For PR and comms teams, leveraging media monitoring and insights means not just keeping up with the headlines but uncovering opportunities to expand relevance. By analysing patterns in media coverage—such as emotional tone, channel performance, spokesperson impact, peak coverage moments, and narrative themes—you can gain a detailed understanding of what shapes strategy.
Global perspectives on journalism: Insights into regional attitudes & challenges
Our recent State of Journalism Audiences study reveals nuanced regional attitudes towards journalism. While positivity is waning globally, comparing insights across regions highlights key differences. Many believe traditional journalism is “dying” or “dead,” but perspectives vary: in the UK and US, journalism is seen as essential despite its struggles, while in Australia and New Zealand, its critical role is emphasised. This international perspective not only underscores shared challenges but also reveals how regional contexts shape audience expectations, offering valuable insights for addressing these critiques and rebuilding trust.
Supermarkets in the news: How media & social platforms shape public discourse
2024 was the year supermarkets faced mounting public and political scrutiny. Consumer frustration over practices like shrinkflation and skimpflation—where products shrink in size or quality without price reductions—sparked widespread outrage, with social media ablaze over examples like $13 jars of Vegemite. Calls for shrinkflation labelling grew, while rising theft reports led supermarkets to consider body cameras for staff, further fuelling debate.
Public pressure intensified when Greens MP for Prahran, Sam Hibbins, called for grocery price regulation during an ABC interview, following a parliamentary inquiry into supermarket practices in late 2023. Meanwhile, opposition leader Peter Dutton’s call for a boycott of brands not selling Australia Day merchandise drew criticism, as many argued he was ignoring urgent issues like food affordability.
Media coverage amplified key narratives—from criticism of political inaction to the PM’s assurances and the Woolworths CEO’s controversial walkout—while social media sustained public interest. These events highlighted the need for communicators to craft clear messaging, leverage key moments, engage with social platforms, and use media monitoring to foster transparency and adapt strategies in response to evolving public discourse.
Do people realise it is 'not selling ADDITIONAL' Australia day merchandise.
Talk about typical over reaction to absolutely nothing.
I try not to shop at Woolies due to their price gouging … but the LNP don't care about affording food.
Driving Change: How Audiences and Brands Shape the Sustainability Narrative
Viewing sustainability through an audience mindset lens, reveals how they take action and perceive brand impact on their lives. In Australia, social media discussions reflect a growing, solutions-oriented approach to climate change and sustainability, with conversations steadily increasing over the years. These discussions often place responsibility on brands, as well as PR and marketing professionals, to drive meaningful change.
While audiences acknowledge some factors are beyond their control, they empower themselves by taking actions that align with their values, reinforcing a sense of agency in addressing these challenges. Actions like composting, upcycling, second-hand shopping are just a few examples people are sharing online about how they are taking action.
A product, brand, or service can be shaped by narratives beyond its control, driven by audience discussions and media coverage. For example, the BNPL narrative this year was influenced by the cost of living crisis, with audiences using BNPL for essentials and discussing its impact on spending habits. While media covered this before it peaked online, audience discussions grew afterward, normalising such behaviours over calls for government regulation. This was of particular media interest when the Australian government announced there would be delays to regulate BNPL services due to being under-resourced and competing issues like the PwC tax leaks issue. This highlights the need for communications professionals to track the full trajectory of narratives, using audience and media data to refine strategies and align messages with evolving public discourse.
Mapping Influence: Identifying gaps in the energy debate narrative
Analysing influencers and key voices on a topic can help refine message targeting and uncover potential blind spots in a brand’s communications. In the case of the energy debate, news outlets dominate in volume and engagement, which is expected given the 24/7 news cycle. However, political figures like Malcolm Turnbull lead in engagement, followed by journalists, while commentators—who often hold significant influence—are the most listened to. This reflects how media professionals can hold society to account, but it also highlights a potential gap where other voices, such as those with a direct stake in energy policy, might be underrepresented. By mapping the influence of key voices, we can better understand why the narrative may lean more towards political and media perspectives rather than those of industry leaders or experts.
Understanding audience perceptions is crucial for ensuring effective communication. In today’s media landscape, rebuilding trust and aligning with audience expectations are essential. By analysing sentiment, tracking narrative trends, and leveraging influencer impact, communicators can proactively shape conversations and strengthen audience connections.
