{"id":42983,"date":"2019-04-10T20:18:58","date_gmt":"2019-04-10T10:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nofibs.com.au\/?p=42983"},"modified":"2022-05-02T12:07:26","modified_gmt":"2022-05-02T02:07:26","slug":"newmans-henchmen-captain-getup-and-the-queensland-connection-to-warringahvotes-qldaah-qgame-qldpol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/newmans-henchmen-captain-getup-and-the-queensland-connection-to-warringahvotes-qldaah-qgame-qldpol\/","title":{"rendered":"Newman\u2019s henchmen &#8211; Captain GetUp and the Queensland connection to #WarringahVotes: @qldaah #Qgame #qldpol"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The man behind Warringah&#8217;s superhero, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Captain GetUp (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CaptGetUp\" target=\"_blank\">Captain GetUp<\/a>, is <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Gerard Benedet (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GerardBenedet\" target=\"_blank\">Gerard Benedet<\/a>. The orange character arrived on Sydney&#8217;s northern beaches via a post by <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"The Australian (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/australian\" target=\"_blank\"><em>The Australian<\/em><\/a>. The Twitter account describes itself as arriving, &#8220;to tell you what to think and how to act this election! Authorised by Gerard Benedet, Advance Aus Ltd Brisbane.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Conservative lobby Advance Australia will today unveil a &#39;truth crusader&#39;, a mock superhero called Captain GetUp, whose mission is to travel to marginal seats and &#39;tell the truth about <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GetUp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@GetUp<\/a>&#39;s agenda&#39; <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/auspol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#auspol<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/auspol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#auspol<\/a> election <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/NAGjPHthfD\">https:\/\/t.co\/NAGjPHthfD<\/a><\/p>&mdash; The Australian (@australian) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/australian\/status\/1115374162007154689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 8, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As Nine Entertainment Corporation&#8217;s (NEC) <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Max Koslowski (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MaxKoslowski\" target=\"_blank\">Max Koslowski<\/a> revealed in March, Mr Benedet is the national director of the conservative activist group, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Advance Australia (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.advanceaustralia.org.au\/\" target=\"_blank\">Advance Australia<\/a>. He has previously worked for the Liberal Party&#8217;s Brendan Nelson, Helen Coonan and Michael Ronaldson. He was also a volunteer for <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Tony Abbott's (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TonyAbbottMHR\" target=\"_blank\">Tony Abbott&#8217;s<\/a> 2001 re-election campaign. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Meet Gerard Benedet, the man who could save conservatives - or take them down with him. (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/politics\/federal\/meet-gerard-benedet-the-man-who-could-save-conservatives-or-take-them-down-with-him-20190315-p514l1.html\" target=\"_blank\">Meet Gerard Benedet, the man who could save conservatives &#8211; or take them down with him.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In his most recent political activity, Mr Benedet was chief-of-staff (CoS) for Queensland Liberal National Party (LNP) MP, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Tim Nicholls (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TimNichollsMP\" target=\"_blank\">Tim Nicholls<\/a>, who was treasurer under Queensland Premier <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Campbell Newman (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CampbellNewman\" target=\"_blank\">Campbell Newman<\/a>. Just months ahead of the snap 2015 Queensland election, in September 2014, Mr Benedet suddenly resigned and went to work for News Corp&#8217;s <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"The Courier Mail (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/couriermail\" target=\"_blank\"><em>The Courier Mail<\/em><\/a> in the capacity of &#8220;government relations&#8221;. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Treasurer's COS jumps ship to News Corp. (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.brisbanetimes.com.au\/national\/queensland\/treasurers-cos-jumps-ship-to-news-corp-20140924-10lis6.html\" target=\"_blank\">Treasurer&#8217;s COS jumps ship to News Corp.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After Premier Newman&#8217;s defeat in 2015, Mr Benedet returned as CoS to Mr Nicholls. Controversy arose in 2017 when the CoS to <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PaulineHansonOz\" target=\"_blank\">Pauline Hanson<\/a>, James Ashby, was recorded saying he had secured a deal with Mr Benedet for the Queensland LNP and Pauline Hanson&#8217;s One Nation (PHON) not to attack each other. This was immediately denied by Mr Nicholls. