Hannah Ferguson coming to Canberra to dissect social media’s political impact

Posted on 5 May, 2025

If you were just as likely to follow Hannah Ferguson’s Cheek Media  for political analysis during the election campaign as The ABC, then clear your Wednesday on 14 May as she is coming to Canberra to dissect how the New Media and Gen Zs have impacted on the result.

Hannah will present a National Press Club Address for Women in Media, entitled “The election of influence: how new media will shape the future of Australian politics”.

Hannah is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cheek Media Co., an independent news commentary platform which currently reaches three million Australians every month. She is also the co-host of news and culture podcast, Big Small Talk, which consistently ranks in the top three news podcasts in Australia. Hannah is the bestselling author of Bite Back (2023) and Taboo (2024), and a Forbes 30 under 30 honouree.

At age 26, Hannah has built an Instagram following of more than 293,000 across her accounts, that aims to make politics digestible and engaging while challenging the legacy media landscape in Australia.

The Law graduate, with a Master of Writing, Editing and Publishing, said she left her legal career to start Cheek because, as a young person, she cared deeply about politics, but no media took her views seriously.

“I wanted to change that. I wanted to carve a progressive space for conversations in the public square about social issues that matter to young people and women. Ultimately, what I discovered was that it wasn’t just young women who were seeking this. Australians collectively are fed up with the media and political landscape, my interest grew from commentating on politics to now wanting deeply to change it.

Her followers seek her progressive political commentary and Hannah went into overdrive this election to opine on, or explain, a range of topics across levels of government around the country.

She said her coverage cut through “because my audience feels like my friends, plain and simple. Women (not just young) want to feel like they’re having a fun and serious conversation while having a wine on a Friday night. I talk across to my followers about topics we collectively care about. We are willing to disagree, we have shared trust and a constant feedback loop. Legacy media cannot compete with this connection.”

Hannah, who has declared she will seek a political career as an Independent (NSW Senate to be exact), said she was was “incredibly proud” and her aim had always been to “educate the next generation of voters on the power of their vote, their voice this election. I want them to understand that it is cool to care, to give a shit about people in a less privileged position than you. I wanted young people to feel empowered going into a voting booth. I hope I’ve made a dent in that dream”.

Tickets for the event are open to the public!