One Nation’s banning of the ABC and abuse of journalists is shameful. It’s time other media took a stand

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · May 25, 2026 · 956 words · By Denis Muller

Political Populism Democratic Erosion Press Freedom

headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing

Ready to play

Daily briefing

What to know about Political Populism

The author criticizes the Australian media's lack of response to One Nation's exclusion of journalists from press conferences. The piece argues that these actions are anti-democratic and draws parallels between Pauline Hanson's tactics and those of Donald Trump in the United States.

Propaganda risk 40%

Claims checked 16

Techniques found 4

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left12%

Center76%

Right12%

8 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

The day before the Farrer byelection on May 9 in which Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party delivered a seismic shock to the Australian political landscape, her party apparatchiks banned the ABC from attending its election-eve press conference.

Why it matters

Thirteen days later, another party apparatchik told a journalist from Guardian Australia to “shut up” during a press conference in Adelaide about the party’s policy on oil and gas.

Common ground

Hanson was later heard describing the journalist as a “nasty bitch”.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Name Calling / Labeling, Appeal to Fear: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Political Populism story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that The day before the Farrer byelection on May 9 in which Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party delivered a seismic shock to the Australian political landscape, her party apparatchiks banned the ABC from attending its election-eve press conference?
How does this story connect Political Populism with Democratic Erosion over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/one-nations-banning-of-the-abc-and-abuse-of-journali…

analyticsAnalysis

40%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 90%

Moderate concerns. Notable use of persuasive or loaded language.

psychologyDetected Techniques

warning

Loaded Language 95% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

warning

Name Calling / Labeling 70% confidence

Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.

warning

Appeal to Fear 80% confidence

Building support by instilling anxiety or panic in the audience.

warning

Slippery Slope 75% confidence

Arguing that one event will inevitably lead to extreme consequences without evidence.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

16 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 6

schedule Pending 6

info Single Source 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

check_circle

“The day before the Farrer byelection on May 9 in which Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party delivered a seismic shock to the Australian political landscape, her party apparatchiks banned the ABC from attending its election-eve press conference.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results confirm that One Nation banned the ABC from a press conference the day before the Farrer byelection on May 9.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — A by-election was held on 9 May 2026 to elect the Australian member of Parliament (MP) for the New South Wales division of Farrer. One Nation candidate David Farley was elected, defeating independent …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Farrer_by-election

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Division of Farrer is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. Located in the southwestern part of the state bordering both South Australia and Victoria, at 126,563 km2 (4…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_of_Farrer

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pauline Hanson's One Nation (PHON), commonly known as One Nation (ON), is a right-wing populist and far-right political party in Australia. It is led by its founder Pauline Hanson, who has been a sena…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Nation

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

“Thirteen days later, another party apparatchik told a journalist from Guardian Australia to “shut up” during a press conference in Adelaide about the party’s policy on oil and gas.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web search results confirm a One Nation staffer told a Guardian journalist to 'shut up' during a press conference in Adelaide regarding oil and gas policy.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — A state election was held on 21 March 2026 to elect the members of the 56th Parliament of South Australia. All 47 seats in the House of Assembly (lower house) were up for election, along with 11 of th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_South_Australian_state_el…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Adelaide ( AD-il-ayd; Kaurna: Tarndanya [ˈd̪̥aɳɖaɲa]) is the capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adelaide

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — March for Australia was a series of nationwide protests in many Australian cities that occurred on 31 August 2025, 19 October 2025 and 26 January 2026 (Australia Day). The protests aimed to express di…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_for_Australia

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

“Hanson was later heard describing the journalist as a “nasty bitch”.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results explicitly state that Pauline Hanson was heard describing the journalist as a 'nasty bitch'.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pauline Lee Hanson (née Seccombe, formerly Zagorski; born 27 May 1954) is an Australian politician who is the leader of One Nation. She has been a senator for Queensland since 2016, and was the member…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Hanson

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — On separate occasions in 2017 and 2025, Pauline Hanson, a senator for Queensland and leader of One Nation, wore a burqa into the chamber of the Australian Senate as a form of protest over that chamber…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Hanson_burqa_incidents

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

“And a week before Farrer, at the byelection in the Victorian state seat of Nepean, the One Nation candidate, Darren Hercus, refused to speak to the ABC because, he said, the ABC was biased.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While Wikipedia confirms the Nepean by-election occurred on May 2, 2026, the specific claim about Darren Hercus refusing to speak to the ABC due to bias is not corroborated by multiple independent sources in the provided evidence.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — A by-election was held on 2 May 2026 to elect the member of parliament for the district of Nepean in the Victorian Legislative Assembly. The election was triggered by the resignation of Sam Groth, a L…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Nepean_state_by-election

