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David Campbell has admitted that he may have chosen the wrong guests to weigh in on the Australia Day ‘change of date’ controversy, before the segment even aired.
The Today Extra host was joined by his co-host Sylvia Jeffreys and journalists Tom Tilley and Jess Ridley on Friday morning to discuss January 26 and the Indigenous Voice proposal to Parliament.
“I want to acknowledge the fact that we are four white people talking about this, so we’re not going to speak for indigenous people here,” Campbell said before the discussion began.
But even with his disclaimer, he and the guests proceeded to unravel the growing pressure from First Nations people to change the national day of celebration.
Footage of some of the Invasion Day protests seen across Australia on Thursday was broadcast as Campbell admitted.
He then quickly went on to ask Tilley about Aboriginal lawyer Teela Reid and her position on January 26.
“She doesn’t think we should change the date yet because we don’t have anything to celebrate in her eyes,” the former Triple J Hack host said.
He wants us to move on to something like the Voice or a Republic before we find a new date to celebrate.
Indigenous leader Warren Mundine said it was “a bit crazy” that the panel did not include any First Nations people.
“You need a mix on a panel to get different points of view,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘David’s right, it’s a bit weird. You can’t say you want a voice and have someone else try to channel someone else.
Mundine added that it was “healthy” to have people of diverse backgrounds speaking on such an important topic, but said the panel should have been more diverse.
“If they’re going to talk about these things, they need to have a serious discussion and they need to have all sides,” he said.
The gaffe comes after Sunrise was forced to apologize for a comment about Stolen Generations during a TV segment in 2018.
During the segment, Sam Armytage, commentator Prue MacSween and radio host Ben Davis participated in the three-way discussion on Aboriginal adoption.
David Campbell touched on the moment he discussed the controversy surrounding the date of Australia Day on a panel without Indigenous Australians.
Sunrise presenter Samantha Armytage (centre) and commentators Prue MacSween (left) and Ben Davis (right) came under fire after a controversial debate over Aboriginal adoption.
The discussion sparked after children’s minister David Gillespie called for the relaxation of rules prohibiting indigenous children from being adopted by non-family members.
“Just like the first stolen generation where many children were taken for their welfare, we must do it again,” MacSween said in the on-air discussion.
The comments ignited protests outside Sunrise’s Sydney studio and the Australian Communication and Media Authority found it had breached the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice.
Sunrise later apologized.
“On March 13, 2018, we aired a segment on alleged child abuse and neglect in Aboriginal communities and statements made by the Assistant Minister for Children and Families about white people adopting Aboriginal children,” the statement read.
‘Opinions were expressed during the segment that referred to stolen generation [sic] and that they were offensive to some viewers, including indigenous Australians.
The panel discussed Australia’s date change and the proposal for an Indigenous Voice to Parliament
“Channel Seven, the Sunrise team and our commentators Prue MacSween and Ben Davis apologize for those comments and the damage they have caused.”
Meanwhile, many First Nations communities are divided on whether or not they want Voice in Parliament.
Australians will have the opportunity to vote on indigenous recognition in the Constitution and the establishment of an indigenous body to consult parliament on issues affecting First Nations peoples.
Firebrand Greens senator and indigenous rights activist Lidia Thorpe has publicly criticized the move, saying Aboriginal people deserve to be more than an “advisory body”.
‘We have a chance to have a treaty… that could put 10 independent black seats in parliament today. We want real power and we won’t settle for less,” he said during a rally in Melbourne on Thursday.
While on the Channel Nine show, Tilley added that January 26 had become “uncomfortable” for many Australians who were now unsure how to celebrate the national holiday.
“I think (Ms. Reid) would argue that that’s a good thing,” he said.
Tilley spoke to Ms Reid on an episode of her podcast The Briefing, which aired on Thursday.
In the episode, Ms. Reid said that “every day for us is Invasion Day”, and that the tension felt on January 26 was not unique.
“Personally, I don’t think we can rewrite the fact that this horrible story has happened in our nation’s history,” he said.
‘Australia Day as a celebration should be abolished and marked as a day of mourning.
‘What’s there to celebrate? I don’t think Australia has earned the right to celebrate.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.
Firebrand Greens senator and indigenous rights activist Lidia Thorpe has publicly criticized Voice, saying Aboriginal people deserve to be more than an “advisory body”.