eSafety chief warns over humiliating street interviews made for clicks
Australia's eSafety Commissioner says there are "growing concerns" about street interviews filmed for social media that "appeared to exploit or humiliate" people, including homeless people and those who were drunk or drug-affected. The Guardian
Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant said "Just because something may be technically legal does not mean it is ethical". Experts say the interviews operate in a grey legal area if explicit consent to record and publish has not been obtained.
One encounter cited involved Emma Carson, who was approached in Rundle Mall in Adelaide by Elspeth Mackellar. Mackellar asked her if she thought the unborn were human.
Mackellar is one of six content creators with Bird Flip, an organisation pledged to "end abortion". Experts describe some street interviews of this kind as "rage bait", material intended to ridicule or enrage people to lift clicks.
Oxford University Press defines rage bait as online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage to increase traffic to or engagement with a webpage or social media content. Dr Lisa Harrison, a media and communications lecturer at Flinders University, described the ethics behind street interviews as "really disappointing".
Similar tactics have been used at pro-Palestine, anti-One Nation and anti-March for Australia protests in Australia, where influencers approach demonstrators and publish short clips of protesters looking angry and dishevelled. Others stage "prove me wrong" scenarios with tables or signs, a tactic popularised by late US far-right activist Charlie Kirk, posting content showing them "demolishing" detractors.
