Nation Branding, Cultural Relations and Cultural Diplomacy at Eurovision: Between Australia and Europe

This chapter explores Australia’s Eurovision history – and its ‘Asiavision’ future – as an articulation of the nation’s complex and ongoing relations with Europe. It considers the ideological dimensions of Eurovision’s own history and the impact this might have on the contest’s future in Asia. While Australia’s participation in Eurovision was tolerated as part of the sixtieth anniversary in 2015, its return performance in 2016 was greeted with some ambiguity, and even outright hostility. The announcement that an Australian broadcasting service (SBS), together with the European Broadcasting Union, would be collaborating on the establishment of a song contest for the Asia-Pacific region brought some commercial sense to the engagement, but also foregrounds a particular conceptualisation of Australia as a bridge between Europe and Asia

The tobacco industry’s challenges to standardised packaging : A comparative analysis of issue framing in public relations campaigns in four countries

Tobacco industry public relations campaigns have played a key role in challenges to standardised cigarette packaging. This paper presents a comparative analysis of industry campaigns in Australia and the United Kingdom, which have implemented standardised packaging legislation; Canada, where policy has been adopted but not yet implemented; and the Netherlands, which has considered, but not enacted regulation. Campaigns were identified via Google searches, tobacco industry websites, media coverage, government submissions and previous research; analysis focused on issue framing and supporting evidence. Public relations campaigns in all case study countries drew on similar frames - the illicit trade in tobacco products, the encroaching 'nanny state', lack of evidence for the effectiveness of standardised packaging, a slippery slope of regulation, and inherent threats to intellectual property rights. These claims were supported by industry research, front groups and commissioned reports by accountancy firms, but were not with verifiable research. Independent evidence that contradicted industry positions was overlooked. Similarities in structure and content of public relations campaigns in countries that have enacted or considered regulation points to a strategic co-ordinated approach by cigarette manufacturers. Countries considering standardised packaging policy can expect powerful opposition from the tobacco industry. Tobacco control communities and policy makers can learn from previous experience, and share best practise in countering industry arguments

Iron ore prices and the value of the Australian dollar

Continued strong Chinese demand for Australia's iron ore has ensured that this commodity is singularly the highest value-ranking, exported mineral commodity for this country. As a consequence, the iron ore price and the value of the Australian dollar have substantial influences on the Australian economy. In this empirical study, the aim is to investigate the long-term relationship and the strength of association between iron ore prices and the corresponding exchange rate (AUD/USD). Several assessments for unit root tests have been performed to examine whether the time series data are stationary or not, and the assessments have revealed that the results from all of the tests have confirmed both the iron ore prices and the AUD/USD exchange rates data are non-stationary in levels and stationary in first differences, being I(1) stationary. Johansen cointegration tests have been performed for examining the cointegrating relationships, and have exposed the evidence in favour of a long-term relationship between iron ore prices and the AUD/USD exchange rate. Furthermore, the stability of the relationship has been presented and, thereafter, examined the Granger causality through a vector error correction model (VECM) and a vector auto regression (VAR) test, respectively. From the Granger causality test, it is apparent that there is a one-directional causality between iron ore prices and the AUD/USD exchange rate, implying that iron ore prices generate Granger causes to the AUD/USD exchange rates whereas, conversely, the exchange rate does not have significant Granger causes on iron ore prices. However, while the structural vector auto regression (SVAR) is considered, interestingly, the impulse-response functions (IRFs) analysis revealed that owing to the shocks on AUD/USD exchange rates, iron ore prices have significant responses too, and vice versa