The Australian Studies Institute (AuSI) is delighted to announce that Mark Kenny has been recognised for his outstanding work in Australian media with a promotion to Professor.

In 2019, Mark’s media work generated over 3,700 media items, which reached an audience of between 36.5 and 38 million, positioning him as one of the University’s biggest and most influential media commentators.

Mark’s strengths as a commentator on politics and public affairs are evidenced by his weekly podcast, Democracy Sausage with Mark Kenny, where he is joined by researchers at ANU and beyond for expert analysis and discussion.

In 2019, Democracy Sausage with Mark Kenny was the fourth ranked news podcast on iTunes, and had over 70,000 downloads. This year, Democracy Sausage is hosted by Acast – the largest global podcast company – and is off to a strong start, with almost 20,000 downloads so far.  If you haven’t already tuned in, you can stream all episodes, available here. You can also find it on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Mark came to ANU after a high-profile career as a journalist, culminating in 6 years as chief political correspondent and national affairs editor of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and The Canberra Times.

He is a fixture on the ABC's Insiders program, Sky News Agenda, and is a sought after commentator on radio programs across the country.

A long-time member of the Federal Parliamentary Press Gallery committee, he is also a director of the National Press Club.

Mark was appointed a Visiting Fellow at the ANU Australian Studies Institute in 2018, before joining ANU as a Senior Fellow with the Institute in January 2019.

His research interests include national politics, comparative studies, democracy, and the rise of populism.

All of us at the Australian Studies Institute would like to thank Mark for his contribution to our team and welcome him to the ANU Professoriate.