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Sunrise host Nat Barr calls out Guy Sebastian over 'anti-vax pressure'
Sunrise host Natalie Barr seemed to call out Guy Sebastian on Wednesday morning, as she and co-host David 'Kochie' Koch shared their thoughts on the star's decision to delete a post supporting the Vax the Nation campaign this week.
Guy Sebastian came under fire after he deleted and apologised for a pro-vaccination post made to his account on Monday promoting the campaign, which urges fans to get vaccinated so live music can return, something many artists have put their support behind.
Speaking about Guy's decision and the fallout with Entertainment reporter Peter Ford, Nat seemed baffled by the singer's move, particularly given that most people with a public platform that are sharing pro-vax information are facing online trolling.
"I mean, if you're pro-vaccination like most of us are, then every day anti-vaxxers and vaccine-hesitant people attack you online. Like us," she said.
"Why would he have been shocked by that?"
Peter Ford replied saying that Guy "doesn't like to make waves".
"He is a nice person and he doesn't want people hating him, but the general mood out there at the moment is you've got to take a stance," he added.
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Kochie said he thought Guy shouldn't be slammed for back-flipping on the campaign, arguing he has every right to share whatever message he wants.
"We've lost the [ability to] agree to disagree, haven't we?" he said. "It's 'you do as I say or I'm going to hate you for it'," he said.
When Guy took the post down and uploaded a video, saying he "would never, ever tell people what to do when it comes to their personal health choices".
"I've always done everything that I can to support my industry but the campaign was posted to my page without my direct involvement and whilst I, like everybody else in my industry, I want things to get going again. It is not my role to communicate in the way that the post was communicating, I would never, ever tell people what to do when it comes to their personal health choices," he continued in the video.
"I'm very sensitive of it not only on a public level but even in my personal life with people who have circumstances that they have to consider when making these choices so I just want to say I'm really sorry."
The Vax the Nation campaign has seen 400 of the biggest names in the Australian music industry including Tim Minchin, Jimmy Barnes, Amy Shark, Paul Kelly and the Hilltop Hoods encourage Aussies to get vaccinated to "stop the interruptions" and end the cycle of lockdowns.
In a statement to Yahoo Lifestyle, Guy said, "There is no confusion, I made the personal decision to be double vaccinated. I support the music industry initiatives to revive our industry, however, I personally don’t believe it is my place to deal in absolutes to tell people what to do in regards to their personal health choices. We need to remember to communicate with empathy and understanding. This has always been my goal."
In response to Guy's post, singer Ben Lee, who is a supporter of Vax the Nation, tweeted: "To be honest, this is actually a really sad example of what happens when your career is dependent on trying to be all things to all people."
Meanwhile, 2GB radio host Ray Hadley laid into The Voice coach during an interview afterwards, saying he was "disappointed" in the star.
However, others, including The Project host Waleed Aly, have come out in support of Guy.
"He seems to me a lovely guy who is being beset upon by people who are not that, and waded into an issue where he didn’t quite understand the polarisation it faces," Waleed said.
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