Barack Obama has fired a shot at Rupert Murdoch and his media empire, News Corp, accusing the Australian billionaire of helping to “polarize” Western societies through his network’s reporting.
The former US President slammed the media mogul while speaking with former Australian Foreign Secretary Julie Bishop at Sydney’s Aware Super Theater on Tuesday night.
Speaking about the divided state of America, Mr Obama said a key factor is “displacements in the media” and how stories are told to viewers – before directly naming Fox News and also Sky News in Australia.
‘And there’s a guy you might be familiar with, first name Rupert, who was responsible for a lot of it,’ he said.
Barack Obama has fired a shot at Rupert Murdoch and Sky News after accusing the media mogul of contributing to the “polarization” of Western societies through his reporting
“But what he really perfected was a broader trend, the advent of cables [television]talk radio and then social media.
“The breaking up of the monopoly of a few arbiters of the news and journalistic standards that date from the post-WWII era.”
Mr Obama said there is now a media “wild west” that is making people “angry and upset”.
“And if all you do in America is Fox News, here it’s probably Sky, whatever it is,” he continued.
“If you just look at one news source, and by the way, in America you see progressives saying, ‘Well, we’re going to have our own news and our own perspective.’
“They no longer have a common conversation and a common history. And the economics of the media, the clicks, are now based on how I get your attention?
“Well the easiest way to get attention without having to say a lot of fantasy, thoughts or interesting things is to make people angry and resentful and make them feel like someone is trying to mess with them and to.” take what is rightfully hers.
The former US President has slammed Murdoch (pictured with partner Ann Lesley Smith) for his media empire, which he accused of making people “angry and upset”.
“And if you add some good old-fashioned racism and xenophobia and sexism and homophobia, all of that, because now we’re in the realm of identity politics. And it is very difficult to compromise in identity politics.”
The former president said he feared this would only get worse with the rise of artificial intelligence.
He said because he was the first president of the digital age, he was at one point the most recorded person in history.
It also meant he was the target of many deepfakes – a form of artificial intelligence that creates videos of fake events.
“Today you can have me on video and certainly on recording in almost any setting, say anything. And unless you are [my wife] Michelle, you’re pretty sure it’s me,” Obama said.
During his speech in Sydney Tuesday night, Mr. Obama also addressed Sydney as “one of the big cities” and his thoughts on Western tensions in China and Russia.
He revealed he first came to the Australian city when he was just eight years old.
“I traveled from Indonesia, where my mother lived at the time, to my grandparents in Hawaii and traveled unaccompanied,” he described his first trip.
“We had to stop for a day for the connecting flight and Qantas stewardess looked after me very well.”
The ex-US President met former Secretary of State Julie Bishop at the event in Sydney
“I had a huge crush on her. I felt very cultured, very cosmopolitan traveling solo and this is my first connection to Sydney.
“And it gets better every time I come back.”
When questioned by Ms. Bishop on China’s rise, Mr. Obama congratulated President Xi Jinping on his “powerful and confident” demeanor.
He said China had begun to change “after I left office” and the country had begun cracking down on civil liberties after President Xi sensed the next US leader – Donald Trump – would be more lenient .
“I think he saw an opportunity when my successor took office because the US president didn’t seem to care that much about a rules-based international system,” Obama said.
“As a consequence, I think, including China’s position, we can exploit the apparent international vacuum on many of these issues.”
He said that the US-China relationship was “significantly strained” and that tensions “won’t go away anytime soon”.
Tickets for the event started at $195, with the most expensive package at $895.
In addition to the sold-out crowd, around 500 people tuned in to the lecture online, with tickets selling for around $400 to purchase a link to the stream.
Inside Barack Obama’s tour of Australia for paid speaking engagements
Sunday night: Barack and Michelle Obama land in Sydney ahead of their speaking tour
Monday: The former US President was welcomed to the Four Seasons by John F. Kennedy’s daughter and US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy
He then met with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at Kirribilli House
Mr Obama was later taking a stroll along the cliffs at North Head near Manly – when more than a dozen police cars and a dozen police motorcycles were waiting on the road nearby.
He then attended a luncheon with Ms Kennedy at Bathers Pavillion restaurant in Balmoral – a witness said he ate in a room with the curtains drawn to the outside world
Mr and Mrs Obama were photographed later Monday night at the Sydney Opera House
Tuesday: Mr Obama was seen enjoying an afternoon coffee while his wife went to Mosman Bay in a yacht and cruised around the harbor for about an hour
He later spoke to a crowd at the Aware Super Theater on Tuesday night for “An Evening with President Obama,” where tickets go from $195
There he spoke of tensions with China, in Russia of artificial intelligence and his thoughts on Sydney
Wednesday: Mr. Obama and his wife enjoyed a stroll across the Sydney Harbor Bridge with their entourage
He will fly to Melbourne to speak at an event on Wednesday night