‘Even people who don’t read or only skim newspapers commonly claim to know all about them. In this exhaustively researched and wittily sceptical book, eminent scholar Rodney Tiffen unflinchingly questions impressionistic judgements of media histories and trends. While focused on Australia, it offers convincingly relevant lessons for media academics across the globe.’ — David Rowe, FAHA, FASSA, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Research, Institute for Culture, and Society, Western Sydney University, Australia

‘A triumph of scholarship, this book finally gives us clear answers about how news changed in the crucial half century after the introduction of television. Rod Tiffen writes beautifully and his analysis is lively, penetrating and insightful. The largest content analysis of Australian newspapers ever undertaken, this is a gift to scholars, news audiences and practitioners.’ — Professor Sally Young, the University of Melbourne, Australia

‘A rigorous and sweeping study of Australian newspapers in the first 50 years after the introduction of television, by a veteran scholar of the media and politics in Australia. While the quantitative data gathered is painstaking, the accompanying analysis is immensely readable, and highly original and revelatory.’ — Bridget Griffen-Foley, FAHA, Professor of Media, Macquarie University, Australia

‘This is a terrific examination of the newspaper industry in a country whose practices have had a disproportionate influence on media developments around the globe. Erudite and sophisticated, Rod Tiffen’s study provides highly original insights into changes in both news journalism and the advertising that has helped finance its production.’
—Dominic Wring, Professor of Political Communication, Loughborough University, UK

‘Studies of newspapers are often filled with generalisations about change and transformation, but the claims made are not always grounded in longitudinal evidence. In this book, Tiffen seeks to combine historical perspectives with detailed content analysis to present a unique account of the transformation of the Australian press since the introduction of television in 1956. In accessible prose, Tiffen shares his formidable expertise as an astute observer of news in what is his most ambitious content study, the scope and findings of which will be of interests to readers across the fields of journalism and media, political science and sociology.’ —Steven Maras, the University of Western Australia, Australia