The Emperor's New Clothes

Politicians and observers alike in Western
democracies watch with growing dismay the cynicism
that pervades the electorate in response seemingly
to any political initiative,regardless of its merit
and from whatever side of the political spectrum it
may originate.All too frequently, government
announcements are dismissed as just more spin .
Meantime, the party faithful despair that media
strategies have taken precedence over ideological
principles;that courting the media has become more
important than(or synonymous with?) serving the
public interest.Although empirically demonstrated
that white adult males are responsible for most
crime in Perth s premier entertainment precinct,
the Labor State Government introduced a
curfew targeting indigenous youngsters.Denounced
privately by the newspaper editors as a cheap
political shot that made a bit of a headline ,the
curfew was nonetheless applauded in their editorials
for making the precinct safer.This behind-the-scenes
examination of the interplay between government and
media will interest academics, government policy-
makers, media professionals and anyone concerned
with race relations.

Autorentext

Karin Mac Arthur, BA Hons, MPhil, PhD. Having worked as a journalist in Europe and later as a government media adviser, Dr Mac Arthur has a long-standing interest in the interplay between politics and the news media, which was to become the subject of her PhD thesis. Dr Mac Arthur currently works for the Government of Western Australia.

Klappentext

Politicians and observers alike in Western democracies watch with growing dismay the cynicism that pervades the electorate in response seemingly to any political initiative,regardless of its meritand from whatever side of the political spectrum it may originate.All too frequently, government announcements are dismissed as just more'spin'. Meantime, the party faithful despair that media strategies have taken precedence over ideological principles;that courting the media has become more important than(or synonymous with?) serving the public interest.Although empirically demonstrated that white adult males are responsible for most crime in Perth's premier entertainment precinct, the Labor State Government introduced a curfew targeting indigenous youngsters.Denounced privately by the newspaper editors as 'a cheap political shot that made a bit of a headline',the curfew was nonetheless applauded in their editorials for making the precinct safer.This behind-the-scenes examination of the interplay between government and media will interest academics, government policy-makers, media professionals and anyone concerned with race relations.