Gina Rinehart's Company Criticizes ABC's 'Belated' Apology Over Film's 'Disgusting Joke'

Gina Rinehart's company, Hancock Prospecting, has called the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) apology over a filmmaker's on-air attack "belated" and demanded "long overdue changes to the ABC's editorial standards."

The ABC issued an apology on Thursday, more than four weeks after airing a film by Kate McGuinness titled "A Very Relaxing Video" during the "Race Around the World" filmmaking competition on July 12. The competition follows aspiring filmmakers as they create short films in different countries within a set timeframe.

McGuinness's four-minute film took a sharp turn towards its end with a graphic description of assaulting Rinehart with a stick. One of the show's judges, Leigh Sales, described the remarks as "nasty," though she also stated she "really liked" the film. Sales was the only one of the three judges to criticize the comments.

"Such editorial standards need to stop sexual violence and torture until death episodes being shown or depicted in any form against any woman on the ABC, including under the pretence of satire or art or any other cloak," a spokesperson for Hancock Prospecting told the Daily Mail. The company stated that "satire needs to be funny," and the content aired by the ABC was not, further claiming it "normalised violent torture against a woman till death."

The spokesperson added that the notion of a woman being regarded as worthless, to the point where sexual torture until death is acceptable, is a concept practiced by terrorists and should never be accepted as art or as acceptable in Australia, even by the ABC.

According to the company, the ABC and its ombudsmen had initially stated that the program met editorial standards. Hancock Prospecting, however, contested this, with the spokesperson arguing that the ombudsman misstated the episode was "not accompanied by any visual depictions of violence." The company pointed to the inclusion of the proposed weapon (sticks) and the video showing a picture of Rinehart's head on a stick as visual depictions.

The company asserted that the ABC Ombudsman's decision that the ABC did not breach its editorial standards "fails all Australian women and the millions of taxpayers who fund the ABC." Hancock Prospecting also noted a lack of response from ABC's Chair Kim Williams, Deputy Chair Lisa Caffery, and the Board.

"We await a detailed account in relation to who approved this unacceptable piece to be aired, and who approved the long delay in its removal, which must have been ticked off by those higher up in the ABC, given its high profile in the media and the many complaints," the spokesperson said. "The buck stops with the heads of the ABC."

The ABC managing director, Hugh Marks, issued an apology acknowledging that the episode fell short of community expectations. He stated that while the ombudsman found no breach of editorial policies, the ABC would amend its guidance as it applies to violence. The film has since been edited on ABC's platforms to remove the criticized material. The broadcaster's initial defense of the film was that it was "intended to be satirical in tone and considered to be editorially justifiable within the context of the program."