Loren is an experienced marketing professional who translates data and insights using Isentia solutions into trends and research, bringing clients closer to the benefits of audience intelligence. Loren thrives on introducing the groundbreaking ways in which data and insights can help a brand or organisation, enabling them to exceed their strategic objectives and goals.
In our last update, housing coverage centred on advice for mortgage holders amid rising rates and cost-of-living pressures. In this second release of the series, the conversation has shifted, with news increasingly framing Australia’s housing challenge through construction, innovation, and government action. Reports highlight fast-tracked developments, AI-powered modular builds, and reforms to cut red tape, alongside community-driven projects in Nhulunbuy and pressures on urban infrastructure, showing that solving the crisis requires building both faster and smarter. The patterns in coverage reveal which stories and policy levers are gaining traction, and how different angles from scale and efficiency to localised community impact are shaping the wider conversation.
Government policy is driving much of this coverage, shaping the narratives that dominate media discussion. First-home buyer programs such as the Home Guarantee (5% Deposit Scheme), Help to Buy, and Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee are frequently cited, alongside social and affordable housing initiatives including the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, NSW’s $610 million Social Housing Accelerator Fund, and state-level projects in Toowoomba and Wagga Wagga. Coverage of supply-side reforms, Melbourne high-rise plans, and debates over negative gearing, capital gains, and rental caps illustrates how policy and regulation frame public debate. Across outlets and regions, the way these stories are told signals which elements of housing policy are resonating, which have momentum, and where attention is likely to shift next.
Where previous reporting centred on interest rates and mortgage advice, a calm, and financial “top-down” discussion, the shift to construction and reform places the emphasis on system-level solutions. Yet, as before, a gap remains between media coverage and social discourse.
On social media, the conversation continues to unfold as a “bottom-up” outcry. This month, debates over housing affordability and accessibility have been increasingly framed through immigration. Political groups such as Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and the Family First Party Australia are amplifying anti-immigration narratives on X and Facebook, claiming that new arrivals are the direct cause of housing stress. These messages are countered by voices rejecting both the logic and the racism seen to underpin such rhetoric, instead pointing to investors as the real drivers of market pressures and reframing housing as a human right. Demonstrations such as March for Australia have further fuelled this dynamic, with slogans tying immigration to Labor, raising the risk of political damage.
The conversation shows right-leaning voices continue to dominate online, with more balanced perspectives struggling for visibility. Policy proposals like a “bedroom tax” appear to have amplified anxieties about population growth, giving further oxygen to anti-immigration claims.
Layered over this, the Reserve Bank’s three rate cuts in recent months have become a fresh point of contention. Some argue that lower rates are simply inflating house prices, benefiting existing homeowners while worsening conditions for would-be buyers and savers deepening the perception of a system stacked against the public.
While the media is foregrounding structural solutions to increase supply, public discourse is still driven by frustration, identity politics, and competing narratives of blame. Solving the housing crisis will not only require practical reforms but also careful navigation of the volatile public conversation that risks overshadowing those solutions.
Housing narratives in the media and online: Building solutions, blaming people
In our last update, housing coverage centred on advice for mortgage holders amid rising rates and cost-of-living pressures. In this second release of the series, the conversation has shifted, with news increasingly framing Australia’s housing challenge through construction, innovation, and government action. Reports highlight fast-tracked developments, AI-powered modular builds, and reforms to cut red tape, […]
How is media coverage shaping views of Brisbane 2032 and its global impact?
The stories that resonate, whether it is a stadium cost blowout, a community campaign to preserve green space, or the push to include Australian Rules Football in the program, capture how Australians are gearing up for a once-in-a-generation Games. These specific, contested, and human stories shape the narratives across news and social media and ultimately reflect how the country is experiencing and remembering Brisbane 2032.
Leading Topics: News vs. social
The difference is while the news media is overwhelmingly concerned with the logistics of the Games, the public is more interested in its social and economic consequences.
On social media, the conversation is a mix of excitement and concern, with a strong focus on what the Games will feel like. Discussions about social impact and economic outcomes are prominent, as people debate everything from housing affordability to the potential for new community arts programs.
