Weekly media index: 25 Apr - 1 May 2009

Swine flu: Australian and global news has been totally dominated by the outbreak, initially in Mexico, of a new influenza variant, now widely known as swine flu. Concern over the possible rapid spread of the disease and significant confusion about its current impact and death toll characterised the media coverage. Political leaders around the world have been touting their preparedness for any widespread outbreaks and the availability of effective medication, while also warning that the effects could be significant.

Richard Pratt: Melbourne billionaire Richard Pratt lost his battle with cancer during the week following an eventful few years in which the head of the huge cardboard manufacturing and recycling company Visy, well known for his philanthropy to the arts and involvement in football, was involved in price fixing investigations by ASIC which were then followed by criminal charges, dropped only hours before Mr Pratt’s death.

Bduget speculation: Budget speculation continued to ramp up in the last two weeks before what is expected to be a record deficit, with the Opposition continuing to strongly attack the amount of Government spending in the last six months, while women’s advocates have warned the Government against going back on its commitment to introduce paid parental leave.

Border protection: Media discussion of the asylum seeker issue and border protection dropped off significantly last week, although the swine flu concerns and claims of government payments going to asylum seekers in detention on Christmas Island kept the issue in the news.

Bushfires Royal Commission: Coverage of the Bushfires Royal Commission has focused this week on the perceived lack of early enough and prominent enough warnings, in particular through state wide and local broadcast networks, while the Government announced bushfire relief was set to be extended.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

This is the freedom ride, We will not go and hide
We have just come over here, To keep the public occupied
We are going to ride, Around the Adelaide Hills
We are hardworking people, Who pay the bills

SA bikie leader Alex Vella revs up the troops with some poetry before the “freedom ride” to protest anti-bikie gang laws

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

Media monitoring

Weekly media index: 4 - 10 Apr 2009

Interest rates: The Reserve Bank stuck with the law of averages as far as media speculation went, going for a quarter of a per cent cut in rates, the middle of the range of expectations, although it was the major banks’ decision to not pass on most of the cut that captured the majority of media coverage. The Treasurer and Prime Minister both talked tough, while the Opposition claimed the banks’ move had rendered monetary policy next to useless in tackling the domestic effects of the global recession.

Broadband network: The Federal Government shocked almost all commentators with its decision to build a fibre to the home network itself, committing to a $43billion project, after it rejected all of the submissions from private consortia as not providing value for money. The Government blamed the difficulty of funding private infrastructure at the moment and said its decision was vital for Australia’s development, while the Opposition said the move was too risky and would be too expensive for taxpayers and consumers.

Italian earthquake: The earthquake that all but flattened the central Italian town of L’Aquila over a week ago has claimed over 270 lives, with relief efforts now concentrating on assistance for the thousands rendered homeless by the earthquake. Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi claimed the town would be rebuilt within two years, a claim met with some scepticism in the Italian media.

Unemployment rate: Australia’s unemployment rate jumped half a per cent to 5.7% a figure worse than expected by most economists, with NSW recording a full per cent increase to 6.9%, with commentators predicting the jump would lead to further interest rate cuts in coming months, and the Opposition quick to claim the figures showed the economic stimulus payments had not worked.

Thomson claims: Federal Labor MP for the NSW Central Coast seat of Dobell, Craig Thomson, faced allegations of misuse of a union issued credit card while he was General Secretary of the Health Services Union. He has denied the claims while the Union continues an investigation into the card usage.

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

Media monitoring

Weekly media index: 16 - 20 February 2009

DOMESTIC
Victorian Bushfires: Grief has turned to anger as much of the focus of bushfire coverage this week was on the accused arsonist Brendan Sokaluk, who is accused of lighting the Churchill fire in which 11 people died. Thousands of people posted messages of hate and threats on the internet towards Sokaluk. While the suppression order on Sokaluk's name was lifted on Monday, his image and address remained suppressed. However, images of the accused were readily available on the internet, apparently taken from his Facebook account.

Qld/NSW Floods: Areas of the NSW mid-north coast have joined northern Queensland in being declared natural disaster, with about 370 millimetres of rain falling since last Friday. The council areas of Bellingen, Coffs Harbour, Nambucca, Kempsey, Bourke and Port Macquarie-Hastings have been the hardest hit. While further showers in the affected regions are predicted, the heaviest storms have now abated.

Economic Stimulus Package: Friday the 13th became lucky for the Federal government with Nick Xenophon finally giving the nod to its $42 billion economic stimulus package. The independent Senator gained concessions of more than $900 million for the Murray-Darling, with the agreement bringing forward $500 million over four years from 2008-09 for water buy-backs from farmers. As a result of the concessions, the $950 tax bonuses will now be reduced by $50.

Julie Bishop Treasury Position: Deputy Opposition leader Julie Bishop's decision to step down as Treasury spokesman, a decision she claims was hers alone, has incited further leadership speculation for the party. This followed revelations that Malcolm Turnbull asked Peter Costello to take on the role, only to be knocked back, with the former Treasurer reportedly only interested “in one job”. New Treasury spokesman Joe Hockey has since been tarnished as the ‘second best’ option.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Japanese Economy: A major slump in the Japanese economy will hit Australian export earnings next year, Trade Minister Simon Crean has warned. Japan, the biggest customer for Australian exports, is facing its worst economic performance since 1974. The government’s troubles continued after its finance minister resigned after appearing drunk at a recent G7 summit.

Afghanistan Troop Deployment: US decision to send 17,000 troops to Afghanistan will significantly increase pressure on its allies, including Australia, to step up their commitment to the war. While Australia has not committed to additional troops, Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon says Australian troops are likely to remain in Afghanistan for years.

US Stimulus package: US President Barack Obama signed a $787 billion economic stimulus bill into law on Tuesday as global markets plunged on fears that the recession would deepen despite government action in many countries. Obama has staked his political reputation on the package, a mixture of tax cuts and spending projects, saying its success will determine his success as president

BUSINESS NEWS
Virgin Blue Staffing: News of up to 400 possible job cuts Virgin Blue is a big loss for the nation, Treasurer Wayne Swan says. Australia's second largest airline has said it will remove eight per cent of capacity, or as many as five aircraft, from its domestic fleet from May in response to a forecast fall in domestic demand

SPORT
A-League Soccer: Melbourne Victory coach Ernie Merrick says he has no preference who his high-flying side meet in the A-League grand final as Adelaide United and Queensland Roar prepare for the match which will decide the remaining spot. Merrick's side destroyed Adelaide United 6-0 on aggregate in the major semi-final.

Cricket: Australia coach Tim Nielsen says his team are under pressure to hold onto their top ranking in Test cricket and it will be "hard work" to beat South Africa on their home turf. Having been upset 2-1 at home by Graeme Smith's Proteas in December and January, Ricky Ponting's 14-man Test squad arrived in South Africa on Monday.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"He has declined and said that he has no interest in a role on the frontbench or indeed a leadership role. That's the position he's taken and I respect that," Mr Turnbull said of Peter Costello’s political future.

