If you were looking for an example of how unchecked media bullshit and supercharged social media racism can lead to alleged death threats, look no further.
An Indigenous academic says he has referred threats of violence to Queensland Police, after reports about a non-existent campaign to change the name of Pauls Smarter White Milk sparked a bigoted backlash online.
Speaking to NITV’s The Point on Friday, Dr Stephen Hagan, who led a successful effort to change the name of Coon Cheese over its racist connotations, said he was recently targeted by a bizarre and ill-informed hate campaign.
Dr Hagan said the ordeal began last week, when he was contacted by a journalist from Daily Mail Australia regarding an August 3 shitpost from NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham.
Latham, who metaphorically shat his pants over the name-change, posted a photo of Smarter White Milk on Facebook.
“Surprised the mob haven’t cancelled my favourite milk,” he joked.
Dr Hagan said that post moved the Daily Mail to ring him up and ask a few questions.
“I said to the journalist, ‘Mate, I don’t even know what you’re talking about,’” Dr Hagan said. “‘I drink soy milk.’ I said, ‘Why would I worry about that sort of milk?’”
He said the Daily Mail’s reporter asked if he had any plans to petition Smarter White Milk’s parent company to change the brand’s name.
“I said ‘Try somebody else. I’m not taking that on,’” Dr Hagan said.
Nevertheless, the Daily Mail wrote an article based on their conversation, claiming Dr Hagan wants the brand to “consider scrapping” the name.
The situation devolved from there, with the Facebook page for breakfast TV show Today posting a status claiming Dr Hagan is “now calling for Pauls to rename its ‘Smarter White’ milk.”
“Should the name be changed?” the post asks. The post, which is still live on the Today Facebook page, has attracted some 31,000 comments. You can probably guess what’s going on in that comment section.
Pauline Hanson’s Please Explain, the main Facebook outlet for Senator Pauline Hanson and her ragtag band of weirdoes, also extruded a post insinuating the name of Smarter White Milk is under attack.
(Latham later walked back from his position, posting a Facebook comment stating, “turns out the activist was not [campaigning against the brand], fake news media continues the story.” However, his original post remains online.)
“And then again, all the hate mail came,” Dr Hagan said.
“This afternoon, I actually wrote to Queensland Police and others, asking them to stop, to get people, in particular I’m referring to Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party and also Channel Nine’s Today show.”
(Full disclosure: PEDESTRIAN.TV is wholly owned by Nine Entertainment.)
“They said I was running a campaign to change the name of Smarter White Milk,” he added. “I had nothing to do with it.”
Dr Hagan said Queensland Police have contacted some of the folks behind the alleged death threats.
The Facebook posts and the Daily Mail article remain online.
Catch his interview below for more insight into the situation:
Academic and anti-racism campaigner receives death threats after media runs fake news about his alleged campaign to change the name of Smarter White Milk. #NITV #ThePoint pic.twitter.com/nUdoXknO0p
— NITV (@NITV) August 17, 2020
