No Dad joke: Father’s Day now too ‘political’

A heart-tugging television commercial celebrating Fath­er’s Day has been pulled after being deemed too ‘polit­ical’.

The Dads4Kids Father’s Day ad that was pulled.

A heart-tugging television commercial celebrating Fath­er’s Day by promoting the ­special role of fathers in the lives of their children has been pulled after being deemed too “polit­ical” ahead of the government’s same-sex ­marriage postal ballot.

This year’s commercial — featuring a father singing his baby a lullaby — will not be broadcast after Free TV Australia, representing the free-to-air commercial networks, informed­ not-for-profit group Dads4Kids that its Father’s Day ads “likely contained political matter”.

After being told this week that its ad had been rejected, Dads4Kids released a statement to The Weekend Australian yesterda­y expressing its disappointment, as opponents and suppor­t­ers of same-sex marriage defended the commercial.

Former prime minister Tony Abbott said the development was the latest example of how the “thought police” would operate in the “brave new world of same-sex marriage” while gay marriage advocate and Victorian Liberal MP Tim Wilson slammed the Free TV determin­ation as “ridiculous advice that should be ignored”.

“If you don’t like being bullied by activists, vote no,” Mr Abbott told The Weekend Australian.

“If you don’t like political ­correctness, vote no, because it’s the best way you have to stop it in its tracks.”

In its statement, Dads4Kids said the majority of free-to-air TV networks across Australia had “graciously run these ads for free as a community service ­announcement” for 15 years.

“Unfortunately, what is a simple­ Father’s Day message has now become a ‘political’ statement,” the group said.

“It is extraordinary that this is where we have come to as a country; we can no longer celebrate Father­’s Day without being forced to look at it through the lens of the same-sex marriage debate.

“It’s a tragedy that a political motive is now implied in any mention of fatherhood ... Not everything is about same-sex marriage.”

The written advice from Free TV’s legal counsel to Dads4Kids warned the commercial had been “brought to our attention by the networks as potentially containing political matter” and that a review had upheld this assessment.

The advice suggested the commercial be changed to include, for the first time, a political “authorisation tag” to adhere to conditions in the Broadcasting Services Act.

It also referred Dads4Kids to the guidelines issued by the Advertising Standards Bureau “in light of the same-sex marriage plebiscite” and which define political advertising as “comment upon a matter which is currently the subject of extensive political debate”.

The TV commercial features a father singing a lullaby to his baby as well as an Asian-Australian ­father dressed in army fatigues giving his daughter a piggyback ride. It does not feature any political slogans or spoken words.

The Weekend Australian understands Dads4Kids had inadequate resources to recut the commercial to include the suggested “authorisation tag” in time, with the group saying yesterday “it was and is not our intention” to have entered into the same-sex marriage debate.

“We expect that, in speaking up about this, that we and those connected to us will be attacked and intimidated,” the group said.

“What, you might ask, is in these ‘political’ adverts? They featur­e a father singing a lullaby to his baby. It is that simple.”

Mr Wilson, who supports a Yes vote in the gay marriage survey, told The Weekend Australian he was surprised by the restrictions on the ad. “If the advice from Free TV’s lawyers requires political authorisation, it’s manifestly stupid­,” Mr Wilson said.

“First, there’s no legal requirement for advertisements to have authorisation on the postal survey under current law. Second, advertisements celebrating fatherhood are not political and Father’s Day has nothing to do with whether same-sex couples should marry.

“There are fathers who will be recognised on Father’s Day that can and can’t get married.

“This is ridiculous advice that should be ignored.”

Free TV declined to answer detailed­ questions submitted by The Weekend Australian yesterday asking why the ad was deemed to be political, citing “strict confidentiality arrangements” and saying it also had to consider the “context surrounding the advertisement”.

Free TV chairman and prominent businessman Harold Mitchell also declined to comment.

“Political matter includes any matter that appears to comment upon, encourage participation in or attempt to influence a certain outcome within a political process,” the advice said.

Liberal ACT Senator Zed Seselja, a defender of traditional marriage, said the need for authoris­ation was “insane”. “I think it’s a pretty concerning glimpse into the future where apparently promoting fatherhood is now a political act,” he said. “I am a father of five myself. I often post pictures of my kids on their birthday … is that now a political thing? Come off it.”