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| 'Stop Tony Meow': Australian government spends over 130 pages discussing computer program that swaps pictures of Tony Abbott with images of cute kittens | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Australian government used up more than 130 pages of correspondence talking about a viral web plug-in that replaces pictures of their Prime Minister with ‘cute kittens’. | The Australian government used up more than 130 pages of correspondence talking about a viral web plug-in that replaces pictures of their Prime Minister with ‘cute kittens’. |
| The programme, called ‘Stop Tony Meow’, swaps images of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott with pictures of cats. | The programme, called ‘Stop Tony Meow’, swaps images of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott with pictures of cats. |
| It quickly became a viral hit with over 50,000 downloads from people tired of stock images of Mr Abbott. | It quickly became a viral hit with over 50,000 downloads from people tired of stock images of Mr Abbott. |
| And it hasn’t escaped the attention of government officials, who have racked up 137 pages of reports about the browser extension. | And it hasn’t escaped the attention of government officials, who have racked up 137 pages of reports about the browser extension. |
| The extent of government interest in the feline plug-in was revealed in a freedom of information request filed by its developers Dan Nolan and Ben Taylor. | The extent of government interest in the feline plug-in was revealed in a freedom of information request filed by its developers Dan Nolan and Ben Taylor. |
| Interested in what the Prime Minister and his staff thought about the extension, they requested details of any correspondence that mentioned the words ‘Stop Tony Meow’. | Interested in what the Prime Minister and his staff thought about the extension, they requested details of any correspondence that mentioned the words ‘Stop Tony Meow’. |
| ‘‘It would be really interesting to see how a government department reacts to these weird new kinds of technology and culture jamming stuff, which previously they wouldn’t have had to deal with,” Mr Nolan told the Sydney Morning Herald. | ‘‘It would be really interesting to see how a government department reacts to these weird new kinds of technology and culture jamming stuff, which previously they wouldn’t have had to deal with,” Mr Nolan told the Sydney Morning Herald. |
| Although they learnt that reports ran to 137 pages, they have been asked to pay $700 to see its contents – so what government staff have said about the plug-in is shrouded in mystery, at least for now. | Although they learnt that reports ran to 137 pages, they have been asked to pay $700 to see its contents – so what government staff have said about the plug-in is shrouded in mystery, at least for now. |
| The contents of the reports are being withheld because the cost of ‘search and retrieval’, photocopies, and ‘decision-making time’ exceeds the cost limit of Australia’s FOI laws. | The contents of the reports are being withheld because the cost of ‘search and retrieval’, photocopies, and ‘decision-making time’ exceeds the cost limit of Australia’s FOI laws. |
| Mr Nolan has criticised the government’s response to the request, and insisted that the documents should be released on public interest grounds. | Mr Nolan has criticised the government’s response to the request, and insisted that the documents should be released on public interest grounds. |
| Keen to know exactly what the government are saying about ‘Stop Tony Meow’, he is now considering raising funds from friends to gain access to the pages. | Keen to know exactly what the government are saying about ‘Stop Tony Meow’, he is now considering raising funds from friends to gain access to the pages. |
| He said: "If they’re interested enough and intrigued enough about it and people throw in 10 or 20 bucks between, you know, 30 or 40 people to get it sorted. Or I might just throw the cash down”. | He said: "If they’re interested enough and intrigued enough about it and people throw in 10 or 20 bucks between, you know, 30 or 40 people to get it sorted. Or I might just throw the cash down”. |