NITV Takes a stand against racism and hate on Twitter

An Aussie broadcaster has taken a stance against online hate days after another media heavyweight stepped down due to racial abuse.

SBS’s NITV has taken a stance against online vitriol by announcing that the Indigenous broadcaster will take “a break” from Twitter just days after journalist Stan Grant announced his decision to step down from his role as ABC’s Q+A host due to relentless racial abuse.

In an official statement posted on its Twitter account, NITV expressed its frustration with the racism and hate they encounter daily on the platform.

The official NITV Twitter account posted on Sunday, “You may have noticed we haven’t been using Twitter much lately. We’ve decided to take a break from it,” the statement read.

“We’ve had enough of the racism and hate that we see and experience every day on this platform. It’s just not a place we want or need to be, particularly during a time when things are heavy enough.”

NITV is ‘taking a break’ from Twitter. Picture: Constanza Hevia

The team emphasised that despite their absence from Twitter, they will continue to fulfil their mission of providing news, insights, opinions, and stories from Indigenous communities across the continent. They encouraged their followers to visit their website, nitv.com.au, and engage with their content on Instagram and Facebook. They also suggested following SBS News’s and SBS’s Twitter accounts, as they often share NITV’s content.

The announcement drew support from the Indigenous rights group Justice Aunties, who retweeted the post and labelled the current state of race hate as “prodigiously archaic.”

pic.twitter.com/1nEj9ugH2B

— NITV (@NITV) May 21, 2023

In their retweet, the group said, “Whether it’s Stan Grant, NITV, or a football star, the relentless attacks on social media against Aboriginal people lately have been prodigiously archaic.”

“Australia doesn’t want a Voice; it wants to be deaf, dumb, and blind to our plights. It’s right in front of your eyes,” they continued.

This move comes in the wake of Stan Grant’s decision to step away from hosting Q+A and writing columns for the ABC.

ABC presenter Stan Grant is standing down from duties following the backlash over the Coronation coverage.

Grant, who had hosted Q+A for less than a year, cited the vile criticism directed at him following his discussion of colonisation during ABC’s coverage of the coronation of King Charles III as the breaking point.

In a statement, Grant addressed the misrepresentation of his words and the attempts to portray him as hate-filled, saying, “Since the King’s coronation, I have seen people in the media lie and distort my words. They have tried to depict me as hate-filled.

“They have accused me of maligning Australia.”

Grant emphasised that these accusations were “far from the truth”, stating that he refuses to be “filled with hate”.

Grant criticised his employer’s lack of public refutation by expressing disappointment with his ABC bosses.