Pauline Hanson's humiliation over near-nude photos is making world news, with coverage in the UK, New Zealand, Asia and South Africa.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Ms Hanson yesterday forcefully denied that raunchy photos splashed across News Ltd papers on Sunday were of her, as News Ltd and Jack Johnson - who supplied the pictures - stood by their stories.
But her embarrassment went international almost as soon as the story made waves locally.
In the UK, The Times of London reported that "mystery surrounds a set of nude pictures allegedly taken 30 years ago of the Australian far-right politician Pauline Hanson".
The paper described Hanson's denials as "increasingly indignant", and interpreted Mr Johnson's rhetorical question last night on Today Tonight - "but what if I'm wrong?" - as "an apparent admission that he may have misidentified the woman".
The Independent described the scandal as another dent to an already damaged reputation.
"It's hard to imagine that the reputation of Pauline Hanson, the former fish and chip shop owner turned right-wing firebrand, could sink any lower in Australia," it said.
"But today her few remaining fans were cringing following the publication of raunchy photographs of her posing in lingerie, and nearly naked."
In Singapore, where Ms Hanson attracted intense attention in the late 1990s after her comments about the levels of Asian immigration, The Straits Times latched onto the story.
It led its report with Ms Hanson's apparent willingness to show her navel, and described Ms Hanson as a "far-right" politician.
"Hanson will bare belly button," its headline read.
The story continued: "Far-right Australian politician Pauline Hanson said on Monday she was suing newspapers that published raunchy photos supposedly showing her partially nude, saying the pictures were not of her."
In another story by wire service AFP, The Straits Times reported Ms Hanson's bid for a state parliament seat had been "thrown into disarray" by the scandal.
The story re-capped other Hanson moments, including her stint in jail in 2003, her bid for a federal senate seat in 2007 when she "switched her target from Asians to Islam", and reported she had previously "complained that African immigrants spread disease".
Asian news service ANI reported the story under the headline "Suing Oz politician threatens baring belly button to expose nude pic scam".
Across the Tasman, New Zealand news network 3 News drew comparisons between the photos and Ms Hanson's appearance on Dancing With The Stars.
"Pauline Hanson was only too happy to squeeze into skin tight black lycra and dance provocatively on national TV," it said in a report.
"But the woman who penned Untamed And Unashamed is more than a little ashamed by untamed photographs taken 33 years ago."
smh.com.au