Media monitoring

Weekly media index: 2-6 February 2009

DOMESTIC
Stimulus Package - Coverage this week was dominated by the Federal Government’s economic stimulus package. While the package has passed through the lower house, it is yet to receive the nod from the Senate. There has been much discussion of the political ramifications of Malcolm Turnbull’s rejection of the package. The issue also prompted the re-emergence of former Treasurer Peter Costello, who argued that the stimulus package will have little benefit to the Australian economy.

Heatwave/Bushfires - Victorians and South Australians continue to swelter though 30 degrees-plus days, with temperatures in both states set to rise to of 40 degrees on the weekend. In South Australia a temporary mortuary is being set up to cope with the number of people who have died during the heatwave. While in Victoria, fire authorities have warned Saturday will be the worst day for fires since Ash Wednesday in 1983. The CFA says conditions will be more dangerous than during last week's heatwave.

Interest Rates - The Reserve Bank has dropped official interest rates to 3.25 percent - the lowest that rates have been in 45 years. Kevin Rudd urged banks to pass on the cut in full. Meanwhile consumer groups argue banks could help reduce Australia's massive household debt by lowering interest rates on credit cards in line with the Reserve Bank's cuts. Westpac and the National Australia Bank say they will reduce rates on some of their credit cards, while the Commonwealth Bank and ANZ say they are reviewing theirs. The Reserve Bank also noted that inflation fell for the first time in 11 years.

Nth Qld Floods - While their southern neighbours swelter through record heatwaves, drought and bushfires; areas of Northern Queensland are in the midst of the worst flood in ten years. The Deputy Premier, Paul Lucas visited flood-effected Ingham, which has been cut off by flood waters after Cyclone Ellie. Such has been the devastation the Army has been called in to help with the clean-up. Large parts of Northern Queensland remain cut-off due to worsening flood conditions.

Darcey Freeman Death - The family of Darcey Freeman, who died after being thrown from West Gate Bridge last week, has released a statement saying there were concerns for her and her brothers' safety for two years and they were failed by the judicial system. Freeman's 35 year old father has been charged with murder. The family are supporting a public memorial service and dedicated children's day be named in her honour.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
USA Economy - Despite the rejection from all House Republicans, the US House of Representatives passed Obama’s $AUD1.23 trillion economic package. US President Barack Obama has declared that any companies receiving a Government bailout will be subject to capping on CEO bonuses and pay packages, imposing a $500,000 cap on salaries of CEOs of banks. Meanwhile the US economy has fallen further into recession.

Phelps Drug Use - Following the published photo of the eight gold medals winner "inhaling from a glass pipe" it looks like the only thing faster than Michael Phelps is the speed with which his endorsement career has gone up in smoke.

Gaza - fighting in the Gaza continues despite a ceasefire. A long range rocket fired from Gaza has struck the Israeli city of Ashkelon with Israel now warning of a response. The US agency which provides aid to Palestinian refugees in Gaza says Hamas gunman have seized hundreds of food parcels and blankets from a warehouse. The UN has condemned the action and called on Hamas to return the goods.

Zimbabwe - Morgan Tsvangirai will be sworn is as PM of Zimbabwe in 11 days time as the two sides come to an agreement to govern the country. NZ Labour Foreign Affairs spokesperson Helen Clark believes the international community will support Zimbabwe if genuine power sharing takes place. UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has called on Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to free all political prisoners ahead of moves toward full democracy. Zimbabwe has drastically revalued its currency, chopping 12 zeroes off its bank notes because of hyper-inflation.

BUSINESS NEWS
BHP Profits – BHP Billiton says its half year profit has more than halved because of the slump in commodity prices caused by the global recession. It's down 57%. Marius Kloppers, Chief Executive, BHP Billiton says the situation is not likely to improve for some time. Meanwhile, Qantas has announced a 66% fall in first-half profit to $210 million.

SPORT
Cricket – International Comp/Alan Border Medal: Australia’s cricketing dominance took a further hit following its one-day defeat at the hands of New Zealand. The Aussies could only manage a paltry 181 against the Kiwis. Cricket’s night of nights, the Allan Border Medal was also held this week. Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke tied to win the Medal.

Australian Open: Serena Williams has beaten Dinara Safina to claim the women's singles crown at the Australian Open. Rafael Nadal has become the first Spaniard to win the Australian Open after a gripping men’s final against Roger Federer. Federer endeared himself to the crowd by crying following his defeat.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do. He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits.
Quoted partygoer at the party where Michael Phelps was photographed smoking marijuana.

Media monitoring

Weekly media index: 26 - 30 January 2009

DOMESTIC
Australia Day - Lots of national and regional reporting on last Monday’s festivities, including the Australia Day speech delivered by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. The oath of citizenship was taken by new Aussies including 70s pop star Leo Sayer, witnessed by the PM in Canberra. Fortunately very little reporting of violence or racial tension.

Economic Outlook - Discussion of a lower inflation rate, speculation about tax and interest rate cuts; the government funds commercial property investment by $4 billion; further support for banks; a second stimulus package firmly on the table; and a long list of lay-offs - recession remains prominent media coverage.

Heat wave - Last week it was bushfires, now Melbourne and Adelaide swelter in an exceptionally long run of plus 40 degree heat. Public transport in Victoria ground to a halt, and electricity supply has been patchy. Children flocked to public pools in the last days of the school holidays to cool off.

Whaling - The government was accused of giving-in to Japan by conservation groups. They complained a deal was supposedly on the table to hand Japan’s whaling fleet access to the North Pacific in exchange for leaving the Southern Ocean. Environment Minister Peter Garrett said the proposal had not been put forward by Australia, which is still opposed to the killing of whales for ‘scientific’ or any other purpose.

Ivan Milat - The convicted serial killer sawed off one of his fingers with a serrated plastic knife in the Supermax security facility at Goulburn prison. He then placed the digit in an envelope addressed to the High Court of Australia. Milat has had a history of ingesting various metal objects including razor blades and chains, and he is currently off his food. The reason for this latest outburst is unclear.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Obama’s first 10 days - The world watched in anticipation as the new President began work, after re-taking the inauguration oath due to a minor glitch with the order of wording on the big day. He ordered Guantanamo Bay to be closed as soon as practicable. He also emphasised the need for America to ditch it’s reliance on foreign oil, announcing massive investment in renewable energy whilst US car makers were asked to focus on making energy efficient vehicles. The House of Representatives passed Obama’s $AUD1.23 trillion economic package.

Gaza - Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza strip last week allowed the international media to witness the destruction left behind by Israel’s armed forces. There was further isolated fighting during the week.

Recession - The IMF predicted a deeper global recession as consumer and business confidence drops to levels not seen since World War 2, and warned worldwide growth would drop to below 0.5% in 2009. The update also pointed to a massive dent to Australia’s export revenue due to diminished growth in China.

