The fallout from Reuben Kaye’s joke about liking Jesus continues with a Perth local government councilor calling for the government to take action and shut down Network 10 in its entirety.
It’s just one of the more extreme reactions to the cabaret’s performer’s joke that he made on the show almost a week ago. While many have called for The Project to be axed City of Stirling Councilor Elizabeth Re has called on the government to close the entire network.
Elsewhere Sky News presenter Rowan Dean labeled the LGBTIQA+ community “haters”, while Family Voice Australia launched a letter writing campaign and shared comments from Catholic priest Brendan Lee who described the show “full of putrid”.
On The Project’s social media pages death threats and threats of violence were common. An online petition has accumulated over 37,000 signatures calling for the program to be axed.
Elizabeth Re shared her thoughts on Twitter last week, adding the hashtag #turnoffchannel10.
OUTinPerth reached out to the councilor several times to ask her why she thought all the staff at Network 10 should become unemployed over the joke that some people of faith took offence to, but we didn’t get an answer.
We also asked Councilor Re if she was in favour of governments being able to shut down television channels or close newspapers if people were unhappy with their content, if we get a response, we’ll post an update.
Channel 10 operates its main broadcast channel alongside subsidiaries Bold, Peach and Shake, as well as online streaming service 10Play. Parent company Paramount also runs the streaming service Paramount+, as well as Foxtel channels Nickelodeon, Nick Jr, Comedy Central, MTV, MTV Hits, Club MTV, MTV Classic and CMT.
Elizabeth Re has been on the City of Stirling Council for 18 years, having first been elected in 2005. She ran an independent in the 2010 federal election for the division of Stirling, and in 2021 was a candidate for the Western Australia Party in the state election.
There has been a wide variety of responses to the cabaret performers gag about admiring Jesus, but not for the usual attributes.
The Australian Communication and Media Authority have revealed they received over 200 complaints about the segment after it aired. In the first instance complaints are directed back to the broadcaster, but complainants can ask the watchdog to act if they do not get a satisfactory answer within 60 days.
Anthony Fisher, the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney has asked that the staff and presenters of The Project attend Easter mass. While a group of hooded men marched through the very queer Sydney suburb of Newtown intimidating people and shouting the Hail Mary.
Sky News presenter Peta Credlin accused Sarah Harris, one of the hosts of The Project of “pretending” when she gave an on-air apology the following evening.
Rowan Dean says LGBTIQA+ community needs to add the letter “H for Haters”
“Can we please add the letter H to the alphabet of LGBTIQ ectara ectara” Sky New host Rowan Dean asked viewers on the Sunday morning show Outsiders.
“H for Hater.
“We were told all through the same-sex marriage debate that it’s all about ‘love is love’, and tolerance, and the LGBT community is reaching out and loving everybody.
“This character was on the show as I guess a representative of the Mardi Gras or LGB Pride Week or whatever it might be, the slogan used to be ‘love is love’ but that looked like ‘hate is hate’ to me.”
Dean went on to say Reuben Kaye and the host of The Project had offended many minority groups across the country because many people from minority groups are also Christians.
“Many Indigenous Australians are Christians, many Chinese Australians are Christian, many Pacific Islanders are Christians, you’re talking about a lot of minority groups… there are many identity groups that these people are quite happy to sneer at and mock, yet the argument is we have to be tolerant because they’re from a minority group and whatever says goes.
“Hated has to be fought wherever it is, and I would have said its hate speech coming within the LGBTI community.” Dean said questioning why leaders in the queer community were not lining up to condemn the comments.
“Where are the leaders in the LGBTI community standing up and saying, ‘We will not tolerate that sort of behaviour.’?”
Catholic Priest says The Project is guilty of hate speech and bigotry
Father Brendan Lee used his Sunday sermon to describe The Project as being “full of putrid” and “the worst show on television”.
“It is a show that preaches diversity and tolerance but has no tolerance itself for different religions and people of faith,” he told the congregation in Bondi. “It does not practice what it preaches.”
“It is hate speech and bigotry.”
The Catholic priest spoke to News.com telling them he wanted the show removed from the airwaves and was looking for political leaders to take a stand against the lewd joke.
“It was just so offensive,” he said. “Jesus Christ is the son of God. You couldn’t mock something more sacred. He is our everything. To knock Jesus Christ is to knock Christianity.”
“These things escalate and if Christians don’t push back, it will get worse,” he said.
Has Australia lost its sense of humour?
Columnist Nick Ryan writing in the Adelaide Advertiser said the furor over the Jesus joke was a sure sign that Australian was losing its sense of humour and the larrikin spirit was now officially dead.
Which reminds us that someone recently made a documentary bemoaning the loss of the Aussie larrikin, that’s right, it was Rowan Dean.
Ryan suggested that rather than calling for the show to be cancelled people could ask The Project to do some good in the world, maybe donate a few hundred dollars for each signature on the petition.
“Imagine what that could do for the poor and hungry, the downtrodden and dispossessed?
“The people Jesus would actually be helping instead of tweeting about it. Otherwise, like the joke at the centre of this storm, it’s nothing more than words.” Ryan wrote.
Also at News.com Joe Hildebrand, who used to sit alongside Sarah Harris at Studio 10, said the demands for the show to be cancelled were setting a dangerous precedent.
“To my mind Jesus was the single most important and influential human being in the entire history of humanity itself. To the mind of Christian believers he was also the most powerful.
“And so I’m pretty sure he could take a joke.” Hildebrand said.
Hildebrand said the reaction to the joke showed that Australia was moving into a dangerous space where offending a person of faith could become a crime. He also noted that the people who usually rally against ‘cancel culture’ were the ones calling for the cancellation.
“You don’t fix cancel culture with more cancel culture.” Hildebrand said.
Graeme Watson
Do you need some support?
If you are struggling with anxiety or depression, support and counselling are available from:
QLife: 1800 184 527 / qlife.org.au (Webchat 3pm – midnight)
QLife are a counselling and referral service for LGBTQIA+ people.
DISCHARGED: info@discharged.org.au / discharged.org.au
Discharged is a trans-led support service with peer support groups for trans and gender diverse folks.
Lifeline: 13 11 14 / lifeline.org.au
Beyondblue: 1300 22 4636 / www.beyondblue.org.au
You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.
OIP Staff
You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.
