Labor TikTok video labelled a ‘strange’ personal attack

Negative campaigning is featured in political social media videos ahead of the Queensland election but one has gone a step too far, an expert says.

TikTok account MilesHQ, authorised by the Queensland Labor Party secretary, has posted dozens of videos attacking the Liberal National Party’s policies and the opposition leader.

Videos include criticism of David Crisafulli for living outside his electorate, claims the LNP would cut coal royalties and that abortion rights were at risk if the party was elected.

Social media researcher Susan Grantham said negative campaigning was a standard approach in the lead-up to an election.

“Negative campaigning is election campaigning and it has been for decades,” the Griffith University researcher said.

However, one video posted to the account showing Crisafulli sitting on a couch to record a podcast with the caption “wouldn’t trust J.D. Vance or Crisafulli to sit on my couch” has garnered concern.

The caption references Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance who has been the subject of false online allegations.

It also highlights comments like “as if you’re gonna trust a man that can’t even sit on a couch properly”.

Grantham said the video was veering towards a personal attack as opposed to traditional negative campaigning criticising policies.

“When it gets into this attack on the individual, as a person, not as a politician, that’s where it’s getting a little strange to me,” she said.

Opposition integrity spokeswoman Fiona Simpson criticised the TikTok account as “desperate and juvenile”.

But Premier Steven Miles said the account was not his team’s work.

“The content of those pages are questions for the Labor Party,” he told reporters.

Queensland Labor Party Secretary Kate Flanders defended the social media account, described as a “fan page”, as a way to engage with voters.

“Labor fans send videos to be posted and sometimes they include adding in creativity, fun and humour,” she said in a statement.

“If the LNP think that a Steven Miles fan page is ‘desperate and juvenile’ they might want to have a look in their own backyard first.”

The LNP came under fire earlier this year for generating an artificial intelligence TikTok video of Miles dancing.

The premier said the video was a “dangerous turning point for democracy” with Queenslanders at risk of not knowing what was a deepfake.

But the LNP said it was clearly labelled as AI.

AAP

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