Afghanistan - President Obama called Kevin Rudd on Wednesday, the first time the pair has talked since the US elections. They discussed, amongst other things, Australia’s ongoing participation in Afghanistan. There was further coverage of the Victoria Cross awarded to Trooper Mark Donaldson.

BUSINESS NEWS
BHP cuts – There was further coverage of the 3,400 job loses at the Ravensthorpe nickel mine in WA. Investment house Storm Financial finally went under this week, leaving investors out of pocket. Investment partner the Commonwealth Bank and the owners of Storm blamed each other for not managing the huge losses

SPORT
Australian Open - Jelena Dokic flounders in the quarter finals in a spirited match against Russia’s Dinara Sufina. The next few days of play look to be exciting with Nadal and Federer tipped to meet each other in the final.

Cricket – South Africa and Andrew Symonds: South Africa win the one-day series 3-1 with one game to play in Perth. Symonds will probably be hit with a $5750 fine for detrimental comments about Kiwi wicket keeper, Brendon McCullum made on-air.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Sooner or later you have to face up to the only sensible conclusion: Australia is no place to host big international sporting tournaments; except maybe the world kangaroo long-jump
A tongue-in-cheek editorial from the Murdoch-owned Times in London commenting on the blistering conditions as the Australian tennis Open.

Media monitoring

Weekly media index: 8 - 12 December 2008

DOMESTIC
Interest rates: As money started flowing into the bank accounts of pensioners, carers and those receiving family tax benefit A, the debate continued to rage over whether the $10.4billion would be saved or spent, whether it should be saved or spent and how it might be spent, with Barnaby Joyce leading a group of Opposition politicians criticising the Government for calling on further spending rather than saving and suggesting much of the money might go on alcohol and gaming machines in some areas.

ABC Learning: As it become clearer that a significant number of centres are considered unviable by the administrators of ABC Learning, the Government committed a further $34million to keep 241 centres open until 31 March, with the Government maintaining that there will be permanent child care places available for all children currently in those centres, while both former Chairman Eddie Groves and Deputy PM Julia Gillard questioned whether those centres were really unviable.

Kerryn McCann: The Commonwealth Gold medallist and mother of three after previously fighting off breast cancer lost her battle with liver cancer on Monday, with a memorial service on Thursday near her home in Wollongong attended by around 1,000 family and friends.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
The Greek riots: Following the death of a teenager during a police operation continued for five days across the country, with millions of Euros damage in Athens as shops were looted and large gangs took on riot police, a general strike was called and two of the police involved in the shooting were brought up on charges, while the intensity of the riots was blamed on general economic conditions.

Climate Change: In the wake of the Poznan meetings, the Government played up its role at the middle of the climate change and emissions trading debate, as critics on the Right questioned the need for any emissions trading before 2012 at the earliest, while the Greens criticised the relatively low targets for cuts set by Ross Garnaut.

BUSINESS NEWS
Rio Tinto: Rio Tinto received a large amount of coverage last week as it announced significant redundancies, with business journalists continuing to comment on the company’s level of indebtedness and preparedness for difficult medium term business conditions

Employment figures: National unemployment figures were better than expected, with a marginal overall increase in unemployment to 4.5% although the increases were much bigger in WA and Queensland, off very low bases. NSW and ACT actually recorded small decreases in unemployment for the period.

China slowing: There is increasing concern over the state of the Chinese economy, with some commentators claiming the slowdown will be much faster and deeper than anticipated by the IMF and World Bank

Qantas – BA merger: Both sides started talking down the prospects of a Qantas-BA merger this week, with Qantas MD Alan Joyce preferring to focus on the tough conditions ahead and the company’s plans for maintaining profitability.

Infrastructure funding: The States are lining up to try and get a slice of the rapidly diminishing Federal Infrastructure Fund, with Victoria putting in bids for over $10bn, more than the fund’s current total, while Minister Anthony Albanese promised the money would be spent effectively and with reasonable haste.

SPORT
John Daly has achieved the aim of increasing media coverage for this year’s domestic golf season, but as usual its had nothing to do with his golf scores, after he smashed a spectator’s camera at the Australian Open in Royal Sydney at the end of a bad round, completely overshadowing the leaders.

Even though a ball hasn’t yet been bowled in anger between Australia and South Africa, the cricket writers were out in force last week speculating about the make-up of both teams, and whether South Africa would provide a sterner challenge than they have in recent tours to Australia, particularly now that Shane Warne has left.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“We not only saved the world, er, saved the banks"
‘not flash, just Gordon’ Brown puts his undies on the outside and claims superhero status in the House of Commons this week.

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 1 - 5 December 2008

DOMESTIC
Interest rates: In a move that was this time widely anticipated by the business media, the Reserve Bank again cut interest rates a full percentage point to 4.25%, with much of the coverage focusing on whether the combined cuts of 3 full points over the past four months have been enough to stop the economy from sliding into recession, and specifically whether the housing market will hold up or still drop significantly as it has in the US and Europe.

Recession: The R word overtook the D word (deficit) as buzzword this week in the business and general media, as a stream of economic figures, some very grim like car sales and other more equivocal came out pointing generally to a rapid slowing of the economy, which may indeed have started in the second quarter of 2008, well before the global financial crisis hit.

Schools curriculum: At the last minute the Government’s new school funding package, including funding for the promise of computers for every senior high school student, passed through parliament, despite controversy over the national curriculum aspects of the Government’s plans, with Julia Gillard promising some flexibility for private schools.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
The Mumbai attacks remained easily the biggest story across Australian media last week, as the ramifications of the attacks on international counter-terrorism measures, India-Pakistan relations and even future sporting ties were discussed in detail, as well as further extensive eyewitness accounts from Australians caught up in the attacks, while several high ranking Indian security officials resigned as questions were asked about why the attacks were not uncovered and how the police operations were handled.

Thailand is yet again in political disarray after the ruling People Power party was banned by the Supreme Court and its members banned from holding office for five years, while the efforts to get Australians home continued, with people bussed from Bangkok to Phuket to catch emergency flights out of the country.

Climate change: The climate meeting in Poznan dragged on through the week with few concrete agreements for limiting global carbon emissions or working towards a comprehensive carbon emissions trading scheme in preparation for the Copenhagen meeting on targets next year.

Hillary Clinton: President-Elect Barack Obama was again in the news worldwide this week with his official nomination of Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State, Ms Clinton promising to work with her former rival to restore US standing across the globe.

BUSINESS NEWS
Qantas – BA merger: According to some business media, the big merger news of the week is far from a done deal, with some analysts questioning the value of the merger and others questioning whether the merger will get through the series of regulatory hoops.

BHP-Rio bid ends: after around $100million in advisory fees, BHP has called off its bid for Rio Tinto, the share market applauding the decision to not attempt to change regulators minds about the merger by increasing BHP’s share price, while the debt laden Rio Tinto saw its market valuation drop 40%.

