The more I hear politicians speak the more I realise the extent of their disconnect from small business and everyday people.
While we talk about real issues in our businesses and engage is genuine two-way conversations with our customers, our politicians from the major parties ignore questions from journalists and fail to listen.
Watch or listen to any live interview with a politician and you hear them say what they want rather than answer the question. In such a situation, the journalist is our representative as they have direct access where we do not. We expect journalists to ask the questions we would want asked. Moreover, we expect the politicians to listen to the questions and to answer them.
This is not what happens.
Politicians front the media with a message to put and they put it regardless of the questions they are asked. They play us for fools. Too many journalists and media outlets let them get away with it.
We know in small business that authenticity matters. Your customers soon figure out if you are faking happiness, the value of a deal or something else in business. Faking it is not possible in small business.
Faking it is what politicians do and we elect them and let them get away with it.
Every time politicians dodge a question or fake support for something they do not agree with and only go along with because of party rules they fail us. Whereas in small business such faking costs us business, in politics we let them get away with it.
I want to see politicians say what they think, on any topic. It’s okay if they say things I don’t agree with because I don’t expect to vote in a 100% clone of my views.
I want to see in my politicians the authenticity I see in small businesses, like newsagencies. Australia would be all the better for it.
You comments go right to the heart of why our politicians are held in such high regard by the community they reportedly are meant to represent…..Yeah right!
Mark Adam Bandt is my local federal member. He’s a stand out as a local member in my view. Accessible. Direct, Personally engaged on matters I bring to him. Rare.
In a previous life I was required to do media appearances. As such I attended a Media Awareness course. The same one the Govt uses. The course teaches you how NOT to answer questions, how to make the point you want to make. The Journalists are part of the teaching panel for the course.
The whole thing is a game, a staged waltz, the loser is the voter, the person on the street. The 4th Estate is no longer checking on our democracy, it is a participant.
Yes Brett it is an indictment of politicians, journalists, publishers and broadcasters who allow this to continue. We the people are not served well. The blame rests with the politicians.