Time to call a spade a spade.

One Nation’s rise is the media’s fault.

And Pauline Hanson being misunderstood is also the media’s fault.

Elements of the media have amplified the rise of One Nation over three decades, with outsized coverage normalising what is now a populist machine.

At the same time, Hanson treats the media as her enemy.

Can both things be true?

The first is a deliberately provocative statement. The second is an observation. Both lead to questions about the media’s role and responsibility in an era of information manipulation.

The phrases “fake news” and “enemy of the people” come to mind in these times when it appears that whatever the question is for Hanson, Donald Trump is the answer.

The latest example relates to her comments about violence against women in which she makes excuses for violent men.

“It is wrong but it’s also a two-way street,” she told the Brisbane radio station 4BC.

“I’m not saying that it’s just men, women can lose their cool as well. Society is under so much pressure … Everyone is under so much pressure and it’s really hard.”

The facts are that intimate partner violence is overwhelmingly perpetrated by men.

She went on to........

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