Tracking, understanding and engaging news audiences
Heartbeat of Australia
This project aims to address the existential crisis of local news by developing a barometer of the health of local news ecosystems informed by longitudinal audience surveys, stakeholder in-depth interviews and case studies of marginalised audiences.
Expected outcomes include a robust evidence base to assess the value of local news to audiences and wider society, and innovative new strategies to better address the challenges the news industry faces in adapting to the digital environment. By devising strategies to produce and deliver quality local news that is financially sustainable, the project aims to deliver significant benefits to the news industry and the wellbeing of individuals and communities across Australia.
Funding
Park, S., Lee, J. Y., Curll, S., Fisher, C., McCallum, K., Tyrrell, P., Levesque, L., & Mihalovich, A. (2024). Local news and audiences’ wellbeing: the roles of motivation, satisfaction, and trust. Communication Research and Practice, 10(1), 7-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/22041451.2023.2281174
Park, S., Thomson, T J., & Lee, J. (2025). Engaged journalism in the heartland: Understanding regional news audiences. University of Canberra and RMIT University. https://doi.org/10.60836/djte-h654
Prof Sora Park
Emeritus Professor Kerry McCallum
Dr Jee Young Lee
Dr Nhung Nguyen
Dr Janet Fulton
Prof Robert Picard
Mr Paul Tyrrell
Mr Jarrah Petzold
Ms Lisa Levesque
Ms Sally Roscholler
Ms Laura Allen
Ms Sara Dixon
Adjunct Associate Professor Caroline Fisher
Mr John-Paul Moloney
Mr James Joyce
Get in touch to find out more about the Heartbeat of Australia project.
