Grace Tame wears anti-Murdoch shirt to PM's morning tea, mocking 'sickly wealthy oligarchs'
Former Australian of the Year Grace Tame took aim at Rupert Murdoch during morning tea with the prime minister but said her message went far beyond the man The realm of billionaire media moguls.
The 2021 laureate wore a T-shirts that read “Fuck Murdoch.”
“(The T-shirt) is clearly not just about Murdoch, but what he symbolizes is the obscene greed, inhumanity and disconnect that is destroying our planet,” Tam told Guardian Australia.
“For too long, the world and its resources have been controlled undemocratically by a handful of pathologically wealthy oligarchs,” she said after the event.
“If we want to dismantle this corrupt system, if we want legitimate climate action, fairness, truth, justice, democracy, peace, land restitution and more, then resisting forces like Murdoch is a great place to start.”
She said she “never” had reservations about wearing the shirt to events.
“Speaking truth to power starts at the grassroots with a simple, effective message. This is one of my favorite shirts.”
The Prime Minister and Hayden greeted Tam with a smile but no apparent reaction to the statement on her shirt.
The sexual assault survivor advocate also sparked controversy in 2022 when she attended the same event as the outgoing Australian of the Year.
When Tam and her fiancé Max Heerey arrived, they were greeted by then Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny, who congratulated them on their recent engagement.
But Tam remained sullen as they posed for photos, including the famous shot of her giving Morrison an impassive “side-eye” look.
She later addressed the moment on Twitter (now
“What I did was not an act of martyrdom in the gender culture wars,” she wrote.
“It's true that many women are tired of being told to smile for the benefit of men. But it's not just women who are used to smiling and adapting to an obviously rotten status quo. It's all of us.”
Tam is highly critical of Morrison and his government's response to allegations of sexual assault and toxic workplace culture in federal parliament.
The winner of the 2025 Australian of the Year Awards will be announced at a ceremony in Canberra on Saturday.
More than 30 finalists will compete for the titles of Australian of the Year, Senior Australian of the Year, Young Australian of the Year and Local Australian Hero.