Tony Armstrong has a message for people looking to troll him online: please spell your insults correctly.
In a comedy sketch posted to his social media page, Armstrong fronts a satirical campaign for a fictional app, Furore – a “grammar app keeping racists safe online by helping them spell their outbursts correctly”.
The three-minute sketch features Armstrong in full salesman mode, displaying how Furore is a handy tool “guaranteed to save you from all kinds of digital faux pas” before showing the app in action. (For example: welfair scammer becomes welfare scammer.)
The former ABC News Breakfast presenter stars in a new comedy sketch that advertises a spell-check app for online trolls looking to insult him. Credit: Screenshot
With tongue firmly planted in cheek, Armstrong explains: “I would love to live in an Australia where I don’t experience targeted online racism, but with that seemingly out of reach, I would at least like these venomous words to be spelled correctly.”
The Gamilaroi man, a former ABC News Breakfast presenter, is no stranger to receiving abuse online and he regularly shares screenshots on Instagram of the racist abuse he has received.
Armstrong finished up on News Breakfast in October, the same week that ABC director Justin Stevens issued a statement defending him, after the presenter was the target of racial abuse on social media.
“Tony Armstrong is one of the ABC’s best and most talented presenters. This week he has again been targeted on social media and in public comments on news websites in a despicable way,” Stevens said at the time.
In an interview with this masthead, Armstrong said his personal experience had proved a fertile breeding ground for his sketch.“I guess I was sick of being passive and just waiting to get piled on, now and then; I’m just fed up,” he said.
Armstrong, a Dave Chappelle fan, figured the best way to handle online trolls was by poking fun. “I love the way Chappelle tackles that stuff, and watching comics laugh at pretty heavy issues has always appealed to me,” he says.
Armstrong fronts a satirical campaign for a fictional app, Furore: a “grammar app keeping racists safe online by helping them spell their outbursts correctly”. Credit: Screenshot
Armstrong co-wrote the sketch with comedian Henry Stone (who also directed). The pair funded all production themselves. They have not disclosed the cost.
While the initial response has been largely positive online, Armstrong is curious to see how it will land on social media. “I’m looking forward to seeing how it is received; the people who abuse me will probably be thinking I get paid for this stuff.”
The former ABC News Breakfast presenter and Gamilaroi man is no stranger to receiving abuse online, regularly sharing screenshots on Instagram of the racist abuse he has received. Credit: Screenshot
Despite no longer being on air with News Breakfast, Armstrong remains a presence on the ABC. Earlier this year he hosted Eat the Invaders, a series investigating invasive species and strategies to manage their populations.
Later this year he will front End Game, a three-part series examining solutions to the rising tide of racism in Australian sport.
Sounds fishy? Tony Armstrong in Eat the Invaders.Credit: ABC TV
However, the two-time Logie winner (and Gold Logie nominee) admits he is enjoying the creative freedom that comes with creating his own content.
“There is plenty more to come in this style,” says Armstrong. “Henry and I have just about finished writing the next one; I just need to save my pennies to finance it.”
Find more of the author’s work here. Email him at thomas.mitchell@smh.com.au or follow him on Instagram at @thomasalexandermitchell and on Twitter @_thmitchell.
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