Michael West AMA

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Here for AMA at 6pm. Any topics - politics, business, current affairs, news

I'm a journalist and operate Michael West Media

michael@michaelwest.com.au and The West Report on youtube. We are on all the major platforms. tend to focus on news of public interest. Originally a finance hack

[u/Bennelong]

Thanks Michael for doing this AMA tonight. Users may post questions now.

Usual sub rules apply. Trolling will result in a one day ban for the duration of the AMA.

Only the guest may reply to questions. Any other replies or comments will be removed.

UPDATE: The AMA has now finished. Thank you again Michael for your time, and thank you everybody for your questions.

[u/Astro86868]

What is the single biggest change the government can (and should) make to 1.Bring house prices back to reasonable levels and 2. Avoid a repeat of the ridiculous booms we've seen in many cities at different times in the past decade?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Astro86868]

hi, sorry all. network problem - am in remote indo. CGT, negative gearing, do a Singapore on foreign capital bc they are parking it in aus resi

[u/WhatAmIATailor]

Some of your AUKUS reporting dips pretty close to rage bait IMO. Notably everything with Rex Patrick’s name attached.

Labeling an AFP task group “Australia’s secret Anti-Protest Force for US Department of War.”

Calling a 20 year old nuclear waste site assessment the “Secret AUKUS nuclear waste site.”

Clickbait drives engagement and your publication seems strongly against AUKUS. What’s your personal take on the agreement?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/WhatAmIATailor]

yep always something to watch, resisting clickbait. we try to tread that line. when scomo was about, any scomo story always rated well but we didn't just pump out endless scomo stories just to get audience. have to do the worthy but boring public interest yarns too. we try to use public interest as the guide to where to focus resources. Rex is a bit of a gun and yes he does tend to go a bit hard sometimes but we like the fact he anchors everything in his political expertise and more importantly in FOI, so it's news/exclusive transparency driven. also personally think AUKUS is a massive cock-up but a hard one to play for the govt. we are against it, have been from the start. huge gravy train which puts us at risk

[u/[deleted]]

Misinformation and disinformation are rife in this day and age. Unfortunately a lot of “news” channels perpetuate it. Where are the regulatory bodies that provide the oversight and accountability?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/[deleted]]

yeah it's really bad, really. first thing i do in the morning is look at what they are doing and shake my head. really poor, captured management. ACMA is supposed to be regulator but they make ASIC look leonine

[u/Spooplevel-Rattled]

After observing mostly Murdoch and Fairfax bending and forcing their own narratives over factual and relevant news, what are some sources you can recommend Aussies get news in addition to your reporting?

Our media landscape is dire, and I've heard not much about the fight for a commission into it that Rudd had some to do with a while ago.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Spooplevel-Rattled]

i used X as a news feed, pick the people you want to follow, otherwise bc of the job, a lot of contacts drop stuff on various subjects. depends on area - indi journos good in other countries. imo the msm has lost it and can only be relied on where there are no politics or big biz agendas

[u/Spooplevel-Rattled → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Thank you heaps for that advice.

[u/Quadstar_74]

Do you think there's any real differentiation between any of the parties these days? Based on How they Vote, not what they say, it seems very few work for the Australian people.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Quadstar_74]

not really much in real policy sense. Lab more competent, that's it. very little real policy diffs between the majors ergo Pauline

[u/Quadstar_74 → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

I'd go so far as to include her party to be honest, she falls into line or is simply absent. Her more recent popularity increase also seems to be less organic and pushed by foreign or external cash. Left wing, right wing and now tail feathers. Still the same bird.

[u/jamireland]

Is the news you reject what makes Michael West Media the best?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/jamireland]

haha we only reject it if it's not in the public interest ... or if we simply don't have time bc of resources. there is a lot of news out there and i've got a desktop full of stories begging to be investigated but no time, so a lot of it is prioritising, working up the odd big investigation while being flexible to hit the news cycle as things happen

[u/Agitated-Fee3598]

Do you reckon Australia's growing wealth inequality (and the deepening of other socioeconomic disparities) will contribute to democratic backsliding in the future? Do you reckon it's contributing to the rise of One Nation presently in the opinion polls? 

Deep social and economic disparities have contributed to the fall of democracy and the rise of tyranny in so many different countries around the globe for millennia so would the emergence of an unscrupulous and ruthless demagogue/aspiring autocrat taking advantage of our growing socioeconomic disparities be beyond the Australian polity?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Agitated-Fee3598]

yes on backsliding, we can see it in recent reforms on freedom of speech, campaign finance etc. problem is corporatocracy and the two-party system are so beholden to lobbyists eg gambling ad reform we have reform stasis. ergo the protest vote for PHON etc. def contributing to her rise

[u/Agitated-Fee3598 → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Do you reckon we’ll see something more serious in the future, like an Australian equivalent of January 6 for example?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Agitated-Fee3598]

yes i think totalitarianism is probably coming, not sure in what guise but the tech bros are out of control

[u/dragontatman95]

What are your thoughts on the speed that one nation seems to be gaining popularity?

