Farmers, murder and the media: getting to the bottom of the city-country divide

Abstract

It's five years since government worker Glen Turner was murdered by a farmer in a confrontation over land clearing laws. Media reporting after his death frequently propagated the image of the “"poor farmer" at the mercy of laws enforced by out-of-touch city elites. <br/> This narrative of an urban-rural divide reared its head again in recent days, when Nationals leader Michael McCormack derided "inner-city raving lunatics" who linked the bushfire crisis to climate change. Such rhetoric may appeal to a conservative party base or media audience, but does little for rural communities in the long run. <br/> As farmers face the ever-worsening impacts of drought and climate change, strong environmental protections are required to protect water and other resources. We must better understand how divisive narratives, often serving political interests, are devised and dispersed.