Pete Evans launches attack on media
Celebrity chef Pete Evans has launched an attack on the media, dismissing the many headlines he has generated in recent years as "fake news", as the Australian Medical Association says he's "putting his fans' health at risk".
In an exclusive interview with Sunday Night, the My Kitchen Rules judge defended his paleo lifestyle and clarified his controversial claims about sunscreen, dairy and breast milk, which he says have been taken out of context.
“The media likes to put fake news out there or create sensational headlines for the sake of selling a paper or getting clicks onto their website,” he told reporter Alex Cullen.
“What’s the old saying? Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”
Since the show aired the Australian Medical Association tweeted its opposition to the celebrity chef's views.
Pete Evans putting his fans’ health at risk with extreme advice on diet, fluoride, calcium. Celebrity chef shouldn't dabble in medicine #SN7 pic.twitter.com/JylWvhcJfJ
— AMA Media (@ama_media) March 26, 2017
Mr Evans' paleo cookbook for babies, Bubba Yum Yum, was dumped by its publisher two years ago after a public outcry over a bone broth recipe.
The recipe was intended for babies who couldn’t have breast milk, and Mr Evans said his words were quickly twisted by the media.
“A journalist wrote a lie about it, which then got regurgitated through all the media outlets that said: ‘Pete Evans promotes bone broth over breast milk’.
“And I never said that. It’s in the bloody book.”
Following the scandal, Mr Evans revised the book and published it himself.
But he was in the spotlight again last year when he was asked on Facebook what sunscreen he used.
“A lot of sunscreens are full of toxic chemicals what you would not put on your face or on your kid’s faces. So I’ve never said ‘don’t use sunscreen’, I’ve said make sure you choose one that’s the least toxic that’s out there,” he explained.
Mr Evans is no stranger to the critics and while it can get pretty hot in his kitchen, he has no plans to get out anytime soon.
“I know where I am going and I know the choices I have to make that will enable me to get there and to live the life I want to do, which is how I’m living now. What I’m doing works for myself and if it ever doesn’t, then I’ll change.”