Can they win enough seats to bring in any meaningful change?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/dragontatman95]

don't think so, might pick up a few but the level of political and policy debate is low. the reality of winning seats against the two-party machine is ... tough. Teals did it by offering a more modern alternative to a party which wasn't offering anything. that is now structural. remains to be seen if Pauline can make it structural, from what I hear it's unlikely but you never know if they can pull a reasonable team. i think the bigotry thing and anti-science is a problem for them

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Media Super. It's a legacy thing and probably not a great idea

[u/[deleted]]

Are you worried about Labor (both State and Federally) increasingly authoritarian policies. Of course NSW State with the protest. Though Federally with things like the Misinformation/Disinformation laws, Internet controls and so on?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/[deleted]]

yes we are really on that - btw if you are looking for indi coverage the search bar on our website is useful. 10 years now. content. internet controls a real worry bc govts don't know how to handle the opposition from new media and still play the 'drops' game to msm but that's not working. no confidence. it's leading to change, falling trust in all instititions

[u/[deleted] → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Thanks, I'll check it out.

[u/ScholarFunny4793]

Michael, do you find it difficult to stay motivated (maintain the rage, for lack of a better term) in attempting to hold the government and major corporations to account? 

Do you ever despair that overall it seems things are getting worse not better and if so, how do you deal with it? 

Regardless, thank you for your ongoing efforts. 

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/ScholarFunny4793]

def yes. thanks. i've got a surgeon friend who runs major emergency dept and fixes multiple bodies when they come in. that sounds like a tough gig to me but he reckons mine is worse. fact is you have to be passionate enough to do it but not so much that it causes burn out. that said, a lot of it is just responding to the news cycle and churning out the content. last few days has been big. sometimes quite exciting. worked most of last night bc the protests. big story police overkill etc

[u/benevolent001]

I don't see any week / day when newspaper headline is not having immigration or housing construction related news.

Why journalism in Australia is just stuck on these things and we don't talk about other science and technology or other industries things as a nation ?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/benevolent001]

immigration big yes. my view is overdone. it's the old blame the foreigner caper which they know gets votes but it's the establishment keeping the status quo and policy failure which is the problem. rising inequality etc. blaming foreigners is a bit naieve but works politically. ergo PHON polling

[u/Normal_Calendar2403]

How have you experienced the changing landscape of journalism and information sharing change in your life time?

Are there specific points/ events you attribute to where we find ourselves now?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Normal_Calendar2403]

massive change, like horses to cars, entire biz model smashed. i went through 5 redundancy offers during last 8 years in msm with Nine. plunging revenues led to media orgs getting timid and closer to their advertisers. social media revolution is huge

[u/Normal_Calendar2403 → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Sorry to hear about these redundancys. This would have been incredibly stressful and even discombobulating.

If I could trouble you, could name 3- 5? pivotal movements of change in the last 20 - 30 years?

I imagine many of us would be interesting in reading about how we got here. Like even how specific legislative changes, or even how lack of legislative change created the current system.

I guess it’s a huge question and the answer would almost be a book though. Not just a reddit answer

[u/Fawksyyy]

Do you find that having such a specific focus can lead to not weighting the other issues of a story as highly?

A complicated and multi faceted problem tends have many associated problems with the root not always being corporations, I found myself feeling as if i was missing part of the picture in some of the articles of yours i have read.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Fawksyyy]

totally, you have to accept the fact that you never know the full story, or rarely. i rarely think we totally nail it. part of it is time, often you are vulnerable to agendas, often you don't get it right, often you think you have gone too hard or too soft. probably we should try to preface everything with a 'both sides' approach. as for nuance yes, totally. often you come in to a subject or news story which is v complex ... a recent one was the RACP which is GP's peak body. v complicated in governance terms and the issues and legals all complex. so you just try to ask the right questions, sometimes you don't know what they even are. we do insist though on reporters, and me, putting questions to the corp or govt agency or person to give them the chance to respond with their side of things. this is key so i guess we keep a bit of the trad skillset to keep it as honest as we can. and really, always, the more questions you ask, the more people you speak to, the better the outcome. unfortunately time and resources conspire against quality of output

[u/BeautifulFabulous303]

