School of Culture and Communication - Research Publications
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ItemBooks Versus Screens: A Study of Australian Children's Media Use During the COVID Pandemic(SPRINGER, 2022-12)Abstract As children’s use of screens increased during the COVID pandemic, their reading of traditional books was affected, a national survey of Australian parents shows. The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Melbourne to compare young people’s use of screens and books in the pandemic. Their online survey of 513 primary caregivers of children aged seven to thirteen around Australia showed that tablet use flourished during the pandemic and that COVID lockdowns influenced book buying and library borrowing in consequential ways for publishing and literature. Many parents believed their children’s use of screens had come at the expense of book reading.
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ItemFair's Fair (Except When it Isn't): The Effectiveness of Fair Dealing in the Australian Publishing Industry(AUSTRALIAN NATL UNIV, SCH HUMANITIES, 2020-05-01)IN NOVEMBER 2016, THE AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION (PC) RELEASED A report proposing a ‘fair use exception to replace the current system of fair dealing exceptions’ (ACC 1) in the Australian Copyright Act 1968. The Commission’s recommendation supported the Australian Legal Reform Commission’s (ALRC) findings in its 2013 report ‘Copyright and the Digital Economy’, which stated that a flexible fair use provision would ‘“enable the Act to adapt to changing technologies and uses without the need for legislative intervention”’ (ALRC 95). In the event that a fair use exception is not viable, the ALRC also proposed an alternative ‘new fair dealing’ exception, to broaden the doctrine’s purposes for educational institutions and commercial organisations
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ItemGagging the writer: The implicit censorship of non-fiction trade book publishing in Australia(Australasian Association of Writing Programs, 2021)Australian readers have a thirst for non-fiction books. A growing preference for autobiographies and biographies, true stories and criticism, investigative journalism and narrative journalism (Thompson, 2017, p. 204) showcases a trend towards “real” content that piques readers’ curiosity and offers deeper insight into the lives of public persons, and sometimes a perspective that might otherwise be considered private. But writing the tell-all or exposé is not without consequences, particularly with Australia’s defamation laws notorious for casting a “chilling effect” on freedom of speech (Dent and Kenyon, 2004, p. 3; Amponsah, 2005, p. 1) by regarding reputation above publications with a public interest element. This paper explores non-fiction trade book publishing alongside a contemporary construction of reputation and argues that in Australia “reputational interests” (Partlett, 2016, p. 67) in defamation law have created a practice of implicit censorship through legalling manuscripts, avoiding publication entirely, or even intercepting book distribution. In comparing the Australian legal framework with recent UK developments, this paper also asks if law reform can correct the balance between reputation and freedom of speech, thereby allowing authors more autonomy and allowing literary culture to thrive in the contemporary Australian publishing landscape.
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