The Empty Centre: The Hollowmen and Representations of Techno-Political Elites in Australian Public Life

This article argues that 2008–2009 Australian Broadcasting Corporation comedy The Hollowmen reveals an ‘empty centre’ within Australian public life; a vortex formed from a circling of techno-political elites within the centre of government. The show’s humour comes from the juxtaposition of the estab...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEntertainment and sports law journal (Coventry, England) Vol. 18; no. 1
Main Authors Weinert, Kim D., Tranter, Kieran
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published University of Westminster Press 25.09.2020
Subjects
Australian public life
political satire
techno-political elite
The Hollowmen
TV comedy
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Summary:This article argues that 2008–2009 Australian Broadcasting Corporation comedy The Hollowmen reveals an ‘empty centre’ within Australian public life; a vortex formed from a circling of techno-political elites within the centre of government. The show’s humour comes from the juxtaposition of the established forms and aesthetics associated with Westminster-style responsible government and the discourses of spin and image management of the party apparatchiks. There is a lack of substance in The Hollowmen. Power is conservative, reacting rather than instigating change, a circling game for techno-political elites. In laughing at this, The Hollowmen seems to have pre-empted some of the Trump-era malaise of public institutions in Global North nations.
ISSN:1748-944X
1748-944X
DOI:10.16997/eslj.268