Australia’s ABC Demands Far-Right Political Party One Nation Stop Using Bluey In Its Propaganda

Australian public broadcaster ABC has demanded that far-right party One Nation stop using Bluey in its political cartoons.

A 2024 episode of the party’s animated series, Pauline Hanson’s Please Explain, depicts Bluey and former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews running each other over. That episode has drawn renewed scrutiny since independent MP Helen Haines lost both legs in an alleged deliberate vehicle attack on October 19. No connection between the animation and the attack has been established, but the former’s poor taste is even more objectionable now.

According to Australian media reports, ABC is considering legal action over the unauthorized appearances. Speaking at a Senate estimates hearing on Tuesday, managing director Hugh Marks called it a “shocking use” of “Australia’s most loved character.” Hanson denies the cartoons infringe intellectual property rights.

An ABC spokesperson said the network is “very concerned by the unauthorized use of a children’s character and national icon like Bluey in the various ways it has been used for One Nation’s political purposes”.

One Nation’s far-right politics are well documented. Academic sources classify it as a populist radical-right party defined by nativism, authoritarianism, and populism, repeatedly targeting immigrants, Muslims, Asians, and Indigenous Australians. Its platform calls for withdrawing Australia from the UN Refugee Convention.

The party has also distributed a coloring book to children featuring a drawing of Bluey and conservationist Robert Irwin being held at knifepoint. One Nation defended the cartoons and merchandise as political satire.

ABC licenses Bluey rather than owning it. Legal action would require coordination with IP owner Ludo Studio. BBC Studios distributes the series.