In Australia, former ASIO chief criticizes media coverage of antisemitism
In Australia, former head of the domestic intelligence service ASIO Dennis Richardson said that the media did not provide sufficiently broad coverage of antisemitic incidents following Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. He said this while speaking at the Lowy Institute Media Awards, reports ABC News Australia.
Criticism of incident coverage
According to Richardson, some media outlets' decisions not to report on antisemitic sermons may have been driven by good intentions, but proved mistaken. He believes that a more decisive and consistent response to manifestations of antisemitism immediately after October 7 could have more clearly defined the boundary between acceptable and unacceptable behavior.
Richardson stressed that he was not claiming a direct link between media coverage and the terrorist attack at Bondi Beach in December last year, as the circumstances of that attack were more complex. At that time, father and son Sajid and Navid Akram killed 15 people at a Hanukkah event.
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Discussion without stigmatizing Muslims
The former ASIO chief called for an open conversation about extremist Islamists, while warning against placing responsibility on Australia's entire Muslim community. In his view, Muslim community leaders should take part in such a discussion.
As an example, Richardson mentioned statements by Islamic preacher Wissam Haddad in November 2023. According to him, the media began covering them extensively only in 2025, when a federal judge found the comments to be racist, antisemitic, and offensive. Richardson also called the need for some Jewish children to attend schools and sporting events under guard a problem for social cohesion.
In March, Richardson left his position as special adviser to the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. After the Bondi attack, he was initially appointed to review the work of intelligence and police agencies, but this work was later included in the commission's remit.
