DOMESTIC
Interest rates: In any other week or before the onset of the financial crisis, a 75 point drop in the official interest rate would be expected to easily be the number one story of the week, however the second huge drop in rates in as many months by the Reserve Bank could only manage third, with much of the coverage surrounding the banks refusal to pass on the full amount of the cut, a stance quickly criticised by both the Treasurer and Opposition Leader.
Climate change: Climate Minister Penny Wong is starting to talk tougher on both climate change and water, as the States jockey for preferential treatment on both of those issues, while some conservative and business commentators continue to call for the abandonment of any emissions trading scheme.
Budget review:There was extensive cynicism from both the media and the Opposition over the timing of Wayne Swan’s press conference detailing new budget forecasts, just as results were coming in from the US Election. Treasury now predict the budget surplus will be below $6billion and unemployment is expected to rise above 5%.
Petrol prices: The future of Fuelwatch was looking dire as the Government admitted it was unlikely the legislation would pass the Senate this year, as petrol prices finally came down to $1.30s in metropolitan areas.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
U.S. Election: In an easy win on top of a record turn-out, Senator Barack Obama became the 44th President-Elect of the United States, and the first African-American to achieve that office. Media coverage in Australia had been slightly subdued in the last two weeks of the campaign, but became wall-to-wall in the 24 hours leading up to the counting of results and coverage of the results themselves.
In other international news: Prime Minister Helen Clark’s Labour Party is trailing well behind the National Party in polls leading up to this weekend’s NZ Election, but was still hoping to be able to cobble together a coalition to remain in power; and the focus quickly turned to Barack Obama’s “preferred war” in Afghanistan, with speculation that Australia would be asked to provide more troops.
BUSINESS NEWS
Financial crisis: Once again it was a week of swings and roundabouts on the Australian and most international share markets, with strong gains early in the week wiped out by renewed pessimism later in the week.
ABC Learning: After months of speculation that ABC Learning was on the brink of collapse, and only weeks after the resignation of founder Eddy Groves from the Board, the company has called in the administrators, with the Government saying it will not take control of ABC Learning’s hundreds of child care centres.
TALKBACK
Talkback interest this week closely followed levels of coverage across the wider media, with the Melbourne Cup and the US Election dominating discussion. The future of ABC Learning’s child care centres was also a hot topic as was the imminent execution of the Bali bombers.
SPORT
Spring Carnival – If anyone needed proof of where Australia’s heart really lies, it was shown by media volumes this week, Bart Cumming’s remarkable 12th Melbourne Cup victory as a trainer, with the unfancied Viewed getting up at 50-1 with Blake Shinn onboard, pipping the election of the first African American as President of the world’s largest economy. Most of the media in the lead up to the race had focused on the horses raiding from the Northern hemisphere, who once again failed to live up to the hype.
Cricket in India - The Australia’s tour of India has come down to a vital final Test this weekend, with Ricky Ponting’s men needing a victory to square the series one-all and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“He is young, he is beautiful and he is tanned"
Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi manages to blow away most of the post-racial optimism within 24 hours of Obama’s election
Tracking the media, monitoring the message
