In whose interests? Media, political communication and First Nations Australians

Abstract

This chapter examines the interlocking fields of media and political representation, public policy and perception, and the public interest as it relates to First Nations Australians. It focuses on several key questions raised in the Closing the Gap issues paper, cited above, which argues that Australia lags behind other similarly developed settler countries – notably New Zealand, the United States and Canada – in implementing sustainable governance policies, mutually determined between governments and its Indigenous peoples. The chapter examines how the interests of Australian Indigenous peoples fare in terms of media and political representation, communication management, public policy, and social perception. It explores key themes of participation, accountability, understanding and agency, and looks at how these line up with acceptable expectations of the public interest. The chapter explores the apparent disconnect between what is in the interests of Indigenous peoples, and popularised notions of the national public interest.