New Delhi: Australian radio station SEN dismissed cricket journalist Peter Lalor over the weekend, halfway through Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka, over his social media posts about the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Lalor‘s feed on social media platform X included re-shares of news on Israeli strikes and accusations of genocide levelled at the Israeli government.
SEN confirmed in a statement Tuesday that they had ended their working relationship with Lalor after discussing the impact of his online posts.
SEN station head Craig Hutchison said he and Lalor had differing opinions on how his social media posts affected people.
“We’ve been in dialogue through the back half of the Test about some of the commentary on Peter’s private social media feed. Peter and I have a different view of the impact of that in the Australian community,” Hutchison said in the statement.
“We respect Pete as a journalist and a long-time part of the community, but we also recognise the fear many families are feeling right now, and we must respect that.”
Lalor, who was working as a freelance commentator for SEN, denied any antisemitic intent. He said he was told by the station’s management that there were accusations he was antisemitic, which he objected to.
“I was told there were accusations I was antisemitic which I strongly objected to. I was told my retweeting was not balanced, and insensitive to one side and that many people had complained,” he said in a statement to subscribers on his Cricket et Al substack.
The statement was shared by Australian opener Usman Khawaja in an Instagram story.
Lalor said Hutchison asked him if he was concerned that his X reposts about events in Gaza made Jewish people in Melbourne feel unsafe.
“I said I didn’t want anyone to feel unsafe. Of course, I care. I have friends who are frightened and have heard the fear in their voices during conversations. It is an awful situation. But so is Gaza,” Lalor said.
“The following day Hutchison told me that because the ‘sound of my voice made people feel unsafe’ and that people are ‘triggered by my voice’, I could not cover the cricket for them anymore.”
Lalor‘s posts spark debate
There has been an increase in antisemitic attacks on synagogues and Jewish community spaces in Australia since Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023 and Israel launched its war on Gaza.
The Jewish community in Victoria, where most Jewish Australians live, is the largest in the country, with 46,645 people identifying with Jewish ancestry, according to the 2021 Census.
Antisemitic attacks like last month’s graffiti attacks on the Southern Sydney Synagogue in Allawah, which included swastikas and the message “Hitler on top”, have raised serious concerns about the safety of Jewish communities in Australia.
Khawaja expressed his support for Lalor on Instagram, saying he “deserved better”.
Khawaja said standing up for the people of Gaza was not antisemitic. He emphasised that it was about the Israeli government’s actions, justice and human rights.
“Standing up for the people of Gaza is not antisemitic nor does it have anything to do with my Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia, but everything to do with the Israeli government and their deplorable actions,” Khawaja said in his Instagram story.
“It has everything to do with justice and human rights. Unfortunately, hatred towards the Jewish and Muslim community will always exist,” he added.
Cricket writer and SEN commentator Bharat Sundaresan also supported Lalor on social media.
I want to stand with & shower @plalor with love. I say this as a human being & a friend. He’s a righteous, compassionate & kind man who cares & I’ve been so fortunate to get to know him & how unshaken he is about his beliefs
— Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) February 4, 2025
A SEN Radio shareholder defended the station’s decision to remove Lalor from its coverage due to his social media posts, The Age reported. In his statement to The Age, John Rothfield said he was aware of Lalor’s extensive posting on the war in Gaza but was not consulted by Hutchison about the reporter’s departure.
Rothfield, who is Jewish, is a shareholder in Sports Entertainment Group, which owns the radio station.
“I can tell you that I had no discussion with him over that issue, but I support it because of the commercial responsibility to advertisers and shareholders,” said Rothfield.
“It’s naive for him to tweet like that with limited balance. I understand the commercial reality that saw him seen off, but I hope what he said was simply anti-Israel and not antisemitic because sometimes the two get confused.”
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)
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Usman Khawaja is anti-Semitic – just like his brothers and cousins in Pakistan. It’s really hard to come across a Muslim who does not hate the Jews. Anti-semitism is the normal thing in Muslim societies.
Australian cricket administrators must initiate strict action against Usman Khawaja. He does not deserve to be in the national team.