Labor accuses media of ‘disgusting’ treatment of Anthony Albanese

In the wake of another campaign trail stumble, senior Labor Party figures are pointing fingers – just not at Anthony Albanese.

The president of the Australian Labor Party has accused the media of “disgusting” gotcha journalism against Anthony Albanese.

Wayne Swan, who was deputy prime minister from 2010 to 2013, insisted Mr Albanese was “across the detail” when speaking on breakfast television on Friday morning.

It comes after Mr Albanese was accused of not being across Labor’s NDIS policy as he failed to recall the details of his six-point plan for improvement to the scheme on Thursday.

Earlier in the federal election campaign, he came under fire for failing to answer questions from reporters about what the Reserve Bank of Australia’s official cash rate was, as well as the national unemployment figure.

The Labor Party has insisted Anthony Albanese is across details after he was caught out not able to answer questions from reporters. Picture: Liam Kidston

Mr Swan said Prime Minister Scott Morrison was not being subjected to the same focus.

“I also think there’s a degree of hostility in the press pack that’s not helping and it’s not good for democracy, and it’s not good for debate,” he said on Today.

Host Karl Stefanovic then said if you wanted to be Prime Minister you had to be across detail.

“He is across the detail and there’s no question about that … but this gotcha journalism with the press pack on the road is disgusting,” Mr Swan replied.

Mr Stefanovic went to speak, but Mr Swan told him: “No I want to finish this. It is disgusting.”

Australian Labor Party president Wayne Swan has called the media’s treatment of Mr Albanese “disgusting”. Picture: Today / Channel 9

“What? Asking questions of a person who wants to lead the country is disgusting?” Mr Stefanovic shot back.

“No demanding dumb answers,” Mr Swan said. “That’s the problem here.

“I think the sort of prosecution of Anthony Albanese is now at the level that we saw with Julia Gillard and that was a low point in Australian politics.”

Mr Albanese brought a note scrawled in pen with the key points of Labor’s NDIS plan to his press conference on Friday in case he needed to rattle off the points.

Mr Albanese's notes flew off the lectern during a press conference on Friday, revealing he had notes about the NDIS after he was accused of not knowing Labor’s plan the day before. Picture: Liam Kidston

He was then involved in a back-and-forth with a reporter over whether he had stuffed up the day before.

Mr Albanese responded by saying Labor’s plan for the NDIS “wasn’t about gotcha questions” but about putting people at the centre of the scheme.

After his earlier gaffe with key economic figures, Mr Albanese admitted he had made a mistake and if he ever made a mistake he would “own it”.

Originally published as Labor accuses media of ‘disgusting’ treatment of Anthony Albanese