In the news, the narrative is far more narrow. An incredible amount of the coverage is dedicated to infrastructure, with a particular focus on the cost and controversy surrounding the main stadium. The second-largest topic is the political jousting that accompanies these infrastructure debates.
The most discussed stakeholders are institutions and communities, not individuals
While politicians dominate the news, what's making a real impact on social media are the communities and institutions at the heart of the conversation.
In the news, the most-quoted voices around Brisbane 2032 are overwhelmingly political figures, led by the Queensland Premier and Deputy Premier. Much of the coverage has centred on Premier Crisafulli’s media appearances, including a notable stop at Rockhampton’s Fitzroy River to promote plans for a feasibility study into using the site for rowing events despite concerns about crocodiles and currents.
The Deputy Premier, meanwhile, has been most prominent for his push to build a new stadium at Victoria Park. That proposal has fuelled debate over whether Brisbane 2032 is shifting away from being a sporting project to a political land grab. The discussion is further sharpened by Queensland’s reported shortage of tradies, with calls for urgent measures to recruit more skilled workers to meet the surge in construction and infrastructure demand tied to the Games.
Even Donald Trump makes an appearance in the coverage, with Brisbane’s bid to host the Quad Leaders’ Summit drawing headlines and gaining the support of Prime Minister Albanese.
On social media, the conversation is being shaped largely by organisations and grassroots communities. Victoria Park, now at the centre of the stadium debate, has become a focal point for how people see the legacy of Brisbane 2032, and Queensland more broadly. Campaigns to preserve the green space are gaining traction, amplified both by smaller local outlets such as The Westender and by national publications including ABC and The Guardian.
Defining "legacy": The public hopes and media narratives
The term "legacy" represents the most significant challenge in the Brisbane 2032 narrative, as the data reveals a mismatch between the public's focus on experience and the media's framing of cost and conflict.
On social media, the legacy conversation is aspirational and driven by the sporting theme, where discussions about preserving green spaces like Victoria Park highlight a desire for tangible, long-term community benefits. Other cities are also seizing the aspirational momentum of events like Brisbane 2032, with figures such as Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate using social media to highlight for hyper-local audiences the potential returns on investing in this opportunity. News coverage frames legacy as a political and economic undertaking, dominated by the cost of stadiums, the allocation of funding, and the political conflict between the government and its opposition.
Framing the use of the Fitzroy River as an opportunity for sustainability or presenting construction timelines as local job creation makes the connection between political debates and the community and sporting outcomes people truly care about more resonant, while also painting a positive vision for the legacy of Brisbane 2032.
Specificity wins: Vague PR is ignored, detailed stories drive engagement
Generic ‘good news’ posts or Olympic press tend to generate weaker engagement The content that captures public attention is highly specific, and often human-centric or controversial.
On social media, the most engaging content included the debate around HYROX judging standards, the passionate campaign to include Lawn Bowls in the games, and celebrating the specific achievements of individual swimmers.
In the news, it’s not the general updates that resonate, but detailed reports, whether on cost blowouts at specific venues, the impact of turning a local river into an Olympic event site, or the campaign to include Australian Rules Football in the program.
Media moments and narratives gain traction when meaning is applied. Shift content strategies from generalities to detailed storytelling, focus on journeys, the tangible impact of a new community facility, or a transparent explanation of a complex issue for example. The battle for the hearts and minds of the public ahead of Brisbane 2032 will be won in these details.
See how the right analysis can help you anticipate risks, shape messaging and connect with your audiences. Request a free demo.
Winning the Brisbane 2032 narrative: A media analysis
How is media coverage shaping views of Brisbane 2032 and its global impact? The stories that resonate, whether it is a stadium cost blowout, a community campaign to preserve green space, or the push to include Australian Rules Football in the program, capture how Australians are gearing up for a once-in-a-generation Games. These specific, contested, […]
Every stakeholder relationship is different, and managing them effectively takes more than a one-size-fits-all approach.
From campaign planning to long-term engagement, having the right tools and strategy in place can make the difference between missed connections and meaningful impact.
This guide covers:
Identifying and understanding your key stakeholders
Mapping and modelling for influence and engagement
Equipping your team to maintain and grow strategic relationships
