Peter Van Onselen
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Peter van Onselen is an Australian academic, author, commentator, and political journalist. He is professor of politics and public policy at the
University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...
, and he is political editor of '' Daily Mail Australia'', having started in the position on 29 April 2024. He was previously a weekly
columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (periodical), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the ...
at ''
The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...
'' newspaper. Between 2010 and 2017, he hosted several programs at
Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs fe ...
. From 2018 to 2023 he served as
Network 10 Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's UK & Australia division and is one of the five national free-to-a ...
's political editor and as a co-host of TV show '' The Project''.


Early life

Van Onselen was born in 1976 in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
and grew up in Coogee in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. He graduated from Scots College in Bellevue Hill in 1993, later continuing his studies via the
University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...
and the
University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...
. He was awarded a PhD in political science from the University of Western Australia, converting his dissertation into a book. Van Onselen also holds a Bachelor of Arts with first-class honours in political science, majoring in philosophy, and a Masters in Policy Studies (with Distinction). Both degrees were obtained from the University of New South Wales. He has also completed a Master of Commerce (with Distinction) and was included in the Dean's honours list.


Career

Before completing his PhD and commencing his academic career, van Onselen worked for
Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is an Australian former politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and was the member of parli ...
as an adviser when Abbott was the Minister for Workplace Relations in the
Howard government The Howard government refers to the Government of Australia, federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard between 11 March 1996 and 3 December 2007. It was made up of members of the Liberal Party of Australia, Li ...
in 2001. Van Onselen also previously worked as an intelligence analyst at the
New South Wales Crime Commission The New South Wales Crime Commission is a statutory corporation of the Government of New South Wales. It is constituted by the Crime Commission Act 2012, the object of which is to reduce the incidence of organised crime and other serious crime ...
.


Academic career

Van Onselen began an academic career at University of New South Wales in 2002, and became an associate professor at
Edith Cowan University Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public research university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Parliaments of the Australian states and territories, Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is, , t ...
in 2004, organising the politics and government program. From 2007 to 2008, van Onselen presented stories on the
Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...
's ''
Sunday Sunday (Latin: ''dies solis'' meaning "day of the sun") is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. Sunday is a Christian sabbath, day of rest in most Western countries and a part of the Workweek and weekend, weekend. In some Middle Ea ...
'' and wrote a column for '' The Bulletin''. In early 2011, van Onselen left Edith Cowan University to become a Winthrop Professor and Foundation Chair of Journalism at the
University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...
(UWA). Van Onselen has written several politically themed books, including ''John Winston Howard'' (co-written with Wayne Errington), which was rated by ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
Asia'' as the best biography of 2007. Van Onselen has also written numerous refereed journal articles and conference papers, including articles for the ''Australian Journal of Political Science'', the ''British Journal of Legislative Studies''. He has also written columns and opinion pieces for a range of newspapers, including ''
The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...
'', ''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
'', the ''
Australian Financial Review The ''Australian Financial Review'' (''AFR'') is an Australian compact daily newspaper with a focus on business, politics and economic affairs. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and has been published continuously since its foun ...
'', ''
The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...
'' and ''
The Courier-Mail ''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner norther ...
''. In May 2018, he was appointed Professor of Policy at Griffith Business School,
Griffith University Griffith University is a public university, public research university in South East Queensland on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of Australia. The university was founded in 1971, but was not officially opened until 1975. Griffith ...
,
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
. he is Winthrop Professor of Politics & Public Policy at UWA.


