“Democracy as we know it needs that openness. It needs a press that roars, that is respected, that calls out weakness and vassal-like conduct,” writes columnist HUGH SELBY.

On Australia Day 2026 I asked Google AI mode (the free version) this question: “What has Hugh Selby written about Donald Trump?”

Within at most a few seconds up popped the following accurate information:

“Hugh Selby, a former barrister and regular columnist for Canberra CityNews, has written several critical articles regarding Donald Trump, often focusing on his legal challenges and leadership style.

“His commentary includes:

• Critique of the US Supreme Court: In July 2024, Selby wrote that the US Supreme Court had effectively “killed democracy” with its ruling on presidential immunity, which protected Trump from prosecution for certain official acts. He argued that the court preferred “obtuse legal reasoning” over objectivity.
• Assessment of “Trump 2.0”: In early 2026, he characterized Trump as a “super-narcissist emperor” who only sees what he wants to see. He suggested that Trump’s primary motivation is “power” and that his support base might only “crack” if his financial backers begin to desert him.
• Opposition to “DEI”: Selby has noted that “Emperor Donnie” and his entourage view “diversity, equity and inclusion” (DEI) as a “blot on the Empire,” contrasting this with his own view that such programs are simple attempts to provide equal opportunity.
• Legal and Ethical History: He has dismissed Trump’s “Promise Maker” persona by highlighting his “criminal history, his minimal tax payments, his treatment of contractors and his outlandish lies”. 

“Selby’s writing generally uses Trump as a case study for broader discussions on legal integrity, judicial transparency, and the health of democratic institutions.“

On January 25, 2026 the RSL’s National President, Peter Tinley, called out Trump for his filthy lies that our troops “stayed… a little off the front lines” in Afghanistan.

Trump’s latest salvo of lies in the interests of staying connected with his domestic voting base, included defaming other coalition forces, such as those of the UK. Prime Minister Starmer was quick to demand a retraction. He got it.

Tinley called on Albanese to require Donnie to withdraw his comments and apologise.

Does Albo have the bottle to stand up to Trump? No. His actions so far are exactly what one would expect of a person who will always talk the talk but won’t do anything about a bully. 

Bernard Keane, writing in Crikey on Australia Day, has the article title, “Australia deserves a real leader, not a craven vassal”. Spot on, but whistling in the wind and only today.

Media needs to re-assert its voice and reach 

Anyone who wants to check out the accuracy of Google AI Mode’s answer to my question can easily do so. CityNews has no firewall, no fee. You can, as you know, subscribe for free to the online and pick up the weekly paper around Canberra and Queanbeyan.

But ask the same question about well-known, long-established, respected media writers for the subscription media and you can’t check the accuracy of the AI response: you can’t get past their employer’s firewall.

I get the need for publishers to have a firewall to protect their subscription base. What I don’t get is their failure to make it time limited.

The news cycle is ever shorter. That contraction is the core of political response to criticism these days: stay silent, tough it out, and the problem is drowned in the rush of newer news.

What is the useful function of a firewall that is longer than a week? None.

Remove the firewall on any article published a week or more ago and more traffic will come to the media, more traffic will view the advertising on the site.

That’s a win-win. Along with the proprietors and the advertisers the writers too draw more attention, have more influence in shaping ideas and movements.

There’s another opportunity to be grasped. In my lifetime editorials moved from the front page of the newspaper to deep inside. That was a mistake. It smothered a well-constructed view point.

In 2026 any editorial should be out the front, and with no firewall. Editorials should be written to be read, to be influential, to change views, and to lead to action. That’s only possible if anyone has access at any time. 

What’s more, let everyone access today’s editorial and the writings more than a week old of seasoned, good journalists, and subscriptions may just pick up.

Democracy as we know it needs that openness. It needs a press that roars, that is respected, that calls out weakness and vassal-like conduct.

Donnie has no qualms about kidnapping a foreign leader. America, the land of the free, has a black history of “rendition” for those much further down the food chain who step out of line. 

People just disappear, including Australians. You’ve forgotten about Mamdouh Habib and David Hicks, haven’t you? Type their names into your favourite search engine.

Donnie doesn’t like to be criticised. His minions can use AI at least as well as I can.

Remember the fate of Habib and Hicks and be afraid, the more so when our leader isn’t a leader. If our war dead and injured can be traduced there is no hope for mere scribblers.

Former barrister Hugh Selby is a CityNews columnist, usually focused on legal matters.