The Wire

We typically refer to differences of opinion in the political arena by using the terms Left and Right. But have these terms become obsolete in the Australian political landscape? A new book, Beyond Left and Right, argues just that. The author of the book, Dr David McKnight, holds the position of senior lecturer in the faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. Dr McKinight formerly worked as the editor of the Tribune and as a journalist with the Sydney Morning Herald and ABC’s Four Corners. He argues that in today’s free market world, the Right, represented by the Coalition Government, has undergone an ideological revolution, placing it in control over new ideas. In contrast, parties such as Labor, which are based on old ideas of class and on labour institutions, remained locked out of the political policy making process, trapped in a crisis of belief. To discuss the book and its implications on the Australian political arena, we spoke to Dr McKnight in the studio.