First media conference with Clive Palmer

Clive Palmer media storm



I attended my first media conference on May 19 as a journalism student representing the University of Queensland.

 

The ever-entertaining Mr Clive Palmer gave a speech on the topic of “Holding government to account – in Canberra and in Queensland” followed by a question time, during which I was able to pose a question to the politician.

 

Naturally I was nervous as anything, I was at a table with journalism lecturers Dr John Harrison and Ms Skye Doherty, Acting Head of the School Associate Professor Pradip Thomas and PhD student Caroline McKinnon.

 

As if this wasn't intimidating enough, Queensland State Director of the ABC, Mark Bowling and experienced broadcast and radio and television journalist Patrick Condren also joined the group as guests at the event.

 

Thank god there was free (strong) wine.

 

After a glass and a half I was still feeling the nerves and tried to pick at the free meal we were offered at the event (looking back as a uni student I really should've taken full advantage of a free lunch offered by a billionaire).

 

I was told I'd get a question in, but wasn't sure how or when which made things even more interesting.

 

Question time began during dessert (why was I so nervous dammit, I should've asked for a doggy bag...).

 

 

 

My original question was asked straight away (yay) so I had to think on the spot as my back up questions were perhaps a tad offensive (something along the lines of did you use your gazillions of dollars to buy your way into politics...)

 

Suddenly Mark Bowling nabbed the mic from the media tables and handed it to me.

 

So, after asking the media professionals around me and not understanding much of the heavy political jargon that comes with years of experience working with pollies in the media (of which I have none), I just had to get up and wing it.

 

While I fumbled around trying to turn it on I stood up and began to address Clive Palmer...aaaaaand was shut down by the MC who assumed (justifiably so, in the end) that I wasn't actually media.

 

You know those moments where you are beetroot red, sweating profusely and your natural instincts just take over while your just screaming, 'AHHHHHHHHH!' on the inside?

 

This was one of those times.

In my nervous state I told the MC I was in fact media (thinking at the time I was...sort of) and asked my question.

 

Thank goodness I scribbled down a quote from Clive's early response to the budget, specifically about the deregulation of university fees, which contradicted what he was saying at the QMC conference.

 

I repeated his quote back to him and then he took a sudden and completely opposing stance yet again.

 

This ended up generating a fair amount of media  coverage in broadcast and print, which was actually pretty cool to see as a non 'media professional'.

 

I can now see why they serve wine at these events.

 

You can check out the SJC article about the Queensland Media Club conference here: http://www.uq.edu.au/sjc/qmc-palmer