Former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating has launched a fresh broadside against the 'Red Alert' series published by Nine newspapers, the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, labeling it a misleading and irresponsible prediction that has failed to materialize. In a strongly worded statement released on Friday, marking the third anniversary of the series' publication on March 7, 2023, Keating asserted that the alarming front-page warnings about 'war with China within three years' by a panel of five national security experts have proven baseless, with none of the claims coming to pass.
Keating doubled down on his disdain for international editor Peter Hartcher, describing him as 'maladroit' and adding to previous insults such as 'psychopath' and 'old acid drop'. He accused then-editor Bevan Shields of allowing Hartcher 'to concoct a China-threat story aided by a group of handpicked anti-China accomplices', resulting in what Keating called 'the most egregious and provocative news presentation' in his over fifty years of public life. The series, with its lurid images of Chinese military aircraft, was denounced by Keating as 'one of the most shameful episodes in the history of Australian journalism'.
Hartcher responded to Keating's criticism in a 2024 opinion piece, arguing that the former prime minister is 'Australia’s foremost apologist for the Chinese Communist Party' and accusing him of 'bloody-mindedness in retirement' and an 'autocratic tendency'. The 'Red Alert' series has faced widespread condemnation from other quarters: Paul Barry on Media Watch criticized it as hysterical and hyperbolic, while Margaret Simons, writing for Guardian Australia, cited foreign affairs specialists who described it as 'pretentious', 'irresponsible', and implicitly racist in its depictions of China.
Keating shifted focus to geopolitical actions, stating that it is not China but the United States that has attacked other countries, pointing to 'last weekend’s premeditated attack on Iran' as evidence. He emphasized that China has not attacked any state in nearly half a century, aside from a brief border conflict with Vietnam in 1979. Expressing hope that new editor Jordan Baker would reject 'amoral standards of journalism', Keating questioned why Hartcher remains in his position despite the controversy. Nine and Hartcher declined to comment on the matter.
Source: www.theguardian.com