Truth, Lies and Media

Denis Muller speaks with Andrew Dodd and Matthew Ricketson about their new book “Getting Murdoched”, available now through Hardie Grant Publishing. Support independent journalism Become a member Our Socials Facebook BlueSky X Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Zuckerberg's 'Meta' has had the blowtorch applied by the Royal Commission into Anti Semitism. It appears the tech giant's decision to allow more hate speech on Facebook to appease Donald Trump (and make s+loads of cash) has unleashed more, well, ugly hate speech. Who knew. [from 04:30] We also check in on poor old Karl Stefanovic, now complaining that TV is too "biege" while lamenting ho...

We’re watching textbook cases of great public interest journalism as The Ages Nick McKenzie takes on the Premier over rampant corruption on the “Big Build” while at the same time Karl the Unemployed platforms a violent crook and tries to convince us he did it “for you.” We also look at the new evidence reported by The Guardian about One Nation “meme factories” supporting claims from Senator Whish...

Australia’s doyens of political journalism invite a journo-hating bigot to the National Press Club and, with 2 honourable exceptions, fail to challenge the hate and falsehoods that follow.  Plus .. Senator Whish Wilson reveals the foreign generated flood of AI bots that are behind One Nations meteoric rise as he asks Australia and the media to “wake the fk up.” And Virginia Trioli, the journo...

Donald Trump has delivered “peace with punches” according to a gushing Nine News report from the violent MMA fight in the “claw” on the front lawn of the White House. Not everyone is so keen to pump up the President’s tyres as commercial television (thankfully) but watch as all sides in the Iran peace deal now launch the “all my own work” spin wars.  In Perth there’s been another run in with...

Why have the hard right Murdoch media turned on their golden girl Pauline Hanson? We unpack the savage attacks usually reserved for hated enemies .. as the hatchet job phenomenon known as “getting Murdoched” turns on One Nation and News Corp eats its own. Plus more harrowing stories emerge of rape on an industrial scale meted out to Australian women by Israeli forces .. why can the media only find...

Gina “One Nation” Rinehart is adding “media mogul” to her business card. The mining billionaire has just bought into Southern Cross Media. the owner of the Seven Network - a broadcaster that boasts televisions highest rating news services.  Can we now expect Warp 5 migrant bashing, nuclear level climate denying, peak ABC hating and Pauline Hanson back on Dancing With The Stars? Watch this spa...

Australian activists are beaten and sexually abused by Israel - we unpack why this is not just a “normal” news story. The UK is flocking to watch GB News a hard right disinformation channel starring Nigel Farage and headed up by the former boss of Australia’s Sky News - despite polls revealing it is the least trusted of all the news outlets.  And we farewell AFL legend Neale Daniher who used...

It’s our SpineWatch edition!  We’re on the search for that elusive media backbone .. as the ABC is strangely silent following the ejection of its news crew from a One Nation press conference .. but then strongly pushes back against the demands of Jillian Segal the anti semitism special envoy. Plus Pauline Hanson declares she wants to be PM while Tony Abbott still thinks he is and is eyeing a...

The ABC bashing season returns as One Nation boots out a regional journalist from an Albury press conference on the eve of the Farrer by election. The right wing media turn up to the dial to fear as the so called ISIS brides and their children return to Australia .. but are they really a terror threat or just easy clickbait? We farewell the media pioneer Ted Turner who created CNN and the 24 hour...

The heartbreaking image of a little Indigenous girl abducted and killed flashes around Australia and the world as riots erupt in Alice Springs.   It is an important story but begs the question: Why are Indigenous communities ignored by mainstream media until a tragedy of immense proportions makes it impossible to look away? In the US political activist Jess Craven unleashes on...

The politics of violence turns to Donald Trump - The President who threatened to wipe out an entire civilisation and incited a violent mob to storm the Capitol turns on the media as his press secretary bizarrely claims it is Democrats and journalists responsible for the politically violent narratives that preceded the White House Correspondents dinner assassination attempt. Apology not accept...

Prison warders rush to shield accused Australian war criminal Ben Roberts Smith from media intrusion by blocking the path of photographers .. why are some prisoners more equal than others? Prince Harry and Meghan fly home to the US but not before the Duchess shares disturbing revelations about how the billion dollar social media hate industry trolls her. Trusted ABC finance presenter Alan Kohler i...

