It is obvious that the ‘break in case of emergency’ comms strategy of ‘ha, it was a joke!’ has been cracked open in regards to Peter Dutton calling the Guardian and the ABC “hate media” at a campaign rally in Melbourne on Sunday.

Not only is it not a joke, and actually part of an on-going campaign of demonising good reporting, it is also dangerous in this climate, given how many people are going to the extremes, emboldened by Trump rhetoric.

Nazi’s feel comfortable to gatecrash Anzac Day ceremonies and ‘just ask questions’ about Indigenous inclusion in Australia. Which is then picked up by mainstream media as ‘just asking questions’. If you are asking the same questions as Nazis, you might need to take a look at yourself and what you are doing.

Paterson says:

Oh, look, I hope no one took that too personally. I thought that was said in jest. I think it’s pretty fair to say that both the Guardian and the ABC have taken some tough editorial stances and applied a lot of scrutiny to Peter and the campaign. And they can certainly dish it out. I’m certainly sure they won’t be offended in return.

Q: But it is the public broadcaster, with a many billion dollar budget. Hate mediais quite a strong comment from an aspiring Prime Minister, is it not?

Paterson:

I thought it was a tongue in cheek comment. I think you will know, as you’ve seen on this campaign trail, Peter engages very well and very respectfully with all media outlets. You’ve had great access to him on the campaign trail.
Everybody gets a question every day. He doesn’t hide from that scrutiny. And I think it’s a fair exchange of ideas and sometimes a little bit of cheeky exchanges too, and I don’t think that’s a harmful thing in a healthy democracy

Which brings me to another point. There are a lot of commentators who speak about the difference between Peter Dutton camera and Peter Dutton away from the cameras and how he’s actually a very ‘good sort’. But it doesn’t matter. It truly does not matter if Dutton is a good sort in person. It matters what he does with power. How he treats it. What he signals with it. And Dutton, despite from all accounts being much more jovial on the campaign with journalists than Anthony Albanese (who is always cranky, on or off the cameras – he’s a cranky person in general) when he has power, uses it in way to try and hold others down. That’s not ‘a cheeky exchange’. That’s dictatorship.