Our mainstream media have manufactured public consent to the genocide.The Australian has become a parody of a newspaper.

I have been overwhelmed by the flood of supportive emails and messages regarding my speech at the Australian National University Palestine forum on Sunday. People from all walks of life, from former parliamentarians and senior bureaucrats to civic and community leaders, have sent supportive notes. All are appalled by the daily news, but more so by the inaction of national and global leaders.

You may have noted the speech was not quite so well received in the pages of The Australian (in fact the front page) which ran a story headlined “Ex-Mandarin likens Hamas to Mandela”. This kind of media treatment — distortion, oversimplification, and just plain beat-up — is designed to deter good, well-informed people speaking out and being heard. It is designed to prevent members of the public from gaining a clear understanding of the genocide that continues day after day in Gaza. The genocide will then move on to the West bank.

We will not be deterred, and if I was in any doubt, the events of the past days have made it clear to me that the community we have built around Pearls and Irritations is similarly resolute. One comment from a senior writer, who is also Jewish, was, “John, this is undoubtedly the finest, most powerful and humane speech ever written and delivered on this issue. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Another said, ‘Thank you John for your indefatigable and invaluable work against the genocide of Palestinians." Yet another said, “I applaud the forthright bravery of your piece on Palestine.. I know it will cause all the predictable trouble for you and for Pearls and Irritations, but I thank God someone is saying it directly and uncompromisingly.” A very senior former MP said ‘Wear an attack from that source (The Australian) as a badge of honour’.

In my speech, I made it plain that the mainstream media (MSM) has been more than derelict in their duty. I said:

“In the name of ‘balance’ our media give credibility to Israeli propaganda. It’s like reporting on a bubonic plague and giving equal treatment to the rats! No one would think of giving equal treatment to those who deny the Holocaust. Neither should we give balance or equal media coverage to those who deny the holocaust in Gaza today.

“Joe Biden retailed (to the media) the false stories about Hamas beheading babies. Our mainstream media also failed to tell us about the ‘Hannibal Doctrine’ which led to the killing by the IDF of many of their own soldiers and people on 7 October.

“Media focus is on the hostages, but ignores the 8000 Palestinians held in gruesome Israeli jails.

“So much of our media, including the ABC, is intimidated by Zionist propagandists. In our MSM, Palestinians and Muslims are treated as much less human and less valuable than white Jews and white Christians. Just contrast the media coverage of Christian Ukraine and Muslim Gaza.

“We join the US in calling Hamas a terrorist organisation but the real terrorists in Gaza are ministers in the Israeli Government and leaders of the IDF. ‘Terrorist’ is a grossly misused word. It suits lazy journalists.

“Marwan Barghouti has been in an Israeli jail for 23 years for “terrorism”. But he has consistently topped opinion polls asking Palestinians whom they would vote for in a presidential election, ahead of both current President Mahmoud Abbas and leaders of Hamas. Barghouti is unknown to our media.

“The weaponisation of antisemitism is designed to shut down free speech and intimidate those who call for justice for Palestinians. Our legacy media has manufactured consent for genocide.”

I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by yesterday’s coverage in The Australian calling me an ex-mandarin. I plead guilty to being a part ex-mandarin. I was also CEO of Qantas, and General Manager of The Australian from 1967 to 1974 in what I regard as its better days.

The late Ken Cowley was a very senior and loyal executive of News Corp for decades. He was my production manager in Sydney at News Ltd. Later he headed Murdoch’s Australia-wide operations. Cowley told the Australian Financial Review in 2014, after leaving News Corp, that The Australian ‘is pathetic’. In my view nothing has changed.

I find it particularly disappointing that a critical part of our democracy is not doing its job. Responding to The Australian journalist’s written questions last night I said:

“There is not much more I can add. I stand by every word. The support I have received for the speech has been remarkable. I am hopeful that The Australian will report this matter fairly. Given the quotes you mention, I am not that confident that The Australian will be fair. The Australian has conducted a scurrilous campaign in support of the genocide and tarnishes people as antisemitic who dare to call out the genocide.

“Our mainstream media have manufactured public consent to the genocide. This is appalling.”

The Australian chose not to mention, in any shape or form, what I said.

A total of 176 journalists and media workers have been killed by Israel in Gaza since the conflict began. But scarcely a word has been uttered by our MSM in defence of journalism and free speech.

Tens of thousands of children, women and men have been killed. The media doesn’t care. Perhaps because most are brown Muslims.

We owe it to them to continue undeterred.

My thanks for the stalwart support of readers.

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To read more, see the new 167-page e-book Israel: Palestine pushed beyond endurance: Creating balance in reporting the facts behind the conflict bringing together the best of our coverage of the war in Gaza. It looks at its origins, the distorted coverage that persists to this day, and the shameless attempts to shut down factual coverage with cries of antisemitism.