Within hours of Donald Trump becoming the first openly genocidal fascist US President .. Ice Queen Melania Trump holds a dramatic press conference calling for "the lies" to end and solemnly denying she was a victim of Jeffrey Epstein - claims virtually no-one was making until she swept up to address the press pack.     Was this a bizarre political media strategy aiming at...

Australia's most decorated soldier Ben Roberts Smith is arrested over alleged war crimes and taken into custody .. the alleged crimes, which Roberts Smith denies ever happened, may never have come under scrutiny had it not been for the dogged work of investigative journalists Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters. Plus .. Trump's armageddon threats follow his expletive ridden demands that Iran...

Newsrooms go into overdrive as Australia's most wanted man Dezi Freeman is shot dead .. but how do you report the death of a police killer without sounding like you are dancing on the grave of a dead man?  Also this week - the disturbing trend of "journocide" as Israel murders three Lebanese reporters. And the dangers of an old media habit that "sanewashes" the rambling, incoherent pathologic...

Denis Muller warns of the dangers around broadcasting a known liar and racist live to air as respected political journalists call on the media to challenge the hate of Pauline Hanson while One Nation surges in popularity. Major disruptions to hit news programs as ABC staff go on strike, frustrated over repeated below inflation pay rises and the insidious practice of forcing staff on to precarious...

A special live recording of our discussion with Michael Bradley - How Crikey fought off the Murdoch empire, and other stories. You can find more of Michael's work here: https://publishing.monash.edu/authors/michael-bradley/ Our sincere thanks to everyone who came along, and the staff of the Northern Arts Hotel for a fabulous night! Recorded on March 15 2026. Support independent journalism Become a...

Beware the unholy alliance - Mark Zuckerberg's gargantuan Meta and the monster Murdoch media have just joined forces in a deal that creates the world's biggest disinformation machine enabling News Corps hard right, hate filled content to teach Meta's artificial intelligence products how to respond to questions. Expect a massive hook up which will amplify anti migrant, anti science, anti minority n...

Join Nicole and Denis live at Ballarat Library in discussion with journalist and author Professor Matthew Ricketson. Matthew’s latest and forthcoming book is  Getting Murdoched: How Murdoch’s Media Wields Power and Punishment,  co-authored by Andrew Dodd.  This event is brought to you by ABC Friends Ballarat, ABC Alumni and Ballarat Libraries.  Recorded on March 11 2026. Our si...

Distressed members of the Iranian women's national soccer team have been dramatically granted asylum in Australia .. following threats to their lives from Iran after they refused to sing the national anthem ahead of an Asian Cup game. It was an intense operation cloaked in secrecy and the media that knew about it were asked not to blow the whistle to protect them.   We look at the s...

The fascist President who wants a Nobel Peace Prize just bombed Iran killing hundreds of innocents including 100 schoolgirls.  Violent tyrant Donald Trump spins the bloodshed as a battle of good versus evil .. who in the media fall for the BS? And just when we don’t need another hard right collection of divisive haters rocketing up the podcast charts, Nines $2.8M man Karl Stefanovic goes Roga...

The Palace PR machine kept ex Prince Andrew’s tawdry secrets hidden for decades - but no more. Denis Muller describes the “startled corpse” photo that flew around the world within minutes and revisits the other great royal scandal also covered up - the Hitler fanboy Edward viii who called on Britain from exile after abdicating to make peace with the violent fascist.  Plus the New York Daily N...

Riddle me this .. Why aren't the media hitting the alarm bells over the Australian MAGA machine trying to install a Trumpian government in this country?  They call themselves Advance, they fawn over Pauline Hanson, they are funded by rich conservative donors and they set their attack dogs on voices that refuse to sing from the whites only, climate denying, back to the 50's hard right playbook...

ASIO takes aim at the ABC as Four Corners questions intelligence failures in the lead up to the Bondi terror attack ..  The mighty Washington Post which broke the Watergate scandal now being detonated by its owner Jeff Bezos in order to curry favour with a corrupt President. And the bizarre “love and friendship” headline published by The Age for the visiting Israeli President Isaac Herzog, ac...