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According to the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme Coordinating Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, the government has secured enough COVID-19 vaccines to cover 130% of the entire country’s population.

As of August 2021, seven brands of COVID-19 vaccine have been approved for use in Malaysia.

This whitepaper aims to understand Malaysia’s sentiment towards the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme on social media platforms and news sites.

We've delved into the sentiment surrounding the Malaysian National COVID-19 Immunisation Program across social media and traditional news coverage. Learn what the Malaysian population feels about the program and related topics in our latest whitepaper.

Download the whitepaper and read more.

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While renewables like wind and solar are often framed as the future of energy, the renewables market faces many challenges in seeing that journey through, especially regarding Australia’s Paris climate agreements. The path to a clean energy future in Australia is fraught with disruptions and distractions, as media reports, and exploring the factors shaping media coverage of energy alternatives and clean energy reveal a shifting understanding of renewable energy sources.

Peak media coverage of renewables centres on government actions seen as hindering clean energy progress. Stories like keeping Eraring operational, nuclear energy debates, and delays in environmental law reforms highlight a perception of indecision on ecological issues. While traditional media spikes around policy updates, social media discussions are steadily growing, reflecting increasing public engagement with Australia’s renewable energy transition. Analysing these trends reveals how media narratives shape and respond to audience perceptions in this evolving debate.

Renewable energy is widely hailed as a cleaner, cheaper, and more stable alternative to fossil fuels, but media and social discussions paint a more complex picture. Concerns about affordability and feasibility are growing, driven by economic shifts, supply chain issues, and the lingering effects of the 2022 energy crisis, which media attribute to cold snaps and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, all while Australia remains heavily reliant on coal and gas exports.

Topics like grid overload, the need for better battery subsidies, and the failure of taxpayer-funded rebates to support solar businesses dominate conversations. Meanwhile, wind farms face local opposition due to environmental and land use impacts, and debates over nuclear energy disrupt investment in solar and wind, further complicating Australia’s clean energy strategy.

Nuclear energy’s potential introduction into Australia’s future energy mix has further unsettled renewables investors, with media highlighting concerns over its impact on wind and solar investments. For more context listen to our podcast interview with Pablos Holman, General Partner at Deep Future. Wind energy faces criticism for using taxpayer funds to benefit private companies, while hydrogen’s future is uncertain following high-profile project withdrawals by Fortescue and Origin. The media’s portrayal of these issues underscores ongoing public and industry doubts about Australia’s renewable transition and the role of nuclear in the energy debate.

Watch below the shifts in coverage of significant policies and strategies over time to understand why some strategies stay in the headlines while others peter out.

The Labor government’s flagship Future Made in Australia Bill is central to its energy vision and, in November, was passed to support a net-zero transition. The May budget highlighted turning Australia into a renewable energy superpower with dedicated funds for solar, battery, and hydrogen projects. However, the opposition has framed hydrogen and critical minerals tax breaks as "corporate welfare". Over time, it looks like Labor’s Future Made in Australia Bill is at a tug of war for media attention against the opposition’s nuclear strategy. Australia’s energy future, however, is not wholly detached from fossil fuels. Labor's Future Gas Strategy positions gas as a necessary transition fuel while being central to Australia’s energy and export sectors.

Climate activists criticise the Future Gas Strategy for extending Australia's reliance on fossil fuels. Media critics call it another "broken promise" by the Albanese government, highlighting mismanagement that has negatively affected energy supply and costs. Though the "Future Made in Australia" narrative around energy security resonates with many, the government’s conflicting strategies raise questions about long-term benefits and who truly gains from its policies.

Australia's shift to clean energy faces complex debates and conflicting government signals, from promoting renewables to considering nuclear power. Despite loud voices in the media advocating for taxpayers and businesses, deeper media analysis reveals multiple layers and motives behind their arguments.

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The Australian podcasting news industry continues to grow. While Australian audiences do consume content from international brands like the BBC, they also exhibit strong affinity for independent Australian productions over mainstream sources. In a period of uncertainty amidst Apple’s recent update to automatic download policies Australia’s podcast audience has rapidly expanded, with ad revenue rising from $5 million in 2017 to over $100 million in 2024. So how do podcasts fit into the Australian news cycle? As audiences direct attention to independent and international productions, audience targeting, partnerships and media monitoring trends indicate a shift and a need to adapt engagement metrics and messaging strategy.

