Following his public altercation with Indigenous Senator Jacinta Price, Peter FitzSimons has been criticised for his “hypocrisy.”
Through the media, the two have been trading allegations over an interview he gave about the senator’s opposition to the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
In an article he wrote for The Australian, Sky News political analyst Chris Kenny attacked the famed Sydney Morning Herald writer.
Kenny, who supports a Voice to Parliament with FitzSimons, described his conversation with Senator Price as “rude and hostile” before contrasting their differing perspectives on Indigenous concerns.
As reported by FitzSimons and published in the SMH, Price’s questions were “rude and aggressive enough; slurring an Indigenous woman as racially divisive, just because he disagrees with her on a political proposition, when she has only ever campaigned to address grassroots dilemmas,” according to Kenny.
We are only able to speculate as to how the whole one-hour talk might sound on tape.
The veteran political adviser advised FitzSimons and The Sydney Morning Herald to disclose the audio and allow the public make up their own minds whether they were “comfortable” with way the conversation was handled.
The release of the recording has already been demanded by Price.
To support his argument, Kenny also cited a political cartoon by Johannes Leak that features FitzSimons and the senator.
In the cartoon, FitzSimons is shown as being “at the other end of the telephone, in his house overlooking Sydney Harbour, telling her that this was why she was so out of touch,” while Jacinta Price is “in the bush” discussing how she has spent her life in distant villages.
Kenny noted that individuals pushing for an Indigenous Voice in Parliament were not helped by the way “elites” like FitzSimons dealt with others who had divergent opinions.
The so-called elites’ haughtiness and intolerance are endangering a reform that he supports, he added.
When advocates of an Indigenous voice in parliament try to marginalise or demonise others who have different opinions, they do no one any favours.
They support a strategy that aims to silence dissident viewpoints in order to give voice to the many opinions of individuals who have previously gone unheard. Irony aside, that is outrageous hypocrisy.
‘Understanding that variety of view counts’ and that’respectful disagreement’ was perfect for the good ‘working of democracy’, according to Kenny, is essential for the change to succeed.
People don’t appreciate having their ideas organised by someone, he said.
These conflicts “won’t go away quickly, and they raise the issue of whether an Indigenous voice can be provided if, along the road, the discussion shows that we are not tolerant of difference.”
FitzSimons, he said, had “spruiked an Indigenous voice” while also “silencing an Indigenous lady.”
Since their interview, Price and FitzSimons have been involved in a savage verbal battle in the media.
Senator Price said in a since-deleted Facebook post that the journalist first treated her nicely during their interview but afterwards became “aggressive… condescending and unpleasant.”
She described it as “talking to a brick wall” and claimed to feel “insulted.”
I’m not a wilting violet, but he’s a really assertive guy, and he doesn’t need to dive into an interview, she said.
Ms. Price, who was born to a Warlpiri mother and an Anglo-Celtic father, said, “Accusing me of somehow providing power to racists because the topics I address are confronting – he misses the point altogether.”
She said that FitzSimons had accused her of “lending power to racists in some way” because of the difficult topics she brought up.
Get out of the damned ivory tower and into one of my neighbourhoods, I told him.
FitzSimons disputed Senator Price’s account of the interview’s events and referred to her assertions as “complete and total rubbish.”
He described the interview as a “professional dialogue.”
Bevan Shields, the editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, offered his opinion on Wednesday night after hearing the interview.
I have listened to the whole audio recording of the conversation between Senator Price and Peter FitzSimons. Neither person shouted or yelled in response.
The senator’s opinions and positions were put to the test in this fascinating interview. Shields stated, “The Australian has to move on.”
It’s important to note that Peter sent Senator Price a transcript of what he planned to write in his column, and she gave her approval. She also took down the first Facebook post she made about the interview.
The Herald and FitzSimons, however, have not risen to Senator Price’s challenge to make the interview’s audio available for public review.