TALKBACK
Local and regional topics tended to dominate talkback this week, with the interest rate cut the only national issue to get over the 200 call mark, with the situation in Thailand also receiving some coverage.

SPORT
After a relatively promising start, the Black Caps surrendered more meekly than in the First Test to be beaten by an innings in the Second Test to wrap up a disappointing series for them and a morale boosting one for the Australians in the lead up to the test against South Africa and following the losses in India.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I hear she's tested very well as Catwoman"
Deputy PM Julia Gillard avoids the Christmas cheer while talking about opposite number Julie Bishop

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 24 - 28 November 2008

DOMESTIC
Deficit: Australian political coverage this week was dominated by the D word, with the Prime Minister finally admitting what many commentators felt was already a foregone conclusion, that the budget may go into deficit for the 2008-09 financial year in an attempt to alleviate the expected slowdown in economic growth. The Opposition jumped on the admission, claiming that the Government’s own forecasts showed no need for deficit spending.

Australia: Strong coverage continued into the week of the wide release opening of the movie Australia, following last week’s rain soaked premiere, with reviews ranging across the full spectrum from strong praise to open-throated attacks on Baz Luhrmann’s vision of 1940’s outback Australia.

Queensland storms: The clean-up continued across South East Queensland continued in the wake of last week’s storms, with heavy intermittent rain further hampering the efforts of emergency service workers.

Workchoices gone: The Government’s new industrial relations legislation was introduced to parliament this week, establishing a new oversight body named Fair Work Australia, replacing the structure put in place by the previous government’s WorkChoices reforms, although some unionists continued to describe the reforms as WorkChoices lite.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Mumbai attacks: Three Australians have been confirmed dead, and an unknown number may remain as hostages in Mumbai after a coordinated terrorist raid involving bombs and teams if gunmen rampaged across several hotels and restaurants in downtown Mumbai. The attacks began on Wednesday evening, with terrorists thought to be specifically targeting US and British passport holders.

In other international news: The Thai Prime Minister has returned home from the APEC meeting and refused calls for him to resign from a large group of protestors that have occupied both airports in Bangkok; unsurprisingly the global financial crisis was the dominant topic at the APEC meeting in Peru, although Kevin Rudd called on the group not to ignore the threat of climate change; and another Australian soldier has been killed in action in Afghanistan, the seventh Australian to die in combat since the start of 2007.

BUSINESS NEWS
ABC Learning: Up to a third of ABC Learning’s child care centres may close, after the receiver confirmed that the business would continue to operate and would attempt to trade out of its current situation.

BHP-Rio bid ends: after around $100million in advisory fees, BHP has called off its bid for Rio Tinto, the share market applauding the decision to not attempt to change regulators minds about the merger by increasing BHP’s share price, while the debt laden Rio Tinto saw its market valuation drop 40%.

TALKBACK
Unsurprisingly it was the (reformed) bad boys of AFL and cricket that dominated talkback this week, many callers on both sides of the debate about whether Ben Cousins and Andrew Symonds should be playing at the top level once more.

SPORT
Most of the discussion in the lead-up to the second test against New Zealand (apart from the Andrew Symonds incident) revolved around whether Jason Krejza would be fit to play his second test after injuring his ankle, with Nathan Hauritz eventually earning the nod; while Andrew Symonds was cleared of any wrongdoing following an incident in a pub; and Ben Cousins looked set for the AFL Draft, although where he may end up remains a mystery; and John Daly was well off the pace after the first round of the Australian Masters golf.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I was playing a gay guy. I actually took it as a compliment"
Hugh Jackman responds to rumours about his sexuality while he was appearing in the Boy from Oz

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 17 - 21 November 2008

DOMESTIC
Queensland storms: A series of storms that have been reported as the worst in over thirty years hammered South East Queensland throughout last week, the first storm causing damage to over 8,000 homes, with a second deluge bringing the reported claims bill to somewhere between $125-200million. Storm damage spread to other parts of the state, with the Central Queensland mining town of Blackwater hit hard on Thursday, and there were fears of more wild weather to come.

Australia: In probably the most hyped film opening ever in Australia, the movie “Australia”, directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman opened in Sydney last week assisted by over 10,000 media mentions across the week. Reviews were widely described as good but not great and the possible positive effect on tourism was widely discussed.

Climate change: There was more speculation that President-Elect Barack Obama would agree to an emissions trading scheme and targets, although climate change was not a hot topic at either the G20 or the APEC agenda.

Tathra tragedy: Two small boys were swept off a pier and drowned at the small NSW South Coast town of Tathra, their father also drowning after he followed them into the water in an attempt to save them.

HMAS Sydney: Several commemorations were held for the crew of the HMAS Sydney, the wreck of which was found earlier this year off the Western Australia coast.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
G20 Summit: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd returned from the G20 summit early last week, after the meeting had settled on a series of international agreements on broad policy principles for tackling the global financial crisis, but no specific measures on increased regulation or an international framework.

California bushfires: More million dollar homes were razed to the ground and thousands of people evacuated as bushfires continued to rage across Southern and Central California.

BUSINESS NEWS
ABC Learning: Concern and uncertainty continued for many parents this week, as the future of all the child care centres owned by ABC Learning remained uncertain, despite assurances from the Government and a funding package organised by its chief creditors.

Car industry assistance: Debate continued over the wisdom of spending more money to attempt to prop up the Australian automotive manufacturing industry, particularly given the troubles of two of the three local manufacturers parent companies in the United States.

TALKBACK
The future of Ben Cousins and the movie Australia got plenty of talkback discussion along with all of its general media coverage, but longer term issues that continued to be discussed included concern over the future of ABC Learning’s centres and general economic conditions.

SPORT
There was intense speculation throughout the week leading up to the decision to allow Ben Cousins to play the 2009 AFL season, with the League putting strict conditions on his return; Australia and New Zealand cruised into the Rugby League World Cup final, with the Kangaroos the short priced favourites after beating the Kiwis easily earlier in the tournament; and in what was widely reported as an undeserved victory, Marco Bresciano scored in the third minute of stoppage time to secure a one-nil win for the Socceroos over the luckless Bahrain, the win putting Australia in a strong position to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, while the Bahraini campaign is effectively over.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“At the end of the day, all you've got is your story, so try to make it a good one" Australia Director Baz Luhrmann

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 10 - 14 November 2008

DOMESTIC
Remembrance Day: The 90th Anniversary of the end of World War I was commemorated across the country on the 11th of November at 11a.m, with former PM Paul Keating sparking a flurry of criticism and debate with his claim that too much historical emphasis was placed on the events at Gallipoli and their role in defining the nation.

Climate change: Ross Garnaut was out and about this week, defending his plan for Australia to commit to keeping emissions below 550ppm from both those who want to see far deeper cuts in emissions and those who believe any cost placed on emissions will damage the economy, some manufacturing industries continuing to claim they will be forced offshore if an ETS is introduced.

