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March 24, 2010
The Australian newspaper, like other corporate media, is divided between news and commentary with the news operations increasingly becoming an adjunct to opinion and analysis. The news portion is becoming small whilst the opinion portion very large. The model appears to be some news, a lot of opinion, and a theatrical presentation of it all. More space and writing is spent assessing news than reporting it.
It assesses the news from a conservative perspective---from free-market economics, lower taxes, faster economic growth and socially conservative values. Though it presents itself as the broadsheet of the nation, it is increasingly positioning itself as the newspaper for the unrepresented --- for Howard's battlers, or contemporary populist conservatives. It's sharp opinions do not necessarily offend a broad audience because there is no broad audience to start with anymore. The overheated talk is mobilizing supporters –to make them more enraged and more frustrated about Rudd Labor.
It is increasingly the voice of the Liberal Party; one that has has shrunk to a narrow base with no apparent agenda other than to oppose everything the Rudd Government proposes, even to opposing policies the Liberals once supported. Their strategy under Abbott is no deal with Rudd: no negotiations, no compromise.
This bottom line of this strategy is that The Australian, like the other Murdoch newspapers, is in the business of getting audience and advertisers, and to that end uses the tactics of sensationalism and deception, though less than the screeching tabloids.
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quote from Guy Rundle in Crikey, "that gully trap of human despair, the Australian's op-ed pages". It's not the voice of the nation, but the voice of sad people.