Respected Channel 9 presenter Peter Overton makes awkward gaffe while discussing first Aboriginal MP

Daily Mail​

03-05-2025

Veteran journalist Peter Overton suffered an awkward gaffe during Channel Nine's election night coverage when he used the politically incorrect term 'Aborigine'.
Overton was talking about legendary Australian politician Neville Bonner AO, who was the first Aboriginal Australian to become a member of the Parliament of Australia.
According to Reconciliation Australia, 'Aborigine' is perceived as offensive because it has racist connotations from the country's colonial past, promotes negative stereotypes and puts people with diverse backgrounds into a single group.
'Let's move on to the seat of Bonner now in Queensland,' Overton said during the broadcast.
'Of course, named after Neville Bonner, the first Aborigine to serve in the Australian parliament and a Liberal.
'If those votes (from the early count) hold up, it won't be Liberal for long.
'Ross Vasta had the seat for a long time, he's getting 30 per cent. Kara Cook's had a great night so far she's up 12 per cent compared to that.'
Overton paused for a split second in seeming recognition of the slip-up, but then Nine's coverage rolled on despite the hiccup.
Amnesty International agreed the term Aborigine was not correct.
'You're more likely to make friends by saying Aboriginal person, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander,' the non-profit said.
'If you can, try using the person's clan or tribe name and if you are talking about both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, it's best to say either 'Indigenous Australians' or 'Indigenous people'.
'Without a capital a, aboriginal can refer to an Indigenous person from anywhere in the world. The word means 'original inhabitant' in Latin.'
As about 8pm in the seat of Bonner, the voting numbers had grown closer, however, Ms Cook was still well head on 54.7 per cent of the vote compared to 45.3 per cent for Mr Vasta, an 8.1 per cent swing to Labor.
The electorate's namesake, Neville Bonner, made history after he had been appointed by the Queensland Parliament to fill a casual vacancy in the representation of Queensland in the Senate.
He later became the first Indigenous Australian to be elected to the parliament by a popular vote.