Petrol prices: FuelWatch was officially killed off by the Government this week, after they accepted they weren’t going to get the numbers in the Senate to pass the legislation, as petrol prices continued to drop sharply across Australia following recent heavy falls in the international oil price.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
President-Elect Obama: There has been continuing strong focus on the first days in waiting for Barack Obama’s administration, as he prepares to take over from George Bush in late January, with focus on his early staff choices and the length of the “lame duck” period before the new Democrat administration can make binding decisions.

Bali Bombers: The three men convicted of planning and carrying out the 2002 Bali bombings were executed in Indonesia over the weekend, with media coverage focusing on the possibility of reprisal attacks on tourists and the debate over the death penalty itself, concerns increasing for the Australians convicted of drug trafficking on death row in Bali.

In other international news: New Zealand has a new government after Helen Clark’s Labour Party was solidly defeated in last weekend’s election, bowing out after nine years, with the National’s John Key becoming the new Prime Minister; and China has announced a $600billion economic stimulus package to tray and stave off the effects of the international economic downturn.

BUSINESS NEWS
Share markets: The volatility on international share markets continued this week, with the overall trend continuing slightly downwards, but with wild daily swings of 5% and more, seeing billions of dollars of company value destroyed and recreated day by day. The media has had little time to do anything but report the wild swings as traders continues to try and pick the bottom of the market.

ABC Learning: The Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard spent much of the week trying to calm parents who have children enrolled at one of the hundreds of ABC Learning child care centres, ensuring them that the centres were viable although giving no government guarantees, while the future of the company itself remained extremely uncertain.

Car industry assistance: The Federal Government announced a $6bn assistance plan for the Australian automotive industry, with some media commentators quick to criticise the move as preferential treatment, while others defended the role of a car industry in Australian manufacturing.

TALKBACK
The execution of the Bali bombers was the leading one of a wide range of topics covered on talkback radio this week, with Remembrance Day commemorations and Paul Keating’s comments not far behind, as was discussion of the collapse of ABC Learning, with climate change also making a return to the Talkback Top five.

SPORT
Cricket in India – As the Australians slumped to a convincing defeat in the fourth test in Nagpur to lose the series in India two-nil, skipper Ricky Ponting received an avalanche of criticism from media commentators and former players for his decision to bowl part timers on the fourth day to avoid a possible ban.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“he’s declared war on drugs…war on inflation…war on unemployment…war on whalers…a war on downloads, pokies, doping in sport and on bankers’ salary deals. Prime Minister, how goes the war on everything? "
Opposition Frontbencher Joe Hockey mocks the PMs tendency to declare “war” on individual problems

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 27 - 31 October 2008

DOMESTIC
Bank deposit guarantee: The issue of financial security in the Australian non-banking sector remained unresolved at the end of the week, with most investment funds rejecting an approach from the Government to apply for bank status and therefore be covered by the deposit guarantee, while commentators continued to debate whether there should have been a guarantee at all and at what level it should have been capped.

Climate change: Coverage of climate change picked up as the Treasury released its economic modeling showing that only the aluminium industry would be badly affected by the start of an ETS and that the scheme would increase bills for households by about a dollar a day, the Opposition quickly rejecting the modeling as irrelevant because of the financial crisis.

Ice cream poo claim: Independent tests seem to confirm the allegation that a woman was served ice cream with faecal matter in it at the well known beachside Sydney pub, the Coogee Bay Hotel.

Petrol prices: the international oil price slumped to below half its peak level in the middle of the year, with the petrol Commissioner warning that he expected to see significant falls in the price at the pump very soon, as independent retailers took the matter into their own hands, several in Sydney selling for 95 cents a litre.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
U.S. Presidential campaign: As the campaign entered its last few days, Republican nominee John McCain attempted to focus on Democrat Barack Obama’s plans for the economy, making a concerted pitch in key large mid west states Ohio and Pennsylvania claiming Obama would be a high taxing, high spending socialist, while Obama used part of his massive war chest to run a half hour advertisement detailing his plans, claiming McCain would stick with President Bush’s failed economic policies.

In other international news: The American singer and actor Jennifer Hudson has gone into seclusion after her mother, brother and nephew were killed on the weekend; and Syria has strongly criticised the US for killing an Al Qaeda target with a rocket attack inside its borders.

BUSINESS NEWS
Financial crisis: The international financial rollercoaster continued on share markets last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipping sharply mid week but bouncing back strongly as the US Federal reserve cut interest rates to 1%, while our own stock exchange continued following the US trend, dipping below 3,800 mid week before also strongly rallying. Meanwhile figures showed the US officially in recession, while business commentators and politicians argued over how long the inevitable Australian economic slowdown will be.

Packer quits PBL: It was the end of a long era in Australian media when James Packer announced they would not be meeting CVC’s equity call for PBL, resulting in the resignation of James packer from the PBL Board and the end of the Packer family’s fifty year association with the Nine Network.

TALKBACK
This week sport finally pipped the financial malaise as the most popular topic for discussion, picking a winner for the Melbourne Cup having many punters nerves just as jangled as the collapse in share markets; while Australia’s poor form in the cricket also fought for time with concerns about retirement savings and the bank guarantee.

SPORT
Spring Carnival: The story of the 2008 Melbourne Cup seems set to be dominated by international horses after last year’s winner Efficient was scratched from the race, leaving foreign horses to dominate betting for the Cup, as sporting writers debated the pros and cons of the increasing strength of the foreign contingent at Melbourne’s Spring Carnival.

Cricket in India: The Australian bowling attack continues to struggle in India, the home team racking up over 600 runs in the first innings of the Third Test, rendering victory for Ricky Ponting’s team extremely unlikely as the Australian batsmen attempted to chip away at that huge first innings total.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“In my 70th year I will still be spending two months a year doing work that is of no interest to me and which is probably slightly spiritually depleting in order to feed the beast"
John Cleese does his bit for gender relations following his most recent divorce settlement

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 20 - 24 October 2008

DOMESTIC
Stimulus package: Support for the Government’s $10.4bn stimulus package remained strong across most of the media this week, with many commentators saying the speed and size of the response was more important than attempting to fine tune the package for greater equity, while some criticised the package for ignoring the unemployed and low income singles.

Bank deposit guarantee: In a classic case of who said what to whom and where, Federal parliament was dominated early in the week by the dispute over whether the Reserve Bank and Treasury were behind the Government’s unlimited bank deposit guarantee, while the debate eventually moved later in the week to whether the unlimited guarantee had been good or bad for financial markets overall.

Britt Lapthorne: A service for Ms Lapthorne was held in Melbourne during the week, while a possible coronial investigation in Australia and a continuing investigation in Croatia were widely discussed in the media, AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty criticised for refusing to attack the handling of the matter by Croatian authorities.

