Table of Contents

Preface: Paradoxes of the bastard estate; 1. Redefining the fourth estate; 2. The idealised watchdog estate; 3. The fourth estate - a changing doctrine; 3 The other estates question the fourth; 5. Five contests to institutional legitimacy; 6. Accepting the ideal; 7. In whole public interest; 8. From reporting to investigating; 9. Challenging power: Reporting in the 1980s; 10. Reviving the fourth estate.

Promotional Information

This lively and accessible book analyses the role of journalism and the scope of its democratic purpose.

Reviews

"In this important new book, journalist and academic Julianne Schultz observes that the commercial nature of the news media is a source of both strength and weakness. Its publishers have rightly described it as a ground-breaking text that makes a major contribution to debates about the media and public interest in Austrialia." John Tidey, Pacific Area Newspaper Publishers Association "Books on the media are relatively few. Generally, they range between two extremes: austerely academic and inconsequently anecdotal. 'Reviving the Fourth Estate' is one of the exceptions. Julianne has combined learning with experience. The result is a work of intelligence and authority." Brian Johns, Managing Director, Australian Broadcasting Corporation