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of the candidates of the 2026 Victorian state election.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candidates_of_the_2026_Victori…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The electoral district of Nepean is an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Assembly covering the southernmost part of the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. It is named after Point Nepea…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_district_of_Nepean

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

“In Farrer, the other journalists stood by and watched as the ABC reporters were ejected.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm ABC reporters were removed/ejected from a Pauline Hanson press conference during the Farrer by-election campaign.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 2 days ago · The day before the Farrer byelection on May 9 in which Pauline Hanson's One Nation party delivered a seismic shock to the Australian ...
https://theconversation.com/one-nations-banning-of-the-abc-a…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — May 6, 2026 · #Farrer #Politics #Election #NSW #ABCNewsLoop. Keywords: Farrer by-election, Australian politics, NSW election, Casey Briggs, ABC News Loop, by- ...
https://www.tiktok.com/@abcnewsaus/video/7636934424524803345

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 2 days ago · Trump politics is so not wanted in Australia. The government should introduce a law that prevents media outlets from being banned from ...
https://www.facebook.com/WomensAgenda/posts/the-response-of-…

check_circle

“As far back as 2017 she made a deal with Malcolm Turnbull’s government: you give me an inquiry into the ABC and I’ll support the changes you want to make to media ownership laws.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results from TV Tonight and The Guardian confirm a deal where the government agreed to an inquiry into the ABC in exchange for One Nation supporting media reform/ownership laws.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pauline Hanson's Please Explain is an Australian animated conservative political satire web series that is produced by Stepmate Studios, a Melbourne-based production company, for Pauline Hanson's One …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Hanson's_Please_Explai…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

“The proximate cause of her wrath this time was an ABC story revealing a One Nation candidate in the recent South Australian state election was wanted for questioning in the United Kingdom on allegations of sexual touching.”

SINGLE SOURCE

One web search result explicitly mentions the 'proximate cause' was an ABC story about a One Nation candidate in the South Australian election wanted for questioning in the UK for sexual touching.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — ABC launched as a radio network in 1943, as the successor to the NBC Blue Network, which had been purchased by Edward J. Noble. It extended its operations to television in 1948, following in the foots…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Broadcasting_Company

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Livestream every episode here & catch the latest ABC News Live updates anytime with no sign-in needed
https://abc.com/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Download the ABC News App Stay informed with a redesigned home feed, personalized content, and a 24/7 live news stream.
https://abcnews.com/

check_circle

“So less than 24 hours before the polls opened in Farrer, Hanson’s chief of staff, James Ashby, ejected two ABC journalists from the party’s press conference, saying contemptuously, “Bye, bye to the ABC”.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm James Ashby ejected ABC journalists and told them to ask the ABC's Canberra boss for an explanation.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — It led to no change because there was no basis for change. The proximate cause of her wrath this time was an ABC story revealing a One Nation candidate in the recent South Australian state election wa…
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/commentisfree/202…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — As the journalists questioned who was kicking them out, Ashby said it was his decision and told them to ask the ABC’s Canberra boss for an explanation. But Hanson appeared to be as confused as the ABC…
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/watch-pauline-han…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The speech comes days after Labor unveiled increased funding for SBS and the ABC in Tuesday’s federal budget. SBS will receive a modest $7.4m boost, taking its total funding to $367.3m in 2026–27. The…
https://mumbrella.com.au/one-nation-policy-to-scrap-sbs-fund…

help

“Its presenter, Linton Besser, described One Nation’s attitude to the press, and in particular the ABC, as ugly.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding Linton Besser's specific description of the attitude as 'ugly'.

help

“he reported the ABC had declined to comment on the Farrer incident.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding whether the ABC declined to comment on the Farrer incident.

schedule

“the Nine papers quote the London Telegraph referring to Hanson as “Australia’s flame-haired answer to Farage””

PENDING

schedule

“she is also characterised by these newspapers as “mother duck”.”

PENDING

schedule

“The Australian tells us “the shake-up is just starting”.”

PENDING

schedule

“And The Age and SMH capture the mood of the electorate: “Voters tell Canberra: ‘Get stuffed’”.”

PENDING

schedule

“her party’s result in Farrer, its winning of four seats in South Australia and its continuing high ride in the opinion polls”

PENDING

schedule

“In 1935 he wrote a novel called “It Can’t Happen Here””

PENDING

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.