Climate change: While Greens candidates have done well in the recent WA and ACT elections, there was further evidence released in polls this week that Australians are cooling to the idea of taking tough steps to control the growth of carbon emissions, with the Opposition claiming the Government’s economic modeling for the ETS has been rendered irrelevant by the global financial crisis.

Xavier mucks up: The Melbourne Jesuit private boys’ school got an avalanche of unwanted media this week after its Year 12 mucked up to the degree of one student’s arm being broken and thousands of dollars of alleged damage to a motor vehicle parked outside the school.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
U.S. Presidential campaign: The task for Republican nominee John McCain seemed to get no easier this week, as the media focused on his running mate’s wardrobe budget and his campaign pulling out of Colorado, Barack Obama’s lead in the polls continued to strengthen heading into the final week of the campaign. Obama has taken two days away from the campaign to visit his sick grandmother in Hawaii.

BUSINESS NEWS
Financial crisis: While some business commentators were predicting the worst volatility for share markets and the crunch on credit may be over, others were warning of further problems ahead, with most global share markets dipping significantly again this week. The US Government announced a summit of the G20 leaders in New York to discuss further coordinated moves to alleviate the crisis, which Kevin Rudd will be attending.

In other business news: Inflation has hit 5% but virtually all commentators believe it will drop sharply from that figure, with the “inflation genie” retreating firmly back into the bottle as commodity prices struggle and spending decreases; and the global oil price has halved since its peaks in the first half of 2008, although prices at the pump have not come back significantly from their July peak.

TALKBACK
Economic matters continued to feature most strongly amongst a wide range of talkback calls this week, with divided opinions on the bank deposit guarantee and the cash rebates, although most felt that some immediate relief for pensioners was long overdue, and there was debate over whether our politicians needed to travel overseas to deal with the crisis.

SPORT
Cricket – In Australia’s biggest Test loss in almost a decade, the Indian team crushed Ricky Ponting’s men in the Second Test at Mohali Stadium by 320 runs. The media focus was on a reported spat between the captain and his strike bowler, Brett Lee, and whether the loss signified the end of our 15 year dominance of world cricket.

In other sporting news: a 50-1 shot from Britain took out the Caulfield Cup as the world’s biggest stable Godolphin finally won a major in Australia; and the Rugby League World Cup kicks off this weekend.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK“

I’m fearful when people are greedy, and greedy when people are fearful"
Warren Buffett again, explaining why he has started heavily investing in stocks

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 13 - 17 October 2008

DOMESTIC
$10.4 Billion stimulus package: The Government announced a $10.4billion consumer stimulus package to try an avert the possibility of Australia following most of the developed world into recession, with most of the money going in one-off cash hand-outs to pensioners and those receiving Family Tax Benefit A, with a doubling of the First Home Owners Grant included. The media almost universally applauded the move, as did the Opposition, although there were some rumblings about the efficacy of the FHOG.

Flight investigation: The investigation into the incident involving a Qantas flight from Singapore to Perth last week concluded an auto-pilot error had caused the rapid change in altitude and praised the response of the pilot and co-pilot in bringing the plane safely to land.

National Curriculum: There was extensive debate during the week about the plans for a new national curriculum and the role of history in it, with compulsory history to year ten and wide discussion of where the emphases should be.

Medicare surcharge: Negotiations with Senator Nick Xenophon brought his support for a big change to the level at which the Medicare surcharge kicks in, meaning an effective tax cut for singles earning between $50k and $75k and couples up to $150k.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Britt Lapthorne: A body found off the coast of Dubrovnik was confirmed early in the week as that of Ms Lapthorne, with the subsequent coronial inquiry unable to determine the cause of her death. Ms Lapthorne’s remains are being returned to Australia at the request of her family, who maintained that the Croatian police investigation and coronial inquiry were both inadequate.

U.S. Presidential campaign: Barack Obama continues to stretch his lead in the polls as the financial crisis all but engulfs Republican Senator John McCain’s campaign, with most pundits giving the final debate to Obama on points and starting to call the election itself a possible knockout for the Republicans.

BUSINESS NEWS
Financial crisis: Wild swings continued on share markets throughout the world last week as Governments’ continued to pour billions of dollars into financial systems, with many deciding to take equity stakes in banks as more economies officially slipped into recession. The ASX ended the week further down overall after record upswings and downswings throughout the week in New York all but cancelled each other out.

In other business news: Ford announced further job cuts in Australia as the future of the domestic auto industry continued to be debated; and the Aussie dollar kept sinking against most major currencies.

TALKBACK
Financial news and the interest rate cut were prominent on talkback as well as across the rest of the media, while Britt Lapthorne’s disappearance and the Qantas incident also received interest.

SPORT
Cricket - The First Test petered out to a draw as Australia’s attack failed to bowl out the Indian side on the final day, but the tensions and drama was kept at a high level off the field, with the Indian team criticising the strength of the Australian bowling while Ricky Ponting replied that there had been only one team trying to win.

In other sporting news: The Socceroos thumped Qatar 4-nil in Brisbane on Wednesday night to move one step closer to qualification for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa; the Bathurst 1000 was won again by the Ford duo of Lowndes and Whincup; the Caulfield Cup this weekend is seen as a wide open race as usual; and teams are gathering for the start of the Rugby League World Cup.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I was born with a positive gene…but my positive gene is taking a bit of a hammering"
Store owner Tonia Turker confirms that business hasn’t been great lately

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 4 - 10 October 2008

New developments came thick and fast as the U.S. financial crisis quickly spread across global share markets and financial systems, with huge falls in most major markets, most European countries guaranteeing deposits and interest rates being cut deeply by central banks across the world, after the eventual passing of the US$700bn U.S. bailout did little to stem the panic, with scores of banks broke or close to it and the U.S. and all of Europe expected to slide into recession immediately.

The RBA was one of the first central banks to respond strongly to the global situation, surprising all of the business media and financial analysts by cutting official interest rates a full percentage point, twice what most expected. There was intense political debate over whether banks should pass on the full rate cut, the Government accusing Malcolm Turnbull of irresponsibility who in turn accused the PM and Treasurer of doing the banks PR work, with the four majors quickly announcing rate cuts of 0.8%.

The NRL Grand Final was as lopsided as the AFL Grand Final was close, with Manly scoring early and then running away with the game for a record win in the game’s 100th year. Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy apologised to the judiciary the day after the game while many of the Sea Eagles were picked in the Kangaroos side for the upcoming World Cup

Intense coverage of the disappearance of Britt Lapthorne continued last week, with the media focusing on the identity of a body found in the sea by Croatian authorities early last week, while the owners of the hostel at which Ms Lapthorne was staying also came under scrutiny.

A worrying year of safety incidents continued for Qantas this week, with a large number of passengers injured on a flight from Singapore to Perth after a sudden drop in altitude. There was considerable media speculation about the causes of the incident, although there was no official result from the inquiry by the end of the week.

