'Politics, Media and Campaign Language' is an original, groundbreaking analysis of the story of Australian identity, told through Australian election campaign language. It argues that the story of Australian identity is characterised by recurring cycles of anxiety and reassurance, which betray a deep underlying feeling of insecurity. Introducing the concept of identity security, it takes electoral language as its focus, and demonstrates that election campaigns provide a valuable window into an overlooked part of Australia's political and cultural history.

This book reclaims...