SBS has reported a viral social media video that mocked Aboriginal Australians and used the broadcaster’s Insight logo without permission.
The video, shared on Instagram by self-described comedian Lisa Jane Spencer, featured a skit in which she claimed to be “transitioning” into an Aboriginal Australian. The clip included an SBS Insight logo in the top corner despite having no connection to the broadcaster.
In a statement, SBS confirmed it had reported the posts and condemned the content.
“SBS is aware of these posts and the unauthorised use of SBS logos. The posts and individuals are in no way associated with our content and have been reported,” the broadcaster said.
“SBS unequivocally condemns all forms of racism and recognises the damaging impact it has on individuals, communities and social cohesion. Such views have no place in Australian society.”
In the clip, Spencer depicted herself painting her face and dancing barefoot while hitting sticks together, while also portraying a scene where she sniffed a fuel canister, imagery widely condemned as reinforcing long-standing and harmful stereotypes about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
The video has been slammed online, with many calling out Spencer for her behaviour.
“Honestly, this is putrid,” one person commented.
“Racism isn’t comedy,” another wrote.
“This is deeply disturbing and insensitive. Please remove this,” a third added.
Former reality television star and advocate Brooke Blurton also criticised the video, saying she was “sick of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people being the brunt of the joke”.
“Let’s be clear — it’s not humour. It’s a racist stereotype that First Nations people, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, have been facing for generations,” Blurton said.
“Words matter, and content matters. And when someone with a platform chooses to reiterate and spread racial stereotypes — harmful racial stereotypes, mind you — it actually contributes to the discrimination that First Nations and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are already facing every day.”
Blurton said the issue was not about sensitivity but about the real-world impact such content can have on communities and young people.
Kerrupmara/Gunditjmara man Travis Lovett also condemned the video.
“If this does not show why truth-telling is needed in this country, I don’t know what does,” Lovett wrote.
“The racism, the dehumanising language, and the willingness to target communities do not appear out of nowhere. They are born from histories left untold. Truths avoided and systems that have never fully reckoned with the harm they have caused.”
Several hours after posting the skit, Spencer released a statement defending the video and refusing to apologise.
“I love Aboriginal people. And I think they’re smart enough to know when they’re being used,” she wrote.
“My joke was first about how easy it is to perform identity for attention and/or benefits.”
“And so I apologise to absolutely nobody. Not to the Aboriginals… Indians… and anyone else who I have and will continue to make jokes.
“This is comedy. If you can’t make jokes about certain people and things, then that is a form of privilege and hierarchy, and comedy is about tearing those down. this is what I do, I push boundaries… and that’s never going to change.”
The video remained online despite the growing backlash.