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"One Nation's James Ashby deal claim 'absolute crap', Queensland LNP leader Tim Nicholls says. (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/news\/2017-04-04\/one-nations-james-ashby-deal-absolute-crap-qld-lnp-tim-nicholls\/8414036\" target=\"_blank\">One Nation&#8217;s James Ashby deal claim &#8216;absolute crap&#8217;, Queensland LNP leader Tim Nicholls says.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a recent tweet, former Queensland premier Campbell Newman championed the creation of Captain GetUp. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">So Anthony Chisholm at ALP Central is concerned about this hey! Wonder why?<br>\u2018Truth crusader\u2019 tells GetUp to go <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/yrP2wbkzTy\">https:\/\/t.co\/yrP2wbkzTy<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Campbell Newman (@CampbellNewman) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CampbellNewman\/status\/1115444809332707330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 9, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Captain GetUp also responded to <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"NoFibs  (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NoFibs\" target=\"_blank\">NoFibs<\/a> <\/em>with a link to the wake-up-to-getup website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">more info here <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/g0HpIdCifM\">https:\/\/t.co\/g0HpIdCifM<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Captain GetUp! (@CaptGetUp) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CaptGetUp\/status\/1115860394961248258?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 10, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Naaman Zhou (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/naamanzhou\" target=\"_blank\">Naaman Zhou<\/a> reported that Captain GetUp&#8217;s arrival had been met with ridicule on social media. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Captain GetUp: conservative group's satirical superhero debuts to ridicule. (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/australia-news\/2019\/apr\/09\/captain-getup-conservative-groups-satirical-superhero-debuts-to-ridicule\" target=\"_blank\">Captain GetUp: conservative group&#8217;s satirical superhero debuts to ridicule.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Captain GetUp is authorised by Advance Australia aka Conservative GetUp. On instagram stories you can watch him do push ups at Manly ferry terminal. Also the account spelt Labor wrong. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/DF7203aC7z\">pic.twitter.com\/DF7203aC7z<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Eliza Berlage (@verbaliza) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/verbaliza\/status\/1115397928128901120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 8, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GetUp\" target=\"_blank\">GetUp<\/a> organisation lists itself as an, &#8220;independent, not-for-profit, community action for Australia.&#8221; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The objective of Captain GetUp appears to be to ruin the brand of GetUp. The big-headed, orange persona may seem ludicrous to social media users but there&#8217;s a local-level campaign going on here. The annoying character leaping in front of busy Warringah commuters might trigger a very different emotion. It&#8217;s a campaign Benedet would hope to cultivate in the weeks before Australia votes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/CaptainGetUp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#CaptainGetUp<\/a> has just been spotted, unmasked (presumably carrying his own head in a bag) in Sussex St, Sydney. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/auspol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#auspol<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/z6yhnkKtHQ\">pic.twitter.com\/z6yhnkKtHQ<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Emily Mayo (@iamemilymayo) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/iamemilymayo\/status\/1115827616710385665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 10, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The man behind Warringah&#8217;s superhero, Captain GetUp, is Gerard Benedet. The orange character arrived on Sydney&#8217;s northern beaches via a post by The Australian. The Twitter account describes itself as arriving, &#8220;to tell you what to think and how to act this election! Authorised by Gerard Benedet, Advance Aus Ltd Brisbane.&#8221; As Nine Entertainment Corporation&#8217;s [&hellip;]<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":42985,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3434,2969,3387,1998,3394,7,3548,585],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/CaptainGetUp.jpg?fit=800%2C400&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t0mw-bbh","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42983"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42983"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42983\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57211,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42983\/revisions\/57211"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42983"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42983"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42983"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}