Media career

Van Onselen has featured as a television commentator across numerous broadcasters, including as a panelist for state, federal and United States election coverages for both the
Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...
and Nine Network. In 2008, Van Onselen was a special investigator for the
Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
edition of '' A Current Affair''. He also presented cover stories for the ''Sunday'' program on the Nine Network in 2007 and 2008. In 2009, Van Onselen joined ''
The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...
'' as contributing editor. He wrote his last column for the paper in April 2024. For the 2010 federal election he was the host of the National Tally Room panel for Sky News Business. The coverage was plagued by technical errors, and was satirised by the
ABC1 ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship (broadcasting), flagship ABC Television (Australian TV network), A ...
comedy group The Chaser during their election parody program '' Yes We Canberra!''. Following the 2010 election, Van Onselen became a regular presenter at Sky News, co-hosting '' Australian Agenda'' from 2010 as well as his own programs '' The Contrarians'' and ''The Showdown''. In 2014, Van Onselen stepped down from hosting ''The Contrarians'' (which would later become '' Keneally and Cameron'') and ''The Showdown'' was axed, when he was given his own four-times-weekly primetime program '' PVO Newshour'', which premiered on 20 January 2014. On 1 June 2015, Van Onselen voluntarily moved his program from primetime to daytime, with the program being retitled ''PVO NewsDay''. He also co-hosted '' To The Point'' with
Kristina Keneally Kristina Marie Kerscher Keneally (born 19 December 1968) is an American-born Australian politician who served as the first female Premier of New South Wales from 2009 to 2011 and was later a Labor Senator for New South Wales from February 2018 u ...
, which aired in between his self-titled daytime show. In November 2015,
Foxtel NXE Australia Pty Ltd, trading as the Foxtel Group, is an Australian pay television company that operates cable television, direct-broadcast satellite, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April ...
confirmed that ''PVO NewsDay'' would return for a second season in 2016. In July 2016, Van Onselen added a fourth hosting role at Sky News, presenting morning program '' Sunday Edition''. but relinquished the role in February 2017. In October 2017, it was announced that Van Onselen would step down from all his Sky News programs, to become a contributing editor to Sky News as well as revive '' The Contrarians'' as a weekly format. However, it was subsequently announced Van Onselen had left Sky News after his contract expired at the end of 2017. In 2018, Van Onselen had a weekly segment on ''
Radio National Breakfast ''Radio National Breakfast'' and sometimes shortened to ''Breakfast'', is a national early morning news program in Australia, broadcast since 2005. The program is broadcast live in the eastern states, and on delay in other states, on the Austr ...
'', and appeared regularly on '' The Drum'', '' Insiders'', and '' The Project''. On 3 December 2018, it was announced that Van Onselen was joining Network 10 as their political editor. In January 2020, Van Onselen replaced Hamish Macdonald as co-host of '' The Sunday Project'', with Macdonald becoming host of '' Q&A'' on ABC.. Van Onselen stepped aside as co-host of ''The Sunday Project'' 18 months later, continuing as Network 10 political editor and a co-host of ''The Project''. On 25 January 2022, Van Onselen was called out by ''The Project'' co-host
Carrie Bickmore Carrie Bickmore (born 3 December 1980) is an Australian radio presenter, comedian and former television presenter. She currently co-hosts the national drive radio show on the Hit Network, '' Carrie & Tommy'', from 3–6pm weeknights alongside ...
about an article he had written about 2021 Australian of the Year Grace Tame. He had described her behaviour as “childish”, after seeing her apparently deliberate refusal to smile for press photos with the Prime Minister,
Scott Morrison Scott John Morrison (born 13 May 1968) is an Australian former politician who served as the 30th prime minister of Australia from 2018 to 2022. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, leader of the Liberal Party and was ...
, in
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
. Van Onselen suggested that she would have done better not to attend the event. Van Onselen was a personal friend of
Christian Porter Charles Christian Porter (born 11 July 1970) is an Australian former politician and lawyer who served as the 37th Attorney-General of Australia from 2017 to 2021 in the Turnbull government and the subsequent Morrison government. He was a Mem ...
. When Porter was accused of rape, Van Onselen defended him. When Porter resigned from Parliament the politician thanked Van Onselen for this support in his farewell speech. In 2023, Van Onselen was accused of breaching his departure agreement with Network Ten after he wrote a scathing opinion column about the network. On his departure from the network, Van Onselen signed an agreement agreeing not to disparage or ridicule Network Ten or its staff. In a surprise announcement in mid-April 2024, tabloid media outlet '' Daily Mail Australia'' announced that Van Onselen would be joining them as their political editor from 29 April 2024. This news was greeted by the satirical newspaper '' The Chaser'' with the headline "The ‘''Daily Mail'' of political commentators’ joins the ''Daily Mail''". he is still in the position.


Personal life

Van Onselen is of Dutch heritage. He is married to Ainslie van Onselen, the chief executive of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, and has two daughters.


Published works

*''John Winston Howard: The Biography'' (with Wayne Errington, 2007) (Melbourne University Press) *''Howard's End: The Unravelling of a Government'' (with Philip Senior, 2008) (Melbourne University Press) *''Liberals and Power: The Road Ahead'' (editor, 2008) (Melbourne University Press) *''Professionals or Part-timers? Major Party Senators in Australia'' (2015) (Melbourne University Press) *''Battleground: Why the Liberal Party Shirtfronted Tony Abbott'' (with Wayne Errington, 2015) (Melbourne University Press)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Onselen, Peter 1976 births Living people Australian people of Dutch descent Australian political scientists People educated at Scots College (Sydney) University of New South Wales alumni University of Western Australia alumni Academic staff of Edith Cowan University Australian political journalists Australian television journalists Australian television newsreaders and news presenters The Australian journalists Australian columnists