Margaret Simons is a journalist and writer. Her books include Malcolm Fraser: The Political Memoirs, co-written with Malcolm Fraser, and Penny Wong: Passion and Principle.
Books & arts
Musk’s mirror
Margaret Simons
20 September 2024
The erratic owner might have delivered the fatal blows, but he didn’t destroy Twitter on his own
International
Rodrigo Duterte’s legacy
Margaret Simons
1 November 2023
Continued killings suggest that the violence unleashed by the former Philippines president has become endemic
Essays & reportage
New media’s idiosyncratic survivor
Margaret Simons
18 May 2023
Crikey emerges from its dispute with Lachlan Murdoch with a familiar figure at the helm
National affairs
Where’s Melbourne’s best coffee, ChatGPT?
Margaret Simons
27 January 2023
The robot can tell you what everyone else thinks — and that creates an opportunity for journalists
Essays & reportage
Making up for lost time
Margaret Simons
1 November 2022
Penny Wong wants an Australia that’s more than just a supporting player in the grand drama of global geopolitics
Essays & reportage
Was Fraser right?
Margaret Simons
12 September 2022
Malcolm Fraser promised no royal commission into the loans affair. Should other governments follow his lead?
National affairs
Diversity deferred, again?
Margaret Simons
16 December 2021
Another inquiry has made recommendations to improve media diversity. All that’s lacking is action
National affairs
Here we go again
Margaret Simons
25 November 2021
This time the election campaign needs to be reported differently
Essays & reportage
Taking the arrows
Margaret Simons
12 November 2021
Gaven Morris leaves the job of ABC news director after six of the broadcaster’s most controversial years
National affairs
Cracking the code
Margaret Simons
25 October 2021
Are Google and Facebook picking and choosing who they’ll deal with under the news media bargaining code?
National affairs
Information warfare
Margaret Simons
8 October 2021
Did the campaign to punish Melbourne’s daily papers for questioning Dan Andrews’s government hit its mark?
National affairs
The Australian versus the Press Council, again
Margaret Simons
16 September 2021
With the Murdoch paper continuing to insist on a veto over adjudicators, it’s time for the industry body to bite the bullet
From the archive
The premier, the crime boss and the ABC
Margaret Simons
2 September 2021
Renewed allegations of corruption in 1980s New South Wales have reawakened strong feelings
Books & arts
Muddying the waters
Margaret Simons
31 August 2021
There’s plenty wrong with how the Murray–Darling is being managed, but Wall Street isn’t the culprit to target
From the archive
Is Sky News taking Australia by storm?
Margaret Simons
5 August 2021
Our media writer spends a fortnight watching the channel’s after-dark presenters preaching to the converted
National affairs
Bylines and bygones
Margaret Simons
16 July 2021
No longer “crazy universities,” newsrooms are slowly adapting to a more challenging environment
National affairs
The watchdog that sometimes barked
Margaret Simons
2 July 2021
The Press Council faces renewed calls for reform
National affairs
What Four Corners did and didn’t do
Margaret Simons
16 June 2021
Their origins might be murky, but Scott Morrison would be wise to deal more fully with the allegations about his friendship with Tim Stewart
National affairs
When bravado trumps reporting
Margaret Simons
1 June 2021
The pandemic has brought out the best and the worst in journalism
National affairs
Good news week
Margaret Simons
21 May 2021
Has the government broken its habit of making political appointments to the ABC board?
National affairs
War in the newsrooms
Margaret Simons
11 May 2021
Objective? Balanced? Impartial? Three journalists debate the values newsrooms should reflect
National affairs
The arc of justice
Margaret Simons
24 April 2021
Journalism has a different role to play from the legal system. It begins with reporting the facts as the journalist understands them
National affairs
Australian media’s latest export
Margaret Simons
25 March 2021
A unique medium for disseminating academic research is celebrating its first decade
National affairs
Muting the messenger
Margaret Simons
12 March 2021
The media is entering challenging new territory. Let’s hope the reporters don’t get in the way of the story
Essays & reportage
Politics and water do mix
Margaret Simons
25 June 2020
Australia lacks solid data about water availability and usage — and that has implications for the next federal election
Essays & reportage
High stakes, high price
Margaret Simons
15 October 2019
Is an opportunity being lost in the midst of the Chinese student boom?
National affairs
What the ACCC thinks about journalism
Margaret Simons
30 July 2019
Much has been written about what the regulator thinks of the big digital platforms, but what do its recommendations mean for reporting and analysis?
National affairs
WIN or lose for rural viewers?
Gary Dickson & Margaret Simons
21 June 2019
Does the regional broadcaster’s decision to close more newsrooms breach its licence obligations?
International
In Angeles City, all politics is local
Margaret Simons
15 May 2019
On the ground, the Philippines midterm results look less like an endorsement of Rodrigo Duterte’s policies than an illustration of the power of money. Photos by Dave Tacon
National affairs
For sale: a local paper near you
Margaret Simons
3 February 2019
Private equity forms are reported to be circling the regional papers Nine Entertainment inherited from Fairfax. What is at stake?
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