Crumbling Pillars?

Abstract

This article argues that the October 2006 Australian media reforms will almost certainly ensure that Australia's media will become less free and less sceptical. It suggests that the debate almost entirely centred on commercial factors, and ignored questions about the social role of journalism and its importance to a functioning democracy. With the internet now seeing the decoupling of journalism from advertising and the availability of free content online, there are fundamental questions about how good journalism will be funded and protected that the new laws do nothing to answer.