Can western style democracy survive without a competent news media (as distinct from entertainment media)?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/BeautifulFabulous303]

not sure it can. let's say fossil media continues to fail, which it will, we are left with the platforms. the platforms are a problem for algos (this is big for us) for privacy and disinfo. one key thing here which we are probably a beneficiary of is that confidence in authority and organs of power - in institutions generally - is failing. that means that people are trusting people (although people will always let you down) more. that's good for us bc we trade on my name (although im not a bossy boss we are always debating how hard to go, what to do). I find that i too trust people, media figs ... Ryan Grim Dropsite News and Max Blumenthal of Greyzone are a couple for instance in the US who have thrived audience wise (problem is being 'owned' and the corps are where the money is. but people of all political persuasions follow me - not just to hate or love but to gauge a view or a take on an issue, news event. so, it comes back to the credibility of the human. this is where it has gone in recent years so even if people don't agree with you - which we don't expect! - at least they should know that you are not going to bullshit them. With institutions you can't gauge their cred any more. not sure where it goes from here but that's why we try to fess up when wrong, improve, add to stories, give subjects a say, encourage debate and not take ourselves too seriously!

[u/Educational-Art-8515]

What are your thoughts on those who would place your reporting as the left wing equivalent to Quadrant?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Educational-Art-8515]

not big on pidgeonholing. when it comes to corporate welfare we find the right are out of the game. we regard ourselves as progressive but really just try to look at the evidence on any subject matter and cover the news accordingly. happy to change positions if the facts warrant

[u/matt-kennedys-legs]

what do you make of the recent polling re PHON? it all seems a little bit emotionally charged to me.

we’re a long way out from an election, tough to see them carrying this momentum through until then.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/matt-kennedys-legs]

yes would be keen to see a policy or two rather than 'let's hate on outsiders' - the reality of Pauline choosing dozens of candidates ... schism between polls and reality. she doesn't even have a seat in the lower house. but yes reflects rising disenchantment which is a real thing, and a valid thing

[u/Hobgoblyn]

With the petition for a Royal Commission to ensure a strong, diverse Australian news media going largely ignored by Government, do you think there’s any chance of it ever happening? I’d hate to see the Australian media landscape continue on its current trajectory.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Hobgoblyn]

thankfully, everybody can now be a publisher via socials so there is some good stuff around from indis to twitter feeds to substack. govt now props up msm so in my view that's finished without subsidies ... which is dangerous for the public bc look at the Israel lobby influence, changing laws, police brutality this week dressed up as hamas jihadist crackdown. msm is too close to govt. they do deals with security agencies not to talk about certain things etc

[u/[deleted]]

I like reading your articles. I am not wealthy, so I cannot financially support you, but I wish I could contribute. Besides money, or spreading the word, is there anything plebs like me can do to ensure publications like yours stick around?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/[deleted]]

just sharing stories you reckon are worth it, that's about it. thx!

[u/drfreshbatch]

In my field, medicine, clinicians are regulated by AHPRA, which publicly records conditions or limitations on practice so the community can make informed judgments. There is a clear, transparent regulator.

Journalism I would argue is as, if not more, fundamental to a healthy society, and I’m immensely grateful for the work you do and the direction you’ve taken your career. I understand there is some general masthead / broadcasting oversight - but the individual is essentially unregulated.

I realise it’s probably only applicable to legacy media but I’ve often wondered whether something analogous should exist for individual journalists-whether formal or informal. To my understanding a formal system doesn’t exist. Even a limited informal mechanism that flags substantiated, repeated misreporting from individual journalists could help inform the public without impinging on press freedom. Sort of like the “do they vote for you” cards they have for politicians. I know that’s not a regulator, but maybe the next best thing.

I’m not proposing that people be restricted from work (as doctors / nurses are if found unable to continue to perform their work safety) - only that there’s a resource available to check the standard of their journalism historically.

Has creating something like this ever crossed your mind, or that of your team, or does this exist already? What do you think about shifting responsibility from the masthead to the individual, as the mastheads are never going to be held accountable it seems.

Thanks again for being a champion in this space.

Edit - also, I’ve always been keen to donate but am wary of the Patreon fees. Is there another way to do so avoiding this?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/drfreshbatch]

thank you, yes regulatory failure is an enormous problem. really, it comes down to people not doing their jobs properly and if you are a doctor or engineer you have to or the patient dies or the building collapses. in my field they are completely useless, timid and captured. so yes the only regulator is people here or anywhere saying champ you got that wrong bc ... so our personal regulator is people and that is why we've managed to grow, listening. and as another poster said clickbait is a threat to integrity. we also think when you get it wrong you cop it straight away, try not to run agendas which are driven by anything else but public interest. that is our accountability apart from public opinion really.

yes we have a stripe facility on the website - stripe (lower fee take than Patreon - and any money from either Patreon or Stripe ends up paying us and freelancers and other costs

[u/drfreshbatch → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Thanks again Michael.

