Democracy Sausage with Mark Kenny

On this Democracy Sausage we discuss freedom of speech at universities, the new religious freedom bill, and ask whether its time for Australia to say thank you and goodbye to coal. Mark Kenny and our panel – Will Grant, Julie Hare, and Sarah Ison – also take a look at the politics of refugee decisions, and ask whether Scott Morrison has quietened tensions in his party. Mark Kenny  is a Senior Fell...

This week marks 80 years since Hitler invaded Poland, but are there lessons from history about the rise of China? On this week’s  Democracy Sausage  podcast we talk to Hugh White about a new cold war, the nuclear taboo, find out how to defend Australia, and ask whether the China choice has already been made for us. Mark Kenny  is a Senior Fellow in the ANU Australian Studies Institute. He came to...

On this week’s Democracy Sausage pod we crunch the numbers on how an inverted yield curve could be a sign of recession to come, and ask whether the Coalition really are better money managers than Labor with Peter Martin AM. Hosts Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga also take a look at the Chinese economy, the Hong Kong protests, and whether it’s one step up, a few steps back in the Pacific. Mark Kenny  ...

As Boris Johnson threatens to take Britain out of the European Union without a deal, we hear from Ros Taylor, Managing Editor the LSE’s Brexit Blog and presenter on the Remainiacs podcast about whether the country can pull back from the brink, what no-deal might mean, and how to heal the deep divisions exposed by the Brexit process. Hosts Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga also take a look at whether t...

Have political parties and the state become too intertwined? How can parties best tackle bad behaviour in their own ranks? And what do children think makes a good society? On this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast, host Marija Taflaga and co-host Jill Sheppard talk to Mirya Holman and Sharon Bessell about transparency and trust in politics, and why we need to take kids seriously when they voice the...

Can the politicisation of the public service be reversed? Why is there such a disconnect between how politicians talk about the economy and how many Australians are actually struggling to make a living? And who’s responsible for rehabilitating those that have been radicalised? On this Democracy Sausage podcast, co-hosts Andrew Hughes and Marija Taflaga serve up fresh, meaty analysis of Australia’s...

As a society, what kind of controls do we want in place to tackle hate speech on social media? And what should we be doing to help lift people out of poverty? Those are among the questions tackled on this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast by guest host Andrew Hughes with panel members Craig Emerson, Maiy Azize, and Shirley Leitch. Andrew Hughes is a lecturer in marketing at the ANU’s Research Schoo...

Do Australians need to know which church a politician belongs to? And are religious values reflected in policy choices? This week on Democracy Sausage Mark Kenny leads a discussion on the boundaries between church and state. We also discuss a landmark speech on Indigenous affairs, and take a look at what Donald Trump may expect in return for that state visit. Our panellists – David Gazard, Jade Ga...

What can you read into the body language of the world’s politicians when they press the flesh? Is the G20 anything more than a support group for embattled and unloved leaders? And was Putin right that liberalism is dead? On this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast, Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga are joined by Michael Wesley and Lauren Richardson to talk international relations and diplomacy. The team...

On this week’s Democracy Sausage the panel – Mark Kenny, Marija Taflaga, and James Frost – tackle a paradox of politics, new alliances in Parliament, Scott Morrison at the G20, and Trump’s historic handshake at the Korean DMZ. Mark Kenny is a Senior Fellow in the ANU Australian Studies Institute. He came to the university after a high-profile journalistic career including six years as chief politi...

If Australia’s economy has stalled, should we be more worried about paying off the car loan or putting fuel in the tank? And if you’re not in the top end when earning $200,000 each year, just what part of town are you in? On this Democracy Sausage podcast, Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga are joined at the hotplate by Katharine Murphy of The Guardian for a fresh serve of analysis of Australia’s polic...

How can we rebuild trust in news media and get people reading things that they don’t agree with? Who gets to decide what’s in the public interest? And how can we tackle fake news as people increasingly turn to encrypted messaging services? Those are some of the questions sizzling on the hotplate of this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast, where Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga are joined by Caroline Fi...

Who are the quiet Australians, and do they have any attachment to major political parties? Did Australians feeling financially insecure mean the election was always going to be decided on the economy? And from Boris to the backstop, how can the Brits get themselves out of the Brexit tangle? These are some of the questions tackled on this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast by Mark Kenny and Marija Ta...

Can you sell complicated policy from opposition? Should Andrew Leigh have been given a senior cabinet position? And will a better gender balance change the story for women in politics? These are some of the questions tackled on this week’s Democracy Sausage podcast by Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga with guests Virginia Haussegger and James Frost. Mark Kenny is a Senior Fellow in the ANU Australian...

Should we shake up the way polls are reported? What to make of the Government’s newly-minted cabinet? Will the Coalition be able to deliver constitutional change for Indigenous communities? And is the ‘shy Tory’ nothing more than an online myth? These are some of the questions tackled on this week’s Democracy Sausage by Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga with guests Frank Bongiorno and Jill Sheppard. M...

The votes have been cast and we have a winner, but why didn’t the polls see it coming? This week on Democracy Sausage Mark and the panel pick over a Queensland backlash, the presidentialisation of politics, and whether Labor misjudged the mood of the electorate. If you have a go, you’ll get a go – and against the odds (and polls) it’ll be Scott Morrison and the Coalition that’ll get a go at runnin...

This week on the Democracy Sausage podcast, Mark Kenny and Marija Taflaga chat to Stephanie Peatling, Patrick Dumont, and Bob McMullan about a campaign week featuring the Liberal launch and the race to the finish line. If you start an election behind in the polls, will you finish behind? And does voter fatigue explain why so many Australians have already cast their votes in pre-polling? These are...

Is social media a window into what our politicians really think? Who would want to be a politician? And what should we make of the theatre of Labor’s campaign launch? These are some of the questions tackled in this week’s episode of Mark Kenny’s Democracy Sausage. Mark and the panel – Marija Taflaga, Quentin Grafton, Kim Rubenstein, and Jill Sheppard also take a look at diversity among Australia’s...

What should we make of the results from Monday’s Newspoll? Will Labor’s dental plan put a smile on the dial of Australia’s pensioners? And will Clive’s cash splash get Palmer into Parliament? These are just some of the questions tackled in this week’s episode of Mark Kenny’s Democracy Sausage . Mark and the panel – Marija Taflaga, Ian McAllister, Liz Hanna, and Sky News’ Kieran Gilbert – also take...

This week on the Democracy Sausage podcast, Mark Kenny chats to John Hewson, Katrine Beauregard, Jill Sheppard, and Paul Pickering about a campaign week dominated by water, the economy, religion, and relentless spending commitments. Will climate change be the defining issue of the Australian election campaign? Has Labor been too bold with campaign promises? And which leader would you prefer to hav...

In this wiener-sized second serving of Mark Kenny's Democracy Sausage , ANU experts Mark Kenny and Dr Andrew Hughes discuss why the election campaign will be one of the most negative we’ve seen in a long time. They also consider whether negativity will even appeal to voters, some of the novel uses of social media, and the astronomical amounts of money already being sunk into campaigning. Andrew Hu...

One week in, are the policies announced by Australia’s major parties resonating with voters? On this first episode of our new podcast series, Democracy Sausage , host Mark Kenny takes a look at the policies and politics of the first week of campaigning – from tackling cancer to tax cuts and all points in-between, and how those commitments might be playing out with voters. Mark and the panel – Bob...