• Politics and Policy

    Understanding preference voting


    Logan Linkston |  April 26, 2025


    Australia’s parliamentary system is complicated by its proportional representation system, so knowing how preferences work is the key to making your vote count, before you get to enjoy your hard-earned democracy sausage.


  • Defence and Security

    The drums of war


    Michael Pezzullo |  April 26, 2025


    Australia remembered its fallen heroes on ANZAC day, but the need to defend democracy is more pressing than ever.


  • Politics and Policy

    The preference game


    Adrian Beaumont |  April 26, 2025


    Every election cycle sees the media focus on the preference deals between parties, and the 2025 election is no exception, although voters can of course vote for who they want, no matter what their preferred party advises.


Latest Story

  • Small firms – Big factor

    Open Forum     |      April 2, 2025

    As the federal election looms, a newly released white paper from the Media Precinct reveals that Australia’s small and medium-sized enterprises may now emerge as the deciding voice at the ballot box.

  • Delivering health care to children in need

    Open Forum     |      April 2, 2025

    Embedding nurse practitioners into specialist homeless services can help to improve healthcare access for vulnerable children.

  • Fear, uncertainty and doubt

    Frank Bongiorno     |      April 2, 2025

    The world feels full of fear, uncertainty and doubt, but will this be enough to propel Peter Dutton’s Coalition into office?

  • Uneven ambition

    William Leben     |      April 1, 2025

    Australia is struggling to manage its fraught position between China and the United States, while trying to find a durable place among a crowd of ambitious partner nations across Southeast Asia and the Pacific.

  • Flying high

    Dougal Robertson     |      April 1, 2025

    Australia needs more fighter jets to secure its airspace against incursion from hostile foreign powers, and these can be secured much more quickly than new naval ships.

  • The wait

    Open Forum     |      April 1, 2025

    The long wait for an initial treatment session for teenagers suffering from poor mental health could be undermining their prospects of recovery.

  • Democratic security

    Robert Blows     |      March 31, 2025

    In an era where even Australia’s democratic system faces significant challenges, “democratic security” is an increasingly pertinent issue.

  • Assessing critical thinking

    Angelito Calma     |      March 31, 2025

    There is a growing concern that Australia’s university students lack critical thinking, but maybe the problem is how we teach and assess it.

  • Australia’s ongoing COVID toll

    Christabelle Adjoyan     |      March 31, 2025

    COVID-19 is still killing Australians — and the full picture shows sobering numbers and a lack of action on some of the key lessons of the pandemic.

  • Updating broadcast policy

    Anna Potter     |      March 31, 2025

    Media policy needs reform, not tinkering, to prioritise Australian interests and voices over the commercial needs of broadcasters and streaming giants.

  • The principle problem

    Paul Kidson     |      March 31, 2025

    Recent surveys have shown school principals face unsustainably high workloads and high levels of stress and these trends seem set to continue.

  • No safe seats

    Joshua Black     |      March 30, 2025

    Australian voters backed more independent MPs in the last election than at any time since the Second World War and the new poll in May could send even more cross-benchers to Parliament.