There’s been considerable uproar since the somewhat shocking conclusion to The 2023 Logies, with Sonia Kruger taking out the Gold.
I say “somewhat shocking” because, really, it’s not all that shocking.
Sonia Kruger has had an impressive career spanning networks. At present, she’s host of Channel Seven’s Dancing with the Stars, Big Brother, and The Voice.
She’s good TV talent. Viewers like her. Clearly this is true, because why would she keep being rolled out for a multitude of gigs? Why indeed, would she have taken home the Gold if she wasn’t resonating widely?
Kruger has a large following amassed from a significant platform. She arguably has more influence than most of our leaders in business and politics. Perhaps a frightening thought, but nonetheless true.
And my belief, despite never having met Kruger, is that she’s likely not an immoral person.
However, there’s no getting away from the fact that her words back in 2016 on Nine’s Today Show, in which she suggested there was a “correlation between the number of people who, you know, are Muslim in a country and the number of terrorist attacks” were not only vilifying, but totally, obscenely, ignorant.
They were also catastrophically damaging. When someone who has the capacity to reach more than 6 million Australians in one sitting uses this privilege to spout bigotry and racism, it’s utterly toxic– and it takes years to undo.
Having read Mariam Veiszadeh’s LinkedIn post yesterday, acknowledging her own interaction with Kruger about the comments made, I realised that so many people in Australia and across the world aren’t led necessarily by ill intent, but by ignorance. It’s ignorance we desperately need to fight against.
Veiszadeh, the Chief Executive Officer of Media Diversity Australia and the founder of Islamophobia Register Australia, wrote that after meeting directly with Kruger and texting over the years to discuss her Islamophobic comments, the TV star “apologised to me personally for her remarks and tried to explain her intentions”.
“My take on it was that it came from a place of privilege and ignorance. I explained to her why I started the Islamophobia Register Australia and the impact that her words had on people like me and my daughter who she also got to meet.”
While Kruger never apologised publicly for the remarks made– something I, among others deem unforgivable– her connection and comments to Veiszadeh are illuminating.
Do they excuse her? Absolutely not. But do they highlight the very real possibility that Kruger was blinded by ignorance? Yes.
And it’s this brand of ignorance that Women’s Agenda is working furiously hard to counter, not only with our independent daily journalism, but through our new leadership and life app, The Keynotes.
The Keynotes, an app of mini TEDx-style addresses given by prominent women across industries, enables anyone and everyone the unique and genuinely groundbreaking opportunity to engage on a number of issues with experts.
You can listen to keynotes that are as diverse as deep dives on navigating miscarriage and pregnancy loss, to explainers on The Voice to Parliament, or how technology should be created and harnessed for diverse audiences.
It’s an app that is built to counter misinformation and breed the next generation of leaders with impact, social conscience and empathy.
And this kind of resource has never been more important. If we want to change the playing field, block the disinformation bots and ensure Australians like Sonia Kruger (and thousands and thousands like her) are truly informed, we need to be laser focused.
Adding to the pile on won’t work. All this does is drive a wedge further. We need gentle, understanding and nuanced dialogue. We need to remember that overwhelmingly, humans aren’t driven to be arseholes. We’re just suggestible and impressionable animals. And in a new world order, where we’re contending with social media and AI threatening our very existence, we need to try to stick together.
So, for Sonia Kruger and any Australian who’s publicly made ignorant, harmful comments. Come on up. We’ve got a free subscription for you.
You can find out more about Women’s Agenda’s new app, The Keynotes here and it’s available direct on the app store. To find out more about accessing a bulk subscription for your organisation and its people, contact us directly at [email protected]