By Stephen Brook and Kishor Napier-Raman
UPDATE: After months of trying, CBD has succeeded in helping political commentator Niki Savva get her identity back. Victory!
Star columnist Niki Savva.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
After we went public with our column on Wednesday morning, the offending account impersonating Savva on X, @TheNikiSavva, hastily rebadged itself as “obviously a parody account”. Then it temporarily shut down while renaming itself “Lorem Ipsum” and changed its account handle to @nothingtosee697. It also removed its posts imitating the columnist.
As CBD previously reported, during the election, Niki Savva’s kettle was boiling dry.
Someone had stolen the renowned columnist’s identity and set up a fake X account, complete with a blue tick.
@TheNikiSavva had amassed more than 6000 followers but its reach supercharged during the election, reaching 80,000 people at one point, with off-brand non-Savva insights, such as: “My endorsement goes to the gorgeous and charismatic Tim Wilson.”
For some reason, the account was verified by X in March.
“A clear case of identity theft,” Savva told CBD.
The journalist had tried to get the offending account taken down from X but said that post-Elon Musk’s purchase of the site, it has been difficult with a document signed by a power of attorney required.
“I have never and will never do social media,” Savva continued. “If people want to know what I think, please read this masthead. And my books. Forgive the rant, but it does make me very mad.”
Turnbull takes to the airwaves
When we brought news last week that Malcolm Turnbull would be skipping the country on election day, we jested that it wouldn’t be long before the former PM would be offering up his two cents on the outcome.
How right we were. On Saturday, UK time, Turnbull phoned into BBC’s Newshour to offer a few hot takes on the Liberal Party’s demolition. He could hardly disguise his glee at one-time adversary Peter Dutton’s political demise.
“Look, Dutton and I have a history, full disclosure. Dutton was the figure, the person, who instigated the coup, backed by the Murdoch media, that ultimately resulted in the end of my prime ministership in 2018,” Turnbull said.
He later added that Dutton’s style “has been to promote and take advantage of division”.
And Turnbull had plenty more to say, but was silenced by host Celia Hatton, who hastily cut off the former PM just as he was getting a wind up about China.
“Malcolm Turnbull, I’m sorry we’ll have to leave it there,” she said. We’ve heard that one before.
Can’t keep away
The Albanese government’s decision to invite a posse of progressive influencers into the federal budget lock-up in March forced some of our elder media colleagues to grapple with big new trends like Instagram.
Cheek Media chief executive Hannah Ferguson.
It also kicked off a rather fruitful election season for 26-year-old new media personality Hannah Ferguson, founder of Cheek Media, which includes a Substack, podcast, and, er, a line of bespoke vibrators. Kids these days.
After a budget week interview with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Ferguson has appeared on a bunch of TV panels but she ain’t done yet.
Up next – an address at the National Press Club, and beyond that, a potential return to Canberra beckons, with Ferguson telling her Instagram followers she had aspirations of becoming an independent senator.
The next election isn’t due until 2028, but it’s never too early.
50 Shades of Green
We can now say with confidence that cardboard box-recycling billionaire Anthony Pratt at the Met Gala was easily this weekend’s most successful Green.
Not because of any affiliation with the troubled environmental political party, but because the chair of Visy and Pratt Industries served an arresting, green-themed look at the fundraiser in New York that we describe as clashing in confidence.
Amazon sustainablity executive Kara Hurst, Visy deputy chair Fiona Geminder and Anthony Pratt.Credit: Getty Images
CBD loves a clashing print (heck, any sort of clash is good copy). So we were pleased to see Pratt’s suit teamed with the green theme and heroes the “Pratt 100% Recycled” decals that were such a feature of last year’s Met Gala Willy Wonka pink suit.
Pratt repeated the mix of lime, green and lemon decals on a bright-green shirt and tie, in contrasting styles so bold they risked triggering our photopia.
Pratt offset his two-piece suit with a dark-green hat and cane. But he swapped out last year’s Balenciaga runners for more sensible Brooks sneakers, potentially sourced from the House of Rupert Murdoch.
Throwing together the fashion fundraiser at the Metropolitan Museum of Art – the world’s silliest “look at me” event – with a billionaire’s concept of style invokes CBD trepidation. Clearly, the event’s theme of “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” was a tricky and ultimately impossible brief for Pratt, who went solidly for 50 Shades of Green despite his personal colour palette not screaming “spring”.
Pratt, who now has a US green card and an honorary title of Kentucky colonel, was accompanied by his sister and Visy deputy chair Fiona Geminder. The family wealth is put at $25 billion.
The pair’s last big social function mentioned in dispatches was a lavish Visy party in March for the packaging industry and clients in a massive marquee at the Pratt family mansion of Raheen in Melbourne’s Kew. Air Supply and DJ Mark Ronson performed, while the prime minister flew all the way from Sydney just to give a short speech. Dutton was an apology.
Also spotted in their orbit, Amazon sustainability executive Kara Hurst, clearing a key client of all those recycled boxes.
All Met Gala attendees must be personally invited by US Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour – and that’s before they need to shell out the required $US75,000 ($113,000) per ticket.
Pratt was days before front and centre of US President Donald Trump’s economic initiative after promising to invest billions in the United States, which earned him a personal shout-out at the White House, as this masthead reported.
“Executive global chairman of Pratt Industries, friend of mine, Anthony Pratt – he’s investing $US5 billion ($7.82 billion), thank you,” Trump said as Pratt stood in his blue suit, flashed his hand up in thanks, and sat down again.
It is a far cry from two years earlier when Trump labelled him a “red-headed weirdo”. Now Pratt is feted by both Trump and Wintour. Is anyone more central in US power culture right now?
The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.