Not so cut and dry

Former Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, is spearheading a campaign against News Limited, Australia's largest media company, attacking it for what he sees as a protection racket for Liberal politicians, state governments, and the Morrison Liberal government. In practical terms, Rudd believes that its newspapers fail to hold them to account for corruption, incompetence, and maladministration, especially during the pandemic. 

One weakness in Rudd's argument is the situation in Victoria. As a Victorian, and a long time observer of Victorian politics, unlike Kevin from Queensland, I am qualified to comment. The Herald Sun, published in Victoria, and the best selling newspaper in Australia, often attacks the Victorian state government for using  lockdowns in its pandemic management. Even so, this has had little influence on public sentiment. While Labor has lost some voter support, Premier Daniel Andrews is still popular, and the Liberal opposition is unable to cut through. It is very likely that the Victorian Labor government will be returned in the 2022 election, just like Labor governments in Queensland and Western Australia in their most recent state elections. How would Rudd explain that?

As a student of history, Rudd is presumably aware that since 1982, when the Bolte/Hamer/Thompson government ended, having held power under three different leaders since 1955, Victoria has had Liberal governments for 11 of those years, and the Labor Party for 28. Clearly, Labor has been far more successful electorally than the Liberals. If there is a Liberal protection racket in Victoria, then Murdoch's minions didn't get the memo.