Border protection: A broad week of news coverage became completely dominated at the end of the week by an explosion onboard a boat filled with asylum seekers being towed to port by an Australian naval vessel. The WA Premier Colin Barnett claimed there were reports people on board the vessel had doused it in petrol, a claim the Navy and Government refused to verify, while the Federal Opposition stated the general increase in attempts to reach Australia by boat was due to the softening of the Government’s stance on illegal entry.
Qantas job losses: Another tough week for Qantas in the media and on the markets as they announced the shedding of a further 1,750 jobs and a significant profit downgrading. There was considerable media speculation that the company may be restructured more along the budget carrier lines of its subsidiary Jetstar following significant drops in higher fare travel revenue.
Thailand unrest: Following the forced cancellation of an ASEAN meeting in Thailand the week before last the civil unrest continued, with supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra continuing to occupy official buildings and staging mass protests. The siege of the current Prime Minister’s office was raised by the end of the week and Shinawatra’s passport has been revoked.
Fiji media crackdown: Regional leaders have been loud and long in their condemnation of Fiji military leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama after the Fijian President abrogated the constitution and gave Bainimarama full control of the Government. Strict controls have been placed on Fiji’s media and several international correspondents have been expelled from the country, with moves already underway to suspend Fiji from the South Pacific Forum.
Mel Gibson divorce: While it received relatively minor levels of coverage in radio and press bulletins, television news strongly featured the impending divorce of Mel and Robyn Gibson after 28 years of marriage.
About the index
This list reports Australia's weekly top news stories by volume across thousands of newspaper, magazine, televion, radio and Internet news sources monitored by Media Monitors, including international and domestic, business, sport and enterainment news.
Data and analysis provided to Slice Media by Media Monitors Australia
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