Australia: Pauline Hanson condemned for abuse of journalist and media blacklists

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has been condemned for her personal attacks on journalist Sarah Martin at the National Press Club on June 17, alongside her decision to block journalists from Guardian Australia and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) from attending her press conferences. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA), in reiterating the right of all journalists to a safe and secure workplace, and condemning Hanson's severe threat to press freedom and the public's right to know.

One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson (C) and Member of Parliament Barnaby Joyce (L) attend a joint sitting of the House of Representatives in Canberra on March 24, 2026. Credit: David Gray / AFP

During her address at the National Press Club in Canberra, Senator Pauline Hanson launched a verbal attack against Guardian Australia's senior political correspondent, Sarah Martin, labelled as "bitter, personal and unprofessional" by the MEAA. In response to a public-interest question regarding the political appointment and funding of her daughter, Lee Hanson, the One Nation leader called Martin a "trashy journalist" and explicitly declared that she would be barred from all future press conferences.

"Sarah is an experienced and professional journalist who was attending her place of work to do her job of holding the powerful to account. Journalists must be provided with safe workplaces, free from abuse, so we can uphold the public's right to know," said the MEAA.

The attack followed Hanson's previous comments that journalists from the ABC and Guardian Australia would be banned from attending her press conferences. The leader of One Nation, an Australian far-right populist political party, used her address to introduce several policies, including an end to multiculturalism in Australia and an overhaul of the industrial relations system.

Hanson also outlined her intentions to abolish Australia's second publicly funded broadcaster, the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), as well as significant financial cuts to the ABC, which would see a shift to a subscription-based funding model, with taxpayers supporting some regional broadcasting services.

The MEAA said: "We call on all our colleagues across the industry, regardless of their employer, to stand with us and hold the line against attacks on press freedom from politicians who seek to avoid scrutiny. If a fellow journalist is denied access, threatened or abused, it is our shared responsibility to stand with them. We must ensure all journalists have the same rights to report on matters in the public interest, and to ensure their questions are answered."

The IFJ said: "Democratic political leaders have a fundamental responsibility to answer to the public through a free and independent media. Barring journalists from official press briefings and subjecting individual reporters to toxic, retaliatory abuse degrades political discourse and directly threatens the public's right to know. The IFJ stands with the MEAA in condemning this blatant attack on press freedom."