News24, the Murdoch-owned outlet, mistakenly aired a satirical video as an authentic Seven News segment during a broadcast of The Bolt Report, leading to an on-air correction and sharp rebuke from the comedian who created the clip. The blunder occurred on Tuesday when presenter James Macpherson played a portion of the video, crediting it to "Seven News," to illustrate his criticism of the federal government's proposed social media algorithm reforms.
The video, created by the sports comedy group Kick it Forward, depicted its member Josh Garlepp claiming he had quit social media after receiving abuse for posting about Fremantle's finals loss on X. In the mock news report, Garlepp said, "There were 220 comments targeting me physically, mentally, my mum, my dad, my dog," and mentioned insults including "baby flog dick" and "tall lanky freak."
News24 fails to spot the joke
Macpherson presented the clip with apparent seriousness, warning viewers, "I have to warn you, the abuse was shocking. According to the Seven News report, he was called every derogatory name under the sun … He was called a flog, a cuck, he was called woke, he was called a baby penis, and he was called … Albo!" He suggested the clip demonstrated that being called an "Albo" was now a "common online slur" and used it to argue against the government's proposed changes to social media algorithms, which he claimed aimed to "restrict the flow of information" and suppress dissent.
Garlepp responded swiftly on X, expressing disbelief at News24's failure to recognize the parody. "Not only missing the joke but repurposing for their own agenda," he wrote. "The story was parody, made by me and then used against the algorithm legislation. How dumb are these people?" He later told Guardian Australia he did not expect the network to be "as gullible and digitally illiterate as their target audience."
Correction issued after public backlash
On Thursday, News24 issued a correction acknowledging that the clip was "not a genuine news report." The statement read, "News24 apologises for the error. The segment was removed from all online versions of the episode."
This was not the first correction News24 has had to issue since Macpherson took over temporarily at The Bolt Report. On 2 September, guest Rowan Dean falsely claimed that the race discrimination commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman, had not appeared at the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion. Dean and Macpherson were discussing comments Sivaraman made to Guardian Australia about racist social media remarks following the Nepal-Tibet floods, in which he connected the comments to Australia's immigration debate and noted a "real rise in white supremacy ideology."
Dean questioned Sivaraman's absence, asking, "Why wasn't the race discrimination commissioner at the royal commission … talking about the racism that is absolutely inherent in many of the teachings that go on in radical Islamic places?" In fact, Sivaraman had appeared as a witness during the Royal Commission's hearings in Sydney on 20 August, providing two submissions and a 32-page document with recommendations. News24 posted a correction on 7 September, noting Dean's comment, which it described as coming from a "guest," was "incorrect."
Karl Stefanovic's podcast goes silent
In other media news, speculation has mounted over the whereabouts of Karl Stefanovic, whose podcast, The Karl Stefanovic Show, has not uploaded a new episode since 24 August, when he interviewed anti-ageing surgeon Dr Buck Parker. The show's Instagram page has been dormant since then, and its Facebook page appears deleted. Stefanovic last posted on his personal Instagram on 29 August, sharing a video from an orchard in Griffith, where he said, "Spring is sprunging … Bees are rooting." He has not commented publicly on the hiatus.
Mary Madigan of news.com.au investigated the mystery, noting that the podcast's halt followed Stefanovic being dropped from the media company ARN. "There were industry murmurs that ARN had gone to the trouble of signing Stefanovic not just to stick him in a Friday arvo slot but to groom him to take over the highly coveted Sydney breakfast slot," she wrote, adding that the spot needed filling after "the shocking axing of The Kyle and Jackie O Show in March." Madigan, now employed by Kyle Sandilands, later reported that Stefanovic had "expressed interest" in working with Sandilands, with "private chats" about joining as an afternoon drive host.
Separately, Nine Entertainment has banned the use of smart glasses and wearable devices in its workplaces effective 1 September, citing the need to safeguard "personal privacy" and "commercial information." The policy, communicated internally, allows exceptions for newsgathering or operational needs with approval from an Executive Team Leader and Risk, and for medical or accessibility reasons with approval from Nine Group People & Culture and Security. The move follows concerns over Meta's AI-powered smart glasses, which have been labelled "pervert glasses" despite a campaign featuring Kylie Jenner. Technology editor David Swan of the Sydney Morning Herald wrote about the stigma, saying, "Let's pause. Not forever, and not with an import ban … Just long enough to work out the rules. We're not ready for smart glasses, but maybe we can be."
Media outlets also faced questions this week on how to cover neo-Nazis without platforming them, as the high court heard a challenge from the White Australia party, formerly the National Socialist Network, designated an illegal hate group in May. While most kept reporting to court proceedings, Seven News aired a clip of leader Thomas Sewell addressing media, in which he said, "We believe that the white people in Australia should have the right to vote for a political party that does not wish for the ethnic replacement of white people." The broadcast did describe the party as "white supremacist" and a "hate group." Rightwing commentator Hugo Lennon, known as "auspilled," has also produced sympathetic content warning of the ban's "punitive effect" without detailing its origins. The high court's decision on the challenge remains pending, and media outlets continue to navigate the balance between reporting and amplification.
