John Singleton says Queensland Premier Campbell Newman is a “dud” and has been poorly advised to launch defamation action against radio host Alan Jones. The controversy has been “cheap, free publicity” for their entry into Brisbane radio station 4BC Singleton told The Australian — especially when Fairfax is liable for the lawsuit. In an interview with The Australian, Mr Singleton said he thought it was a “joke” when he heard Mr Newman had decided to sue for defamation. “How silly is he? That shows he’s a dud. The whole subject becomes ‘he’s getting sued’ rather than anything else,’’ he said. “He looked stupid. He’s obviously not, but he looks f. king stupid,” Mr Singleton said. He applauded the strength of Jones’s commentary on coal-seam gas and said it had been a brilliant marketing tactic for his entry into the Queensland market. Macquarie and Fairfax are awaiting approval from the ACCC and shareholders on a merger, with a decision expected by mid-March. Jones returned early from holidays to broadcast on Fairfax-owned 4BC, where he has been campaigning against Mr Newman because of the expansion of coalmining in Queensland and the introduction of coal-seam gas mining. The talkback host, who usually broadcasts on Sydney’s 2GB, described Mr Newman as a liar and said he “couldn’t back the Premier to win a chook raffle”