Trump’s decision to ban journalists from the White House – and One Nation’s actions – shows why Australia urgently needs a media freedom bill | Peter Greste

Australians can’t afford to be complacent – Pauline Hanson also thinks it’s OK to shut out reporters she doesn’t like No politician loves journalists. The relationship between media and governments has always been fractious, combative, resentful and at times downright hostile. But that is how it is meant to be. Governments wield power; media monitor and report on it. That dynamic is critical to any functioning democracy. Formal checks and balances will only go so far in exposing abuses of power, so the system requires vigorous, professional and independent individuals devoted to investigating and reporting how governments behave.

It isn’t always pretty but it has been an essential component of every effective modern democracy. That is why the US has its storied First Amendment – arguably the world’s most elegant constitutional guarantee of basic freedoms including freedom of speech and freedom of