ABC star Charlie Pickering has publicly criticised his own employer over the launch of a new podcast by former Australian of the Year Grace Tame, calling it “problematic.”
Pickering Speaks Out
In a video posted to Rebel News’ Instagram, Mr Pickering said: “I do actually think it’s problematic, that’s my personal opinion. As you would understand, and as a Jewish Australian, there is a complete misunderstanding of a lot of the words that are said and what the true meaning of them are. A lot of people are using words and phrases that have meaning well beyond what they think they do.”
The four-part series, titled Autistic AF, explores Ms Tame’s experiences as an autistic woman and includes interviews with experts and other women. However, the podcast has been slammed by critics who accuse the national broadcaster of being “tone-deaf” following Ms Tame’s recent controversies.
Controversies Surrounding Grace Tame
Earlier this year, Ms Tame was filmed chanting “globalise the intifada” at a pro-Palestine rally, drawing condemnation from the Jewish community. She also faced backlash for dismissing reports of sexual violence against Israeli women during the October 7 Hamas attack as “propaganda,” claims that were widely debunked by evidence and investigations.
Australian Jewish Association chief executive Robert Gregory criticised the ABC’s decision to hire Ms Tame. “Not long after the Bondi attack, Grace Tame publicly called to ‘globalise the intifada’. The intifada was a period of bloody terrorist attacks against Jewish civilians in Israel,” he said. “Just months ago, Tame dismissed reports of sexual violence committed against Israeli women on October 7 as ‘propaganda’ and falsely claimed they had been ‘debunked’ despite extensive evidence. This decision demonstrates a profound lack of judgment and a disregard for the concerns of many Australians, particularly within the Jewish community.”
Podcast’s Purpose
Despite the controversy, Ms Tame said she wanted the podcast to explore how autism in women is markedly different and give women with autism a voice. “Usually, I’m the person being interrogated, not that there was any interrogation going on here,” she told ABC Perth. “It was a very gentle, explorative process, but I really loved listening to the expertise and lived experience of women who are autistic and who have dedicated their lives to understanding different brains.”
Ms Tame was diagnosed with autism at 19 and said it could be confronting. She noted that women are often diagnosed later in life because they tend to be better at masking and internalising their needs. “It’s really sad when you finally get a diagnosis and realise, well, if I had been diagnosed much earlier in my life, like boys are usually diagnosed in primary school. If I had been diagnosed much earlier, perhaps I wouldn’t have gone down this path of being misdiagnosed or just not meeting needs that really needed to be met,” she said.
The podcast was launched months after Ms Tame lost speaking gigs around the nation, which she described as an “ongoing national smear campaign.” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had labelled her “difficult” following the rally incident. The Australian Jewish Association also requested that she be removed as a guest speaker at a Bendigo Women’s Day breakfast.
In response to her comments about Israeli sexual violence, the National Council of Jewish Women Australia said Tame’s remarks were “a complete wilful distortion of facts” and added: “We cannot comprehend why somebody who claims to fight for the victims of sexual abuse makes such an exception when those victims are Jews.”
