With the 2025 federal election approaching, trust in politics and the media is at an all-time low. Unchecked misinformation is spreading, political discourse is increasingly polarised, and voters struggle to separate fact from fiction. Can we rebuild trust before it’s too late?

In this episode, Mary Gearin speaks with Bill Browne, Director of the Democracy & Accountability Program at The Australia Institute, and Mark Kenny, journalist and Professor at ANU, to explore the crisis of trust in political communication.

They discuss the media’s role in shaping public perception, the impact of misinformation on elections, and the decline of trust in democratic institutions. With election campaigns becoming battlegrounds for misleading narratives, they examine whether stronger truth-in-political-advertising laws and greater media accountability could help restore public confidence.

How can politicians and the media rebuild credibility? Who should be held accountable for misinformation? And most importantly, how do we strengthen democracy before Australians head to the polls?

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Truth, Trust, and Politics

02:35 The Evolution of Facts and Mistruths

06:15 The Business of Misinformation

08:13 Democracy and Political Disengagement

11:00 The Role of Politicians in Society

15:43 Media's Accountability and the Fear Factor

20:35 The Existential Crisis of Journalism

23:44 The Evolving Landscape of Media Influence

26:14 Legacy Media vs. New Voices

28:14 Engaging the Vaccine Skeptics

32:01 Innovative Communication Strategies

36:49 Restoring Trust in Politics

41:24 The Future of Political Engagement