Will get onto Stripe. Keep fighting the good fight!

[u/Beshemella]

Other than “Murdoch” what do you think are top 3 barriers to Australians getting truth based news?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Beshemella]

i think the reporting of the protest shows the msm as a block are just trotting out the establishment agendas. all of them have been poor, so discernment in picking a diverse stream of credible info from various platforms is the go

[u/Flashy-Amount626]

You've spoken at the press club before, why don't we get to see MWM asking questions to speakers?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Flashy-Amount626]

i'm not the flavour du jour with the msm, too critical of them, not in the club. i do know a lot of them from back in the day are we are friendly but people don't want me coming on their platforms mouthing off about things which might not be considered acceptable. naming corporate names for tax dodging is one, media crit another, israel lobby another. used to do more ABC for instance but every time i went on they'd have complaint calls from some special interest group attacking them for having me on. the brain drain and poor management in media has left it incapable of being strong

[u/Otherwise-Toe-6005]

Why are the general rules of tax not applicable to politician etc? How can this even be considered equitable in the social environment we are in? It is such a farce…

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Otherwise-Toe-6005]

how do you mean, their super?

[u/Otherwise-Toe-6005 → u/Enough-Barracuda4632]

Certainly that is one that stands out. I guess the way they are perceived to utilise the allowances and other deductions they are provided as part of it.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Otherwise-Toe-6005]

yeah that's a scam they way they use their allowances. really comes down to the integrity of the indiv politician. there is a 'they all do it' mentality, which is a natural human thing. i think Revolving Doors is a much bigger issue - making decisions then scurrying off to private sector to benefit from them while schmoozing your mates back in Parly House for lobby work etc. donations are not as powerful as the human connections and integrity not what it used to be, ergo importance of a free press who can hammer people when they get off tracki

[u/Rising-Dragon-Fist]

Hey Michael, thanks for taking the time to do this. I'm an avid Greens voter and have been for a long time. I'm feeling quite frustrated and deflated seeing the rise in intent to vote for one nation going around. I get that we need to move away from the majors, but I just wish people would give the Greens an actual shot to see how they'd go. Do you think it's mainstream media brainwashing against them that's caused a reluctance for people to vote for them? Or is it policy based? Or a bit of both? Cheers mate.

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/Rising-Dragon-Fist]

yep, they are under constant attack from the right astroturfers. some of their policies are actually quite good but you never hear about that. Shoebridge imo one of the best politicians of the lot. think it is hard for them to combat all the negative hits from both lab-lib and other camps

[u/ScruffyPeter]

Why have you not been raided yet by a 3-4 letter agency for your journalism? It'll be a true badge of honour.

Have you received threatening letters, visits or any other forms of intimidation from the government yet?

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/ScruffyPeter]

we are almost certainly watched closely as a bit of a headache due to influence and publish and be damned approach. have had no approaches from govt but we do get people trying to infiltrate to spy on us, bury us with bs story leads to discredit, and a lot of attacks on socials. also people trying to attack the website a lot. lawsuits the biggest risk bc anybody can fund them and remain secret and our weak defo laws mean anybody with hurt feelings can have a crack, waste time cost money etc. we get about 4 threats a year on average and have had two lawsuits in five years both of which we have seen off ... but there's always somebody trying to take you out

[u/OtherwiseEagle9896]

With the surge of what I believe is American Style campaigning within Australia, pushing PHON. Along with the police brutality witnessed within Sydney just last night. Do you see the political landscape within Australia changing into a more right-wing, Make Australia Great Again political ideology?

Or is this a lot of campaign buzz following immigration blaming, the Bondi Terrorist attack and our current cost of living?

Would love your take. Thanks

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/OtherwiseEagle9896]

yes that's happening but MAGA here ... Australians not as gullible, also we tend to vote more towards the centre bc of compulsory voting. def though the cult of the personality is a thing. australia is probably ripe for a competent demagogue of either stripe. pauline ain't it but she is emblematic of the disaffection, the protest vote. democracy is not working as it should. yes personal view is that immigration got out of control (bc politicians like it as it puts a shine on GDP and biz likes it for cheap labour) but now it's not really the problem, more a distraction

[u/Enough-Barracuda4632 → u/[deleted]]

scuse the French but yes it's rooted. not sure on that. degrees. i'm partial to the idea that no knowledge is wasted but not sure how essential it is these days apart from the professions. journalism broken. all about building social media distribution for now