Asia Pacific Media Educator
Abstract
While condemnations of Australia's One Nation Party president, Pauline Hanson, and the media coverage of her, have gone hand in hand, much of this criticism has failed to adequately address the complexity of Hanson's status as a celebrity politician. This has been compounded by a failure to provide an adequate explanation of the basis on which accusations of irresponsibility, targetted at both Hanson and the media, have been mounted. This paper examines the treatment Hanson has received in two current affairs programs in Australia in relation to both the criticisms of her and of media reportage on her. It identifies, in both cases, a tendency in both the programs themselves and in criticisms of them to essentialise what constitutes legitimate media representation. Finally, the paper explores the possibilities of a radical democratic approach to issues of media representation.
Recommended Citation
Nolan, D., Doing justice to Pauline: Strategies of representation in television current affairs, Asia Pacific Media Educator, 6, 1999, 24-39.Available at:https://ro.uow.edu.au/apme/vol1/iss6/3
