The Masked Singer and The Block are labelled ‘condescending’ for airing Acknowledgement of Country

Indigenous leaders have slammed reality shows for using the Acknowledgment of Country, labelling the gesture ‘condescending’ to Aboriginal people.

Wurundjeri elder Ian Hunter told The Daily Telegraph on Monday that the use of the acknowledgement on The Masked Singer and The Block was ‘totally unnecessary’.

‘It should only be used where appropriate such as a citizenship ceremony,’ Mr Hunter told the publication.

‘When too many people use it very lightly it devalues our ceremonial programs – it’s condescending,’ he added. 

Mr Hunter’s comments come after Osher Günsberg introduced Sunday night’s premiere of The Masked Singer with an acknowledgment.

‘We welcome you tonight from Gadigal land, a place of beauty and abundance, where the sandstone meets the sea,’ Günsberg said.

‘We pay our respects to the traditional custodians of this country, and elders past, present and emerging, and extend our respects to any to First Nations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people joining us tonight.’

Osher’s address was nothing new for Channel 10, who have made the decision to do an Acknowledgement of Country at the start of every series filmed in Australia for the past three years.

Channel Nine’s The Block also aired an Acknowledgment of Country prior to Sunday’s premiere. 

‘The Block and the City of Melbourne respectfully acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi, Wurrung and Bunurong Boon Wurrung peoples as the traditional custodians of the land on which this production has taken place, and pay our respects to elders past, present and emerging. Always was, always will be, Kulin Nation land,’ it read.

The Block’s cast and crew are understood to have also undergone Indigenous cultural training in a bid to respect the land where the show’s latest renovations take place. 

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Channel Nine and Channel 10 for comment.