After plenty of speculation about what the teams thought of each other and plenty of pre-match sledging, the First Test against India started with Australia batting and captain Ricky Ponting leading the way once more with a big hundred.

Many of the leading pundits have virtually given the U.S. Presidential election to Barack Obama after John McCain failed to claw back ground in the second debate, with most commentators thinking Obama’s lead will be further increased by the economic crisis.

In other news, the Bathurst 1000 rolls around this weekend as the NSW Central West town becomes the heart of all things V8; Bill Henson was the centre of yet another controversy surrounding an alleged primary school visit; and amidst all the carnage the Commonwealth Bank has picked up BankWest for $2.1billion.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“hell... easy to enter and almost impossible to exit"
Warren Buffett’s view of the derivatives market…in 2003

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 29 September - 3 October 2008

DOMESTIC
Garnaut Report – The release of the complete Garnaut Report on emissions trading was somewhat overshadowed by the American financial crisis, however there was still plenty of discussion of Garnaut’s targets and recommendations for the timing and speed of carbon pricing and the resulting drop in emissions that can be expected by both 2020 and 2050, while some of the media focused on the recommendation to eat more roo.

Maternity leave – The Productivity Commission’s recommendation for 18 weeks paid maternity leave to replace the baby bonus was hailed as long overdue by many commentators, with the Government saying they would definitely introduce some form of paid leave, although business groups warned against any proposal that went more than 14 weeks or involved extra burdens on business.

Rob Guest – Widely known musical and theatre star Rob Guest died this week following a massive stroke, he was best known for his long running role as the Phantom of the Opera, but had appeared in scores of theatrical productions, as well as television, after starting as a pop singer in New Zealand.

Interest rates – The Treasurer Wayne Swan was very quick to warn people with a mortgage not to expect banks to pass on any cut the Reserve Bank makes to interest rates next week in full or even at all due to the international credit crisis, leading Malcolm Turnbull to call Swan and the PM bank apologists. The bank is expected to cut the rate by either 25 or 50 basis points.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Britt Lapthorne – The investigation into the disappearance of a young Australian backpacker, last seen at a youth hostel in Croatia two weeks ago has received extensive coverage, with Ms Lapthorne’s family joining the search and Australian authorities offering assistance to the Croatian police.

Paul Newman – the Hollywood star, renowned for his good looks and as well known for his race car driving and philanthropy as for his many huge hit movies in a more than fifty year acting career, passed away this week aged 83 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

US Presidential race – The focus turned solely to the financial crisis as both candidates returned to the Senate to vote for the bailout package, while today’s vice presidential debate was seen as a major test of Republican candidate Sarah Palin.

BUSINESS NEWS
Wall Street Crisis – The US administration’s $700bn bailout failed at the first hurdle, after most House Republicans and a large proportion of Democrats voted against the bill, causing the NYSE and world stock markets to spiral into their biggest single day dive ever. A modified bill passed the US Senate during the week but has yet to pass the House

In other business news: The ASX was slightly less severely affected than the US stock exchange, but still suffered a massive single day drop early this week before regaining some of the lost ground later in the week; and the ACCC has approved BHP’s attempted takeover of Rio Tinto, although some business commentators doubt BHP’s ability to complete the takeover.

TALKBACK
Maternity leave was the number one issue on talkback, as issues close to home received more discussion than the global financial crisis, with most callers in favour but some questioning the motives of the Government; while the AFL and NRL grand finals both received plenty of calls during the week, as did the Garnaut Report.

SPORT
Controversy has dominated the lead-up to the NRL Grand Final in the code’s centenary year, with Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy fined $50,000 for his comments following the suspension of Storm skipper Cam Smith, while Manly tried to focus on overturning last year’s loss to the Storm; In the AFL Grand Final a tight contest was predicted by many and that’s what it turned out to be for most of the game, the Hawks beating the odds to win their first title for 17 years.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"You can bail out Wall Street but you can't bail out the planet"
Greens Leader Bob Brown tries to keep the focus on climate change

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 22 - 26 September 2008

DOMESTIC
Pensions – The Opposition kept the pressure up on pensions this week, introducing a bill to immediately increase the sole pension which was passed in the Senate with the help of the minor parties, which the Speaker of the House of Reps duly declared unconstitutional, while the Government tried to focus on claims the new Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull was being economically irresponsible.

Medicare levy – The Government is starting to realize the difficulties it faces in getting legislation through the Senate after Family First Senator Steve Fielding joined with the Opposition to block the increase in the Medicare levy exemption from $50,000 to $75,000, claiming it would make private insurance unaffordable for most people.

Shadow ministry – Julie Bishop became the first woman to take the main financial portfolio for a major party in Australian Federal politics, while Andrew Robb was given a “super portfolio” involving infrastructure and carbon trading and Christopher Pyne moved into shadow cabinet. Several press gallery commentators questioned Bishop’s economic credentials and parliamentary presence.

Luxury Car Tax– The Government did get a small victory among a week of losses in the Senate, Senator Fielding agreeing to pass the Luxury Car Tax following concessions to tourist operators and farm businesses.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Rudd in US – The PM was attacked by the Opposition for taking another overseas trip early in his premiership, while the trip itself quickly morphed from a diplomatic effort to try and win support for a seat on the UN Security Council to an urgent briefing on the Wall Street meltdown.

Pakistan bombing – Some international media was reporting fears of imminent civil war in Pakistan as the Islamabad Marriott was hit by a massive roadside bomb while the new President Asif Ali Zardar condemned US raids against the Taliban on Pakistan soil, with reports Pakistan military had fired on US planes in their airspace.

US Presidential race – Republican candidate John McCain took the unprecedented step of suspending his campaign late this week to rush to Washington and focus on a solution to the financial crisis, putting in doubt the first presidential campaign debate, as the polls started to turn south for McCain in the wake of the turmoil.

BUSINESS NEWS
Wall Street Crisis – The gigantic collapses continue with bankruptcy now hitting one of America’s largest regulated banks Washington Mutual, rendering its stock worthless, while Congressional Republicans and Democrats tried to hammer out a deal on the President’s US$700bn rescue package, which has been met with criticism from both sides.

In other business news: ASIC was criticised for instituting a ban on short selling at the beginning of the week, although some commentators believe the ban reduced the volatility of the ASX during the week; and Qantas has started regular flights using the new A380 superjumbo.

TALKBACK
Pensions remain the main topic of the day, with very little support for the Government’s blocking of any immediate increase; while the rest of talkback was dominated by sport this week, the AFL Grand Final, the Brownlow medal and the NRL finals all receiving plenty of comment.

