Media Representation In Australia

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Media Studies: How does the media representation of the Q&A outrage help shape the views of the Australian public on this topic? Zaky Mallah appeared on Q & A asking a question about ‘terrorism’ after being acquitted for alleged ‘terrorist acts’. In reaction to this, Prime Minister Tony Abbott, issued a boycott of the program Q & A by he and his liberal frontbencher colleagues. This also resulted in Tony Abbott forcing Q and A into the ‘News’ category next year and also referred to the ABC as a “lefty lynch mob.” This investigation will look at how different media sources can represent this issue in different ways. This topic had many differing opinions. It is also interesting as Q and A is also a media source so it is media reporting on the …show more content…

The majority of media outlets against the ABC are owned by Rupert Murdoch. His competitor is ABC. Some outlets used this as an opportunity to hate on the ABC. However the reports by ABC are also biased as they are trying to cover and naturally defend themselves so they will not get into more trouble. There are a few articles that had little to no bias, however these reports mainly retold the Q and A episode and did not comment on it. Three sources will be discussed in this investigation. The first article is , ‘ABC ‘on the side of Australia’, managing director Mark Scott says, amid criticism over Q & A broadcast’, an article about ABC stating they are not against Australia because of the broadcast. The second source will be a newspaper article produced by The Courier Mail with the headline, ‘Q&A furore: It’s your ABC of Jihad”. The third source will be an opinion piece by the website, The Conversation, titled, ‘Boycotting Q&A, boycotting …show more content…

He writes in a condescending tone towards the countries leaders. The writer of this article portrays the issue as Tony Abbot and the liberal front benchers overreacting. They are trying to portray the liberals as an overdramatic government. The tone of the article is sarcastic attitude towards the liberal government. P4 There was little to no international view of this issue due to it being a localised event. If a member of the public had not seen Zaky’s question on the program, they would have relied on what they had read. If someone had read the first article that would be in support of the ABC and understand that not everyone agrees with their views. If someone had read the second piece they would attack the ABC and believe they are supporting terrorism. This issue was important to Tony Abbott and the liberal front benchers as there has always be unease between them and the ABC, specifically Q & A. The viewers of Q & A that were watching were waiting for the government to have their say as soon as it happened. The audience parliament support percentages were ALP 34%, Coalition 36%, Greens 13%, Other 1%, and Unspecified

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