Australia vs the Internet

You’re not losing your mind, the internet is different now.

The 2025 Australian federal election will be the first in a decade where news isn’t readily available on social media, and there’s no effort to fact check or moderate what is there. The billionaires behind the major tech platforms aren’t just background characters in politics anymore; they’re centre stage, making decisions around misinformation, bankrolling candidates, generating content that aligns with their own ideology and broadcasting it to the masses.

Not only has the fight against misinformation online been lost, sometimes social media feels entirely divorced from reality. While the United States government has been incapable of regulating the tech giants, and now seems to have been taken over by them, Australia has made multiple attempts to push back.

In this series from If You’re Listening, Australia vs the Internet looks at Australia’s attempts to rein in big tech, and how it's shaping the Australian election.

First episode drops Thursday 24th April.

Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.