It wasn't long after I joined the ABC as a young reporter in the mid ‘70's that I had the opportunity to meet and interview federal politician Bert Kelly.

I was a little in awe of Bert as he was a long time Liberal party member who had represented the seat of Wakefield  in South Australia since the late 50's and had served as a minister in both the Holt and McMahon governments.

His ministerial career however was cut short because of his passionate support of free trade which put him out of step with Country party leader and Deputy Prime Minister Sir John or ‘Black Jack'  McEwan who strongly advocated a policy of protectionism.

Bert was a fearless advocate of free trade who went on to advance his ideas through a regular column entitled ‘The Modest Member' in the Australian Financial Review after he was pushed out of the ministry.

What made a particular impact on me however were Bert's comments after the interview -  that I should always remember that I enjoyed a privileged position as an ABC reporter.

This was because,  in his opinion, the ABC was the only national media outlet in Australia that was free of systemic political bias where journalists were able to report on a range of issues without having to adhere to a company line.

 I thought at the time a rather surprising comment coming from a Coalition member when many of his political colleagues were accusing ABC reporters of showing political bias of some sort, often left wing.

He also said that the ABC had acted as a great unifiying influence in the Australian community and had helped to shape national attitudes and philosophies for the better.

Bert's wise words came back to me when I read Professor Denis Cryles's outstanding book Murdoch's Flagship - Twenty Five Years of the Australian Newspaper which provides some unique behind the scenes insights and glimpses of the formative years of The Australian newspaper with expert analysis of the major issues and identities that helped to shape the nation's only comprehensive daily newspaper.

What particularly resonated was the strong links that Denis has identified between hands on owner/publisher Rupert Murdoch  and Sir John McEwan who was an early mentor to Murdoch which resulted in The Australian taking a strong pro-protectionism stance for a significant time in its early years.

In fact the book shows that this specific issue substantially contributed to an early estrangment between Murdoch and the Australian's first editor Maxwell Newton who lasted only a relatively short time in that role.

Interestingly Murdoch eventually had an about face on the issue of protectionism  and Bert Kelly went on to write a column as ‘the Modest Farmer' in The Bulletin and then The Australian after he retired from parliament in the late 70's which continued to espouse free trade -  yet earlier he could not get coverage  of these views in the national newspaper.

It is worth noting that Gough Whitlam later said of Bert Kelly that ‘No private member has had as much influence in changing a major policy of the major parties (being protectionism)' than him.

This is certainly a good example of the influence of Rupert Murdoch on editorial policy that on occasion polarised both his staff and readers.

This is none more evident than in the early to mid ‘70's where Murdoch fell out with Prime Minister Billy McMahon and strongly backed Labor in the 1972 federal election campaign - yet did the opposite in 1975 where The Australian campaigned against the Whitlam government.

Again through meticulous research including interviews with past and present staff, examination of The Australian's files and additional print material, Denis again has been able to dissect, analyse and put together a clear picture of what actually took place behind the scenes at those times.

The influence of the paper is obvious when it's documented from a couple of sources that The Australian's editorials stiffened Governor General Sir John Kerr's resolve to sack the Whitlam government with Kerr conceding as much in later years.

This also substantially contributed to a period of industrial unrest at The Australian where journalists protested at what they regarded as editorial interference by the proprietor and management, and again this is well documented in Denis' book.

It certainly makes for fascinating reading.

Further evidence of Rupert Murdoch's interventionist approach is evident in the recent comments of Australian Press Council Chairman Professor Ken McKinnon who recounted a conversation with one unnamed former editor when he asked him whether Murdoch had decreased his involvement in The Australian once he settled in America.

‘You could say that' the ex-editor told him ‘he was only on the phone for two hours a night after he moved!'

However looking back and putting them into context, while very significant at the time, you could almost see these incidents and tendencies as aberrations when measured alongside the overall value of The Australian to the nation. 

In retrospect I think you can say that there has been generally balanced news coverage and a genuine diversity of opinion expressed in both the news and feature sections of The Australian over the years despite interference in the editorial process.

In fact I go back to some of the words of Bert Kelly about the ABC which I think could also be equally applied to The Australian as it's also acted as a unifying influence on the Australian community and has substantially helped to shape national attitudes.

It is certainly required reading for me and has been since I started reading The Australian in the early 70's and I think we would be much poorer without it.

For instance when I was approached last year by a friend of one of my sons who was contemplating a journalism career, I sat him down for a good chat and suggested he look at studying at CQUniversity but in the first instance make sure he listened to and watched the ABC  particularly the news and current affairs programs and also read The Australian regularly.

And I'm pleased to say that he followed that advice and as the year went on would often quote things he'd read in The Australian to his school mates.

Denis' book is also an excellent reminder of The Australian's contribution to the arts and culture  and made me look back with some nostalgia to the Phillip Adams ‘Adam's Rib', Geraldine Pascall,  Ian Moffat  and Hugh Lunn offerings to name a few which were always interesting, stimulating and often amusing and helped us shake off our cultural cringe.

To quote the paper's original prospectus in 1964, it aimed to employ some of ‘the most intelligent and able journalists available in the country' and I think it subsequently achieved that goal.

It's also worth remembering that Rupert Murdoch, the quintessential newspaper man with ‘ink in his veins' despite his highly diversified media empire today, had a vision for the paper and was prepared to put his money where his mouth was and he ran the paper at a loss for many years to achieve his dream.

In fact his diversified media empire has also enhanced The Australian today through the inclusion of syndicated material from the likes of The Wall Street Journal, The Times of London and The Spectator.

When appraising the value of The Australian,  it is significant (again revealed by Denis) that a national survey of print journalists undertaken by Professor John Henningham in the ‘90's,  found that 40 percent selected The Australian as their paper of choice over the other respected broadsheets The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald.

Like the ABC, one of The Australian's greatest strengths has been the extent of its representation including the spread of its reporters both internationally and in the states.

Its international coverage has certainly helped to broaden our horizons and has acted as a catalyst for increased coverage of overseas events by other media outlets and the coverage by the state bureaux staff have helped to enhance the paper's credibility by conveying authentic ‘on the ground' versions of major news happenings.

Again as Denis documents, this led to some great news scoops including new angles on the Harold Holt disappearance and, closer to home, the bombing of the Iwasaki Resort near Yeppoon, despite perceptions by some Australian head office journalists and editors that the only news worth reporting took place in the major cities.

As someone who has worked mainly at a regional level, I can certainly empathise with some of the state based staff who as Denis points out, were often treated like second class citizens when dealing with their head office colleagues.

A quote included in the book which is sourced from a recent Australian commemorative publication I think goes a way towards summing up the value and impact of The Australian.

‘In retrospect the establishment of The Australian marked an important post war moment, not only socially but politically and professionally by anticipating the coming intellectual ferment in the big cities and holding out the promise of a new type of elite force among journalists'.

Murdoch's Flagship - Twenty Five Years of the Australian Newspaper really does a sterling job of documenting and analysing those formative years of The Australian and reinforces Denis' reputation as an author of distinction,  and I wholeheartedly commend it to you.

I also note that Denis acknowledges the contribution of CQUniversity researcher and doctoral candidate Christina Hunt which, having collaborated with Christina on other CQUniversity research projects, I know is well deserved.