SPORT
The AFL Grand Final is between two Victorian teams for the first time in eight years, and many are tipping a cracker, with Hawthorn still underdogs to the reigning premiers despite some great late season form; the NRL Finals have thrown up a few more unexpected results, with Melbourne sneaking through to play Cronulla, although losing their skipper in the process, and the Warriors dream run continuing; ands the upsets continued with the Brownlow Medal going to the Kangaroos Adam Cooney, short priced favourite Gary Ablett Jr missing out again.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Major sectors of America’s financial system are at risk of shutting down…the value of your home could plummet…and millions of Americans could lose their jobs"
President George W Bush does his best to talk up the US economy.

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 8 - 12 September 2008

DOMESTIC
Premier Rees – The State Election was in WA but the coup was in NSW, with Nathan Rees becoming the new Premier after less than 18 months in parliament after Morris Iemma failed to get support from his own faction for sweeping changes to the ministry. Premier Rees “new broom” pitch was dented in his first week after the resignation of his new Police Minister Matt Brown.

Pensions – The issue of pensions dominated Federal political discussion early in the week, with the PM, Deputy Pm and a string of ministers agreeing they would find it very difficult to impossible to live on the single pension. Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson quickly announced a bill to increase the single pension $30 a week, which the Government rejected as piecemeal and dangerous.

Costello still going – To the deep disappointment of the Canberra Press Gallery and some Liberals but rather less interest from the public, Peter Costello reconfirmed he would be leaving political life and had no interest in becoming Opposition Leader. Metropolitan papers carried extensive details of his soon to be published memoirs late this week.

WA Election – It increasingly seems as though Colin Barnett will be the new Premier of WA after the dust has settled from the cliffhanger election last weekend, although neither major party will in enough seats to govern on its own. The WA Nationals Leader Brendon Grylls has made much of his opportunity to wring concessions out of the major parties who look likely to need his support.

Climate change – Professor Ross Garnaut spent the week defending his emissions trading package from both the left and right, as green groups called the targets deeply inadequate while business groups maintained pressure for Australia to make few or no moves before developing countries had made commitments to cut emissions.

Murray Darling crisis – The Federal and NSW Governments’ announced this week they would be buying a major cotton farm in Northern NSW and the Queensland Government announced it would release a further 11 billion litres into the system. The moves were generally applauded but experts warned it would have little short term effect on the lower Murray.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Caribbean hurricanes – A series of hurricanes continue to batter Caribbean islands as the hurricane season follows the pattern of previous years, with several very high intensity storms causing death and destruction in a range of island nations. Hurricane Ike looked headed for the Texan coast as it sped across the Gulf of Mexico.

Afghanistan – The Australian Government has rejected calls for an increase in the number of Australian troops in Afghanistan, among talk that infantry could take a greater role, saying that it was up to other countries to take on more of the burden.

US Presidential campaign – The US Presidential campaign degenerated into argument over lipstick on pigs this week as the Republican campaign continued to build momentum, although the candidates paused on the 11th of September to pay homage to the victims of the terrorist attacks seven years ago.

BUSINESS NEWS
In business news: There was a strong focus on the continuing financial crisis in the US in business news this week, with the total Federal bail-out of mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac receiving extensive coverage, while the continuing woes of Lehman Brothers and several other financial continued to make news.

TALKBACK
Pensions completely dominated talkback this week, as pensioners vented their frustrations with higher living costs and blamed politicians of all hue for the current situation. The NSW coup had plenty of people discussing Morris Iemma and the Labor Party’s merits; with the WA Election also bringing opinions forth on Labor state management; climate change rounding out the top four issues on talkback this week.

SPORT
The AFL Finals coverage was a little more subdued than usual over its first weekend, with no WA team, the last SA hope falling early and a poor crowd in Sydney; The Paralympics has seen the usual strong performance from the Australian team; and Roger Federer and Serena Williams both got back into the winner’s circle at the US Open.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"It's a very good speech ... I've got the notes"
Peter Costello tells about the prime ministerial acceptance speech he never got to give

Tracking the media, monitoring the message

Weekly media index: 1 - 5 September 2008

DOMESTIC
Interest rates – All four major banks immediately passed on the Reserve Bank’s 0.25% cut in the official interest rate on Tuesday, while economic commentators were divided on whether there will be further cuts this year, after figures showed a significant slowdown in growth but inflation remaining high.

Climate change – Professor Ross Garnaut today releases his report on the details of an emissions trading scheme, with the Government expected to move forward with a “low and slow” cap with numerous exemptions for export industries, while Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson was criticised for maintaining that the continuing drought in Eastern Australia is not related to climate change.

Luxury car tax – The Government’s planned increase in luxury car tax was blocked in the Senate by the Opposition and Family First Senator Steve Fielding, who claimed it would hit farmers and tourism operators, while the Government claimed that infrastructure projects would be affected by the loss of revenue.

WA Election – There has been divided opinion in the media this week about how close tomorrow’s WA State Election will be, with some predicting a neck and neck finish while others are expecting the Labor Government of Alan Carpenter to be comfortably re-elected.

Murray Darling crisis – The head of the Murray Darling Basin Commission and several other experts were quick to say this week they felt climate change was a factor in the current conditions in the Basin and that farmers would have to get used to the changed conditions as controversy over buyback limits continued.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Hurricane Gustav – There was intense coverage of Hurricane Gustav as it sped across the Gulf of Mexico towards New Orleans, with the Mayor announcing a compulsory evacuation and the President making sure he was in the area, while the storm itself lost power quickly to become no significant threat to the city, although three more hurricanes are brewing in the Caribbean Sea

Afghanistan – Nine Australian soldiers were injured, one critically, after a Taliban ambush in southern Afghanistan last weekend, the highest number of casualties in a single incident for Australian troops since the Vietnam War.

US Presidential campaign – The focus moved to the Republican Party this week, with John McCain today formally accepting the nomination of his party for President, after a fiery speech earlier at the convention from his controversial vice presidential pick, Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin.

BUSINESS NEWS
In business news: Rio Tinto continues to fend off BHP takeover attempts, claiming it is a stronger and better run company, while both companies shares dipped along with most resource stocks this week; and Babcock & Brown is looking to divest Alinta as well as a number of other assets as it struggles to stay afloat.

TALKBACK
A broad range of topics on talkback this week, with the WA Election dominating the airwaves in the West, while the upcoming footy finals were number one in the other AFL states; interest rates and climate change as always had the phones running hot and there continues to be plenty of Australian interest in US politics.

SPORT
The AFL Finals coverage kick off this weekend with Geelong hot favourites to go back to back, while Sydney take on the Kangaroos and Adelaide battle Collingwood in the elimination finals; At the US Open it was Serena’s turn to beat Venus as she advanced to the semi-finals, while Djokovic will play Federer and Scot Andy Murray tries to topple Nadal in the men’s semis; Australia predictably walloped Bangladesh in the One Day Series in Darwin, while Andrew Symonds playing future remains under a cloud after being sent home.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"I was blessed by misfortune"
John McCain explains how he believes his years as a POW made him a better man

Tracking the media, monitoring the message