Backlash against Peter Stefanovic’s interview with million dollar-winning Indigenous teen grows as he’s slammed by a lawyer and deletes all social media
Pressure is mounting on Sky News presenter Peter Stefanovic to publicly apologize and resign over a “train wreck” interview in which he shamed an Indigenous teenager who had just won $1 million in a fishing competition.
The backlash against Stefanovic has become so intense that it appears he has deleted all his social media accounts – while a prominent lawyer has spoken out against him on social media.
Last Sunday, Keegan Payne, 19, caught a 67cm barramundi in the Katherine River – with no idea it had a $1 million tag attached to it during a fishing competition in the Northern Territory.
When Stefanovic interviewed Mr. Payne on Wednesday, he first asked him if he had ever stolen an all-terrain vehicle and a quad bike from a former employer.
The teenager paused and said ‘Yes’, but instead of the Sky News presenter being praised for his investigative journalism, he was criticized for bringing up something that happened when Payne was 15.
Pressure is mounting on Sky News presenter Peter Stefanovic (pictured) to resign over his ‘train wreck’ interview in which he shamed an Indigenous teenager
Keegan Payne had no idea he had caught a fish worth $1 million (pictured) in a prize never before won during nine seasons of the Northern Territory competition
“So what happened?” Stefanovic pressed.
Mr Payne, who looked genuinely remorseful, told Stefanovic that he and his friend were “not thinking at the time” and that he was “deeply sorry” for his actions.
Daily Mail Australia then revealed the teenager had reconnected with his old boss, Bob Cavanagh of Cav’s Mowing, and offered to pay him back for the stolen vehicles.
“This morning his dad called me out of the blue and said, ‘Keegan wants to pay you back,’ and you could have knocked me out with a feather,” Cavanagh said.
“He said Keegan always felt so terrible for what he did.”
Mr Cavanagh did not report the incident to the police at the time, but spoke to the boys and their parents and allowed the boys to work for free at the weekend.
But the teenager who made up with the businessman has not been able to save Stefanovic from criticism for the way he treated the new millionaire on live television.
Lawyer Jahan Kalantar – who regularly posts about legal issues on TikTok – said Stefanovic conducted a “train wreck of an interview” and called him a “smarmy news presenter” who asked Mr Payne about something he did as a child.
“Can you imagine any other community where you bring up something that a child did — which is illegal, by the way,” Kalantar said in a video.
‘It is completely inappropriate to ask ‘do you feel sorry for what you did four years ago’ when you have been invited for an interview about winning a fishing competition.’
Mr Kalantar said the interview was “disgusting” and that Stefanovic had a “smug grin on his face” when he asked the question.
He said the Sky presenter needed to ‘mind your manners’ and that what he did was ‘shameful’.
Yvonne Weldon, an Indigenous Sydney councilor, said she was shocked by the interview.
“They invited him to talk about his prize catch and then put him on the witness stand for a crime as a teenager,” she wrote on LinkedIn.
‘As a result, they have shown no respect for his well-being and right to privacy.
“Furthermore, they have perpetuated a harmful and negative stereotype about Aboriginal youth.”
Lawyer Jahan Kalantar (pictured) said Stefanovic had conducted a “train wreck of an interview.”
On Friday afternoon, Sky News removed the video of the interview and apologized to Mr Payne.
“Sky News Australia and Peter Stefanovic apologize to Mr Payne and his family for making these claims during the live interview about his million-dollar fishing competition win,” the statement said.
“Mr Stefanovic has contacted Mr Payne and his family directly to convey his apology.”
Mr Payne has become the first person to win the biggest prize in the Northern Territory’s annual Million Dollar Fish competition, which is in its ninth season.
He said the win is life-changing for his family, who suffered the tragic death of one of his brothers in an accident four years ago.
“This is crazy for us, we are a big family, there are eight of us, this is more money than we could ever ask for. This is just amazing,” he said.
The teenager said as his family were shocked: “They are all proud of me.
“It’s difficult for us at the moment with money, but now with a million dollars we don’t have to complain about that.”
He added that “I can buy what I want, maybe help mom and dad with the home loans,” and said the family can now afford to go on vacation and is planning a trip to America.
Mr Payne also plans to buy a new boat and a car.
Keegan Payne (pictured) thought the 67cm barramundi he pulled in from the Katherine River on Sunday would make a nice meal for his family
Mr Payne said his family (pictured) can now afford to go on holiday and are planning a trip to America
The very humble teenager was a grateful recipient of the enormous prize.
When asked what was the best thing about fishing in the Northern Territory, he replied: “You can catch a million-dollar barra.”
The Cancer Council also received a check for $10,000 as Mr Payne chose this as his charity of choice.
As for Stefanovic, by Saturday afternoon a petition demanding he publicly apologize to Mr Payne and resign, already had almost 2,000 signatures.