The Streisand effect is a social phenomenon that occurs when an attempt to hide, remove, or censor information has the unintended consequence of further publicising that information.

The Streisand is named after American entertainer Barbra Streisand, whose attempt to suppress the California Coastal Records Project's photograph of her residence in Malibu, California, taken to document California coastal erosion, inadvertently drew further attention to it in 2003.

The ABC seems to have been the latest to fall for this trap after removing a set by Melbourne comedian Tom Ballard from its upcoming broadcast of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival opening night gala.

The Age reports that Tom Ballard's set, which was highly critical of the Morrison Government, was removed because "the risk of causing offence to viewers was not editorially justified".

I have seen Ballard's show this year and I think it is the funniest show of the festival, from those that I have seen and would recommend it to anyone who wants to find a laugh from what was a bleak time last year.

The move by the ABC to censor the skit seems to have only drawn extra attention to his show, which you can buy tickets for here https://comedy.com.au/tour/tom-ballard-2021/

Have you seen any shows at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival this year? What shows would you recommend?