
The Council recognises that cartoons are expressions of opinion that often use exaggeration and absurdity to make a point on serious issues. For this reason, the Council has given significant latitude to cartoons when considering whether a publication has taken reasonable steps to avoid substantial offence, distress or prejudice. Nonetheless, the Council also recognises that the significant public interest in allowing freedom of expression must be weighed against the equally significant public interest in not causing or contributing to offence or prejudice.
The Council accepts that the intention of the cartoon was to comment on the political debate surrounding the immigration numbers and not on who or where the immigrants were arriving from. The Council also accepts that it was not the cartoonist’s intention to cause offence or prejudice. However, the Council considers that the depiction of the immigrants, which it notes is not reflective of the ethnic and geographical composition of migrant arrivals into Australia, together with the raising of the drawbridge, implies that such immigrants are undesirable. The Council considers that in the context of a national political debate concerning the potential negative effects of the significant immigration increase on Australian society, the depiction of such people as mostly brown skinned, with prominent facial features and attire that reflects a stereotypical portrayal of people from the Middle East and Africa, including Muslims, is offensive and prejudicial.
While the Council recognises the public interest in commenting on the political debate around immigration, the Council does not consider it was sufficient to justify the substantial offence and prejudice caused or contributed to in choosing to depict the immigrants in the manner in which it did. Accordingly, the Council concludes that the publication failed to take reasonable steps to avoid causing or contributing materially to substantial offence and prejudice in breach of General Principle 6.
Relevant Council Standards
This Adjudication applies the following General Principles of the Council.
“Publications must take reasonable steps to:
- Avoid causing or contributing materially to substantial offence, distress or prejudice, or a substantial risk to health or safety, unless doing so is sufficiently in the public interest.”