Jonestalk: The Specificity of Alan Jones

Abstract

Alan Jones is among the most controversial, and reputedly the most influential, of talkback hosts in Australia. Governments appear to provide privileged access, and his media campaigns appear to achieve results. However, an increasing number of commentators have argued that his so-called influence is an illusion — the product of indefatigable self-promotion and a gullible public. While debate over what the radio audience might make of Alan Jones continues, in this article we use quantitative and qualitative analyses of the program itself to examine what is distinctive about his performance as a radio talkback host in order to also address the question of how, and to what extent, Jones both seeks and achieves political influence.

Politics, radio and journalism in Australia

“…12 The project referred to was funded by the Australian Research Council. Among the outcomes of the project are Turner et al (2006), Turner (2007, and Crofts and Turner (2007). 13 As noted earlier, Howard gave very few television interviews during our research period -sometimes going for months without doing a dedicated network television interview.…”

“…That Jones is interested in advancing his own views is also beyond question; he takes a partisan position on more than 62 per cent of the topics he discusses, and he occupies the microphone for almost 75 per cent of the four hours he is on air. Even when taking calls from listeners, Jones talks more than they do (Crofts and Turner, 2007)! None of this proves infl uence, of course, although it certainly indicates intent.…”

Towards a Poetics of Contemporary Public Language: the Poetic Formula in Focus

“…They show how thoroughly his callers also internalise and then amplify that rhetoric, themselves entering into "Jonestalk" by replaying his own formulas back at him. 31 Fitzgerald and Housley (159-60) show how John Laws has had a similar influence on listeners who call his program, although in his case it has more often been reflected in praise formulas than we see with Jones. Both cases exemplify Voloshinov's observation that reported speech is a marker for the transfer of ideology through language.…”

The broadcast political interview and strategies used by politicians: how the Australian prime minister promoted the Iraq War

“…Public broadcasters still highlight them in news and current affairs programmes, and even commercial 'tabloid' current affairs programmes continue to include interviews with politicians, even if these are increasingly rare and sandwiched between celebrity interviews and the staple fare of neighbourhood disputes, small-time con artists, diet and cosmetic surgery stories. On radio, Australian politicians are regularly interviewed by talkback hosts and these appearances have become increasingly central to the presentation of politics (Crofts and Turner, 2007;Ester, 2007: 120;Griffen-Foley, 2007;Ward, 2002). However, there is both concern about the role that talkback hosts play in mediating politics (e.g.…”

“…However, there is both concern about the role that talkback hosts play in mediating politics (e.g. Crofts and Turner, 2007;Masters, 2006) and a broader sense of disappointment with the contemporary political interview. Graeme Turner, for example, has argued that: 'There is rarely any evidence of the interview being informed by independent investigation and so the chances of interviewees ever being surprised by what is presented to them are virtually nil ' (2005: 116).…”