Reviving the Fourth Estate: Democracy, Accountability and the Media

Reshaping Australian Institutions

by Julianne Schultz

This lively and accessible book analyzes the role of journalism and the scope of its democratic purpose. Schultz examines key news stories, and looks at the attitudes of Australian journalists themselves. The ideal of the fourth estate has been impaired by concentrated media ownership and by commercial, political, ethical and occupational interests. Schultz argues for a revival of the fourth estate based on journalistic independence and political autonomy, together with increased accountability and responsiveness.

320 pages, Paperback

First published November 16, 1998

About the author

JULIANNE SCHULTZ is the founding editor of Griffith REVIEW. She is on the boards of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Grattan Institute. She is the Chair of the Queensland Design Council and the reference group on the National Cultural Policy, deputy chair of the Australian Council of Learned Academies Securing Australia’s Future project and on advisory committees with a focus on education, media and Indigenous issues. Since co-chairing the Creative Australia stream at the 2020 Summit she has been actively involved in cultural policy debates. She has been a judge of the Miles Franklin Award, Myer Foundation Fellowships and Walkley Awards. She is the author of Reviving the Fourth Estate: Democracy, accountability and the media (Cambridge University Press, 1998), Steel City Blues (Penguin, 1985) and the librettos Black River and Going into Shadows.