Pauline Hanson has released emails from a Seven producer behind a Spotlight special on immigration, claiming the final program did not reflect the original pitch for the interview.
The One Nation leader shared the emails online after Sunday night’s episode of Spotlight, which followed her controversial UK trip and included interviews about her views on immigration.
The episode attracted strong attention, with journalist Liam Bartlett interviewing Hanson and accompanying her during parts of her overseas visit.
Hanson said the program had been presented to her as a documentary about Australia’s record immigration levels.
“Here’s the pitch from… (producer) Luke Mortimer who works for Spotlight. Now tell me if last nights show reflects their pitch?” she wrote on social media.
In an email from November, producer Luke Mortimer said he wanted to create a one-hour program about Australia’s migration levels and the issue of “uncontrolled immigration”.
“I don’t think we need to read the tea leaves too closely to see, uncontrolled immigration is shaping up as next year’s defining issue, just as ‘net zero’ has been this year, and will also be next year too,” he wrote.
“…The show, ideally, will further enlighten our viewers to the scale of the issue we are facing and what we might face if we don’t take back control of who comes to our country.”
Mortimer also suggested a meeting between Hanson and former Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, saying it would show her where he believed Britain was heading due to high migration levels.
However, the meeting did not happen after Farage left the UK Parliament amid a financial scandal.
Instead, Hanson met with Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe and controversial right-wing figure Tommy Robinson.
The Spotlight episode showed Hanson walking through Robinson’s hometown of Luton, Bedfordshire, and included a podcast recording between the pair.
Hanson has since criticised the program, while One Nation chief of staff James Ashby described it as a “stitch up”.
“This had nothing to do with immigration; it had everything to do with trying to call into question Pauline’s capability of not only running a political party but running a country,” Ashby told Sky News host Paul Murray.
Seven has defended the program, saying the episode was shaped over more than six months of discussions and changes in the news cycle.
“Spotlight is proud to have produced a balanced piece of journalism which fairly quizzed Senator Hanson but also allowed her views to be explored and heard in a high-rating special and we thank Senator Hanson for her candid access,” a Seven spokesperson said.
Seven also said the decision to meet Robinson was made by One Nation and that the meeting was arranged before Spotlight was aware of it.
The network said it did not pay for One Nation’s travel expenses, but covered production costs including a vehicle, a hotel room used for filming and security for Seven staff while recording in the UK.
The controversy comes after Hanson faced criticism over comments made during her UK trip, including remarks about immigration and the former White Australia policy.
Hanson has said she “never ever advocated” for the policy and does not “believe in it”.
Image: Spotlight
