The media’s open secret: Why so many journalists end up in politics

🧭 Where do all the journalists go?

Many former journalists funnel into communications roles when they leave the publishing or news reporting side of the business, often working for corporate, charities, emergency services or defence. But another common destination? Political offices.

Whether it’s burnout, money, or the lure of something different, many journos jump the fence. Some say it’s more relaxed than the chaos of a newsroom. Some say it's much worse. 

And yes, the pay can be better.

👀 Some familiar faces have made the leap

• Tom Tilley, once the voice of Triple J’s Hack and the Briefing podcast, is now a press secretary for the New South Wales government.
  

• Greg Thomson, formerly of Fox Footy and Sky News, is the principal press secretary for Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie.
  

• Maxine McKew, a former ABC journalist, famously unseated Prime Minister John Howard in 2007 in the seat of Bennelong.
  

• Last year, Guardian Australia political editor Katharine Murphy joined Prime Minister Albanese’s office.
  

• Former PMs Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull, and John Curtin? All ex-journos.
  

• Queensland Premier David Crisafulli was once a local radio newsreader in Townsville.

• Columnist and sketch writer for News Corp, James Jeffrey, joined then-Opposition leader Anthony Albanese’s staff as a speech writer in 2019. 

• And just yesterday, Hannah Ferguson, co-founder of Cheek Media, announced she’ll run for Senate in New South Wales.

🧠 What does this mean for journalism?

It raises important questions: if a journalist eventually goes to work for a politician, can we be sure they were impartial in their coverage?

Traditionally, journalism isn’t a job that comes with stock options or a gold watch when you retire. Newsrooms are shrinking, local papers are collapsing and commercial radio is laying off more and more people. 

It’s no wonder journalists may take stability and a paycheque over a job where you’re not paid a lot and people yell at you online.

It’s not that those who leave the media have broken rules. Most former reporters argue they stayed ethical and neutral while reporting—no matter where they ended up.

But the movement between journalism and politics can add to public distrust, especially in a time when newsrooms are shrinking, local outlets are folding, and commercial radio jobs are drying up.

🤐 Who wants to be a “journalist” anyway?

In some circles, “journalist” is now a loaded term. 

Some people doing journalistic work often prefer being called commentators, creators, or media analysts. It’s a response to both the industry’s instability and public skepticism.

 💬 The bottom line

Ultimately though, this is about credibility – and how you, the person sitting at home scrolling the news who doesn’t work in journalism – might think this impacts our society. 

If this pipeline doesn’t bother you, it probably means you trust your news sources, which is great. 

But to strengthen journalism—as both a profession and public service—it’s worth asking if we’ve accepted this trend too easily.