Fake news, global media moguls flexing their political muscles, getting people to pay for journalism, and the challenge posed by social media companies – the problems facing the media and journalism are many. In our panel discussion this week, Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times, Siddharth Varadarajan of The Wire, and Amy Remeikis of The Guardian Australia talk to Mark Kenny and Jill Sheppard about the future of the media. Pod hosts Sara Bice and Martyn Pearce also chat to Professor Mirya Holman about getting more women in political leadership positions, how female political candidates use Twitter, and the connection between pandemics and the politics of climate change.

Amy Remeikis is Guardian Australia's political reporter. She has covered federal politics, Queensland politics, crime, court, and garden shows during her career, working for radio and newspapers, most recently for Fairfax Media. She was an inaugural nominee of the Young Walkley awards.

Gideon Rachman became chief foreign affairs columnist for the Financial Times (FT) in July 2006. He joined the FT after a 15-year career at The Economist, which included spells as a foreign correspondent in Brussels, Washington, and Bangkok. He also edited The Economist’s business and Asia sections. His particular interests include American foreign policy, the European Union, and globalisation.

Siddharth Varadarajan is an Indian-American journalist, editor, and academic. He is the founding Editor of The Wire and the former Editor of The Hindu. He has reported on the NATO war against Yugoslavia, the destruction of the Bamyan Buddhas by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, the war in Iraq, and the crisis in Kashmir. Siddharth has edited a book titled Gujarat: The Making of a Tragedy which is about the 2002 Gujarat riots.

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 political correspondent and national affairs editor for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and The Canberra Times. He is the presenter of the Democracy Sausage podcast.

Jill Sheppard is a political scientist at the ANU School of Politics and International Relations. Her research focuses on why people participate in politics, what opinions they hold and why, and how both are shaped by political institutions and systems.

Sara, Martyn, and Mirya also go over some of your questions, comments, and suggestions for future podcasts, discuss the danger of swooping birds, and make a very special announcement about a new course teaching podcasting skills to policymakers.

Mirya Holman is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Tulane University and a Visiting Fellow at the ANU School of Politics and International Relations. Her research interests focus on political leadership, local politics, gender and politics, research methods, and environmental politics.

Sara Bice is a Senior Research Fellow at the ANU Crawford School of Public Policy, and leads the Next Generation Engagement Program based at the school.

Martyn Pearce is a presenter for Policy Forum Pod and the Editor of Policy Forum.

Show notes | The following were mentioned in this episode:

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Climate change and infectious diseases

Gender inequality in Coalition Cabinet

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