To highlight the impact of podcasts on audience engagement, we tracked coverage of key news themes in Australian podcasting from January 2020 to November 2024.

Podcasts surged into the mainstream during the pandemic, and they’re now evolving by integrating with platforms like video and audiobooks to meet new audience expectations. 

While general podcast news discussion remains steady, discussion on news podcasts indicates listener engagement peaks around high-impact stories, suggesting that the topic and information itself is what truly resonates with audiences. Outlets like The Australian Financial Review and ABC have expanded into the format, yet even major programs like ABC’s Background Briefing face fluctuating engagement compared to discussion about news content being consumed through podcasts. The data suggests there’s a gap being left by main outlets in the podcasting space. While traditional media adapts, independent producers are gaining traction with stories that deeply resonate on identity and community issues, such as the 2021 Christian Porter case and The Briefing’s 2024 episode on pianist Jayson Gillham’s lawsuit against the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Understanding audience preferences and monitoring content trends helps communicators craft strategies that leverage podcasting’s unique appeal.

Podcasts offer creators the freedom to pursue stories with fewer constraints of advertisers, investors, or other stakeholders, leading to content deeply shaped by personal passion and a strong connection to the subject. This independence empowers impactful storytelling, as illustrated by The Teacher’s Pet, where Hedley Thomas’s rigorous reporting on the case of Lynette Dawson uncovered new, critical details and underscored the journalistic integrity driving audience engagement in a shared pursuit of truth. Similarly, New Politics, co-created by Eddy Jokovich, leverages its Patreon-funded model to explore perspectives outside mainstream narratives, showcasing the power of independent journalism through podcasting.

Sports and entertainment tend to generate high visibility and engagement, suggesting they benefit from a faster publishing cadence and broad appeal. However issues like global conflicts draw significant attention, especially among communities directly impacted. The Briefing podcast, for example, addressed the October 2024 conflict in Gaza in a recent episode where Lebanese-Australian journalist Liz Deep-Jones offered a personal perspective. This type of coverage shows how podcasts can provide both journalistic depth and emotional resonance, connecting listeners to complex stories in a more relatable way.

Even if a major broadcaster or outlet owns a podcast production, the unique style and tone set by the hosts and production team often place podcasts outside the conventional PR and communications scope. Unlike the carefully curated talking points found in a typical puff piece or advertorial, podcasts allow for candid, in-depth discussions that explore complex topics with a degree of freedom seldom found in traditional news media channels. This authenticity is driven by the podcast format itself, which favours nuanced discussion offering audiences a more transparent and less scripted narrative style.

Many of the leading news podcasts, like The Quicky by Mamamia, follow a daily release that taps into the rhythm of the 24-hour news cycle, providing timely responses to breaking news. This format appeals to listeners by delivering news in a quick, digestible style, ideal for staying informed on the go and catering to audiences prioritising both convenience and relevance. It’s no surprise, then, that top news highlight podcasts often incorporate ads at multiple points—before, during, and after episodes—capitalising on the high listener engagement these accessible, on-the-go updates create.

Sports and entertainment podcasts tend to attract higher engagement with frequent, easily digestible episodes, often in the preferred 20-30 minute range, which sustain a steady listener base. Personalities like Hamish and Andy, and John Graham exemplify how audience visibility can be driven more by engaging personalities than by traditional news analysis. In contrast, outlets like The Australian Financial Review maintain a more analytical focus with podcasts such as The Fin and Chanticleer, known for their conservative, business-centric tone. Meanwhile, digital-first brands like Mamamia take a more hybrid, accessible approach across varied topics, leveraging podcasting to reach broader audiences and foster engagement with impactful news stories. This range of formats illustrates how different brands tailor their podcast strategies to meet audience preferences, from rapid updates in entertainment to in-depth discussions on current events.

While legacy media outlets leverage their reputations to enhance their podcast presence, credibility alone doesn’t ensure engagement. Instead, PR and communications teams can boost audience connection by aligning content with listeners’ interests and authenticity, helping refine podcasting strategies to capture attention and drive meaningful engagement.

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