The research explores the declining influence of media endorsements and leaders' debates on election outcomes.
Key points:
- The 2025 and 2022 elections are the only ones in the past thirty years to have been won by a party without the endorsements of most major newspapers.
- Anthony Albanese leads the first Australian government to have never been endorsed by The Australian since the newspaper was founded in 1964.
- From 1996 to 2019, most Australian newspapers endorsed the winning party, including Kevin Rudd's 2007 victory.
- This year's televised leaders' debates reached 12% of voters, at best.
- The first leaders' debate, conducted behind a paywall on Sky News, was seen by, at best, 2% of voters.
"The endorsement of newspapers used to be much sought-after, but these days such endorsements are practically irrelevant," said Joshua Black, report co-author and Postdoctoral Fellow at The Australia Institute.
"Despite the endorsements of all News Corp mastheads and the Australian Financial Review, the coalition suffered a major defeat.
"Anthony Albanese has now won two elections with only a handful of media endorsements."
"Televised debates are still touted as key events but they are barely watched by voters," said Skye Predavec, report co-author and Anne Kantor Fellow at The Australia Institute.
"The spectre of media moguls as political kingmakers still looms large in the imagination of Australia's political class, but this research shows that Australia's major media outlets have little influence over how Australians actually vote.
"This opens a path to a different kind of politics, where Australia's leaders can govern with courage rather than in fear."
