ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a contemporary snapshot of Australia's political public sphere, set against historical comparisons over a period of two decades. During the mapping of the print-based political public sphere media, the chapter presents an analysis of newspaper coverage for each of the seven Federal elections that occurred during the period 1996-2013. Letters to the editors of newspapers were practically the only means of public audience feedback to journalistic content, or public participation in the public sphere, and were to that extent important. The provision of local journalism in Australia has become a pressing issue, exemplified by the closure of the Fairfax-owned Cooma-Morning Express in May 2016 due to financial cuts by the parent company. In line with trends in comparable overseas markets, the decline of print circulation was paralleled by the growing use of online sources for news, and the movement of newspapers and periodicals onto digital platforms.
