For the better part of a decade Jordan Shanks, a Sydney-based commentator, has earned a reputation among teenagers for his ability to both mock and shine a light on Australian characters and culture.
On June 12, the FriendlyJordies YouTube channel took a break from reporting on a legal case against NSW deputy premier John Barilaro and reviewing Lynx deodorant products to upload an exposé about floodplain harvesting in the Darling-Barka River.
Within 24 hours the documentary had been viewed more than 200,000 times.
The hour-long video includes interviews with Southern Riverina Irrigators chair Chris Brooks, Member for Murray Helen Dalton, Maryanna Slattery from Slattery and Johnson, NSW Irrigators’ Council chief executive Claire Miller, and others.
Ms Miller was the most prominent interviewee in the show and said she appreciated Mr Shanks taking the time to talk with her, but the final report produced by the FriendlyJordies team was biased against floodplain harvesting.
“Water is a very complex issue . . . they want to promote one particular view and they used selective takes,” Ms Miller said.
“You should see the social media comments I'm getting now.”
The documentary explains floodplain harvesting in layman’s terms as "water theft" and the NSW Nationals are lampooned as being "evil" and "pigs" for letting the practice get out of control.
Riverina politician Helen Dalton said she thought the documentary was a great piece.
“It's done a good job explaining a very complex topic in a way that anyone can understand,” Ms Dalton said.
“Everything that film talks about — floodplain harvesting, dodgy water markets — it's gone on so long because most people are looking the other way.”
When asked about accusations the documentary was unbalanced, Ms Dalton said "well, they would say that".
Irrigation Australia took to twitter to express its disappointment in the documentary Blood Water: the war for Australia's water, describing it as a "thinly disguised and unbalanced attempt to disparage and diminish the work of organisations and people" involved in the Murray-Darling Basin.
Ms Dalton defended Mr Shanks’ opinionated style.
“Australia has a long tradition of the larrikin journalist. And that's always included an irreverent streak when it comes to politics,” she said.
“You saw it over 100 years ago with the Bulletin, and you saw it 20 years ago with the Chaser. It's part of our democracy — it keeps us down-to-earth.”
The documentary also talked to the Brewarrina mayor, a Barkandji Elder, the Wilcannia Local Aboriginal Land Council chair and a Griffith resident with motor neurone disease which she believes is linked to blue-green algae.
The video can be viewed at: youtube.com/watch?v=glgCA9WmqkI
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