The Turnbull government is engaged in a media reform process that is all about the sideshow – not forward-thinking policy with the public interest in mind.
A generation on from revelations about the lack of diversity in the Australian media at the dawn of the digital era, what is pushing this concern now? And what’s changed since then?
Mitch Fifield has announced a shake-up of Australia’s media ownership laws. What rules are being scrapped? And what effect might their axing have on Australia’s media sector?
The rise on live streaming of television programs is breaking down the protected geographical barriers on what you can watch, and the regional broadcasters are not happy.
Netflix will launch in Australia and New Zealand in March next year. Expectations are this is just the start of an influx of new streaming options in Australia. The internet and television are increasingly…
Is social media really delivering on its promise of democratising communication? Or have we just replaced one model that privileges those with power for another? Dr Andrea Carson speaks with Professor…
Rupert Murdoch’s latest bid for empire expansion has fallen on deaf ears. His offer to buy Time Warner for US$80 billion was resoundingly rejected by the owners of CNN, HBO and Warner Brothers. But despite…
Major media players continue to dominate online news, current affairs and analysis, despite a proliferation of online news content sources, a government report has found. The internet has given established…
That media ownership rules have been progressively relaxed in many democracies is certainly not news. But that Australia, with one of the most concentrated media markets in the world, is thinking of further…
Communication minister Malcolm Turnbull’s proposal for changes to cross-media ownership laws has reignited calls for the government to protect local content. On the surface, it appears reasonable to expect…
After News Corp’s failed bid to purchase 100% of BSkyB in 2011 the question of who makes the decisions about media ownership – and how we can ensure there remains a strong and vibrant plurality of competing…
Blogs are thriving in New Zealand thanks to threats to media freedom, an increasingly commercialised media environment, and shifts in media ownership. The financial ownership of the major media companies…
At first glance, the British news industry looks to be in trouble. With editors in the dock, a fraught new system of regulation, and declining newspaper circulation, it’s easy to panic about the trajectory…
Australia has the most concentrated press ownership in the world. What does that mean for significant issues such as climate change? In 2011 and 2012 we at the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism…
“Mr Murdoch is entitled to his own view… he owns 70% of the newspapers in this country.” – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, press conference, 6 August. One of the more spirited discussions of the first week…
In 2007, journalist Ken Auletta spent a great deal of time with Rupert Murdoch while writing a magazine profile of him. Auletta observed that Murdoch was frequently on the phone to his editors and this…