A new campaign pushing for Australians to think carefully about how they answer a standard census question has been slammed for using ‘AI slop’.
Census No Religion has been running ads on social media urging Australians to consider whether they’re actually religious ahead of census night, on August 11.
The census asks if a person is religious or not and, if yes, what religion they follow, although participants can choose to leave the question blank.
‘Millions of Australians still mark a religion they were raised in – not one they live by. The result is a national portrait that’s out of date,’ the campaign argues.
‘Census data shapes how billions in public funding are allocated, how much influence religion holds in policy and whose values get amplified in public life.’
However, the Australian Bureau of Statistics has since issued a statement warning about the campaign and explaining the question is about measuring religious affiliation rather than how much a person is actively practising.
The group has also been criticised by Reddit users over the extensive use of ‘cringey’ AI-generated images, videos, and even a jingle to promote the cause.
‘Why couldn’t they just get real people to be in a video?’ one wrote online, with another asking whether they expected an ‘amalgamation of fake humanity’ would get people on their side.
A group called Census No Religion has been called out for using ‘AI slop’ in its ads for the upcoming census
The group’s ads show AI-generated interviews and fake government officials posing with stacks of cash (above)
Census No Religion’s main ad shows an AI-generated group sitting on a lounge and stating they’re ‘not religious’.
Others show AI-generated interviews and government officials posing with stacks of cash as they ponder where to allocate funding.
Census No Religion urged Australians to ‘pause’ before answering the religion question.
‘Don’t answer for the person you were raised to be. Answer for who you actually are today,’ Census No Religion said.
Census No Religion, the main group highlighting the religion question, is run by several groups including Sydney Atheists, the Rationalist Society and the National Secular Lobby.
The groups similarly pushed for Aussies to consider whether they were religious ahead of the last census, in 2021.
Of the 93 per cent of Australians who answered the religion question in the 2021 census, 38.9 per cent said they were not religious.
Christianity was the most popular religion at 43.9 per cent, followed by Islam at 3.2 per cent, Hinduism at 2.7 per cent and Buddhism at 2.4 per cent.
Aussies will be asked if they are religious and, if yes, what religion they follow
Hundreds of commenters under ads by the group urging Australians to consider the question were worried what category they fell under.
Many said they identified as Christian but didn’t regularly go to church.
‘I’m a Christian who doesn’t believe in organised religion,’ one wrote.
‘You don’t have to go to church to be a religious person,’ another said.
The ABS warned about the campaign.
‘Material is circulating online and through social media that suggests people respond in a way that is inconsistent with the intent of the question,’ the ABS said in a statement.
‘The question on religion measures a person’s religious affiliation, which may be different from their practice of, or participation in, religious activities.’
The question has been on the census since 1911 and provides valuable data to track shifts in society.
The options on the 2026 census form will be: No religion, Catholic, Anglican (Church of England), Islam, Hinduism, Uniting Church, Buddhism, Presbyterian, Greek Orthodox and Baptist.
There is also an ‘Other’ option with a blank space for participants to fill their own answer.
