Channel 10’s Sandra Sully launches a war of words over photo of Peter Dutton’s son Tom holding a bag of ‘white powder’

Sandra Sully has spoken out about the ‘white powder’ photo of Peter Dutton’s son after critics accused her of taking a ‘cheap shot’ at the opposition leader.

The veteran Channel 10 newsreader shared a news article showing Tom Dutton, 18, looking at the camera and holding the clear bag on a balcony in Surfers Paradise.

‘Birthday treat. Hello, how are you,” the caption of the photo read.

Sully initially made no comment on the piece other than quoting the article’s headline to her 120,000 followers on X, formerly Twitter.

But one follower accused her of taking a ‘cheap shot’ and lacking ‘class’.

“NOT a cheap shot,” Sully replied.

“Just retweet the story from the source.”

However, that answer was not satisfactory to everyone.

“And you think this is going to help or hurt his son?” one follower replied.

“You could have easily chosen to ignore that, but you didn’t!”

Sully hit back and said, “What and pretend the story isn’t in a major newspaper? #Crazy.’

The photo of Dutton’s eldest son was first shared on Snapchat before it was screenshotted and leaked to the Herald Sun on Monday.

The photo has now been removed.

Daily Mail Australia does not suggest the white substance was drugs.

The opposition leader’s office has declined to comment on the matter, saying in one sentence that it is a “private matter for the Dutton family.”

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek previously defended Dutton’s son.

Ms Plibersek expressed her empathy for the families of public figures after she was asked about the issue on Channel Nine’s Today show on Tuesday morning.

‘I have no comment at all. Peter Dutton is a public figure but his son is not,” she said.

Host Karl Stefanovic continued to question her in the photo.

“Can you imagine the poor child’s embarrassment?” he said.

“I mean, his father is already the opposition leader… he’s a former police officer… and (Tom) ends up on the front page of the newspaper.

“Children have to suffer under high-profile parents, right?”

Ms Plibersek, a mother of three and previously deputy leader of the opposition, admitted it was not an “easy life” for the children of politicians.

“There’s nothing more embarrassing than being out with your mother and being stopped at the shops for people who want to have a chat,” she said.

‘It’s not an easy life. We enter public life and we choose it. Our families don’t choose it, that’s for sure.’

National Victorian Senator Bridget McKenzie also appeared on the Today show on Tuesday but had not spoken to Dutton since the photo scandal.

She reiterated that it was “a problem for the Dutton family.”

Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth also refrained from seeking political capital from the incident, saying: “Families are conscripts of politics.”

Snapchat is popular among young people because messages usually disappear after they are read. Recipients can take screenshots of messages, but the person who shared them will be notified.

Mr Dutton has two sons – Tom and Harry – with his wife Kirilly, as well as daughter Rebecca from a previous relationship.

He told ABC’s Kitchen Cabinet last year how his parenting style as a police officer was affected before he entered politics, admitting he was stricter than most.

“Even in the way you raise your children… You know, not losing sight of them, because you’ve seen some horrific cases where children have been kidnapped or attacked,” he told Annabel Crabb during an interview at his parents’ home . At home.

As part of that vigilance, he didn’t let his children use public restrooms while they were away.