Organised interest systems that seek to influence public policy-making are undergoing rapid transformation. Some researchers focus on the post-war professionalisation of advocacy; others suggest that the internet is positively (re)shaping the structure of such systems and their democratic capacities. This project adjudicates on such accounts through exploring the size and composition, through time, of the Australian system of organised interests. Using innovative methodologies, it assesses the presence and prominence of particular interests in legislative, administrative, print-media and ‘on -line’ arenas. Through a theoretically original, national case study, it will contribute to international scholarship in this important area.

The project [DP140104097] was funded in the 2013 ARC Discovery scheme round, and will commence in July 2014.​