About Us
Launched in August 2004, newmatilda.com is an independent Australian website of news, analysis and satire. Believing that robust media is fundamental to a healthy democracy, newmatilda.com aims to provide unbiased information. It has no association with any political party or media organisation.
newmatilda.com provides intelligent coverage of Australian politics, business, consumerism, civil society, international affairs, media and culture for a global audience. As well as offering an understanding of current events against a broad historical and political backdrop, it features issues and ideas often left untouched by the mainstream media.
newmatilda.com publishes the work of writers from a wide range of backgrounds. They are journalists, current and former politicians, lawyers, critical and creative thinkers, bloggers, policy-wonks and satirists. A list of our regular writers can be found below. Unsolicited submissions are welcome. Click here for information.
Registering with newmatilda.com is free and allows you to keep up with what is being published via an email digest. Registered readers can choose to receive notice of the latest content by favourite writers or of topics of interest. They are also encouraged to participate in debates on the issues we cover through the comments section that follows each article.
Frequently asked questions are listed here. You can also contact us with a question or comment.
newmatilda.com is run by a small team based in Sydney. This is who we are:
Marni Cordell, Editor
Marni has worked as a journalist and editor in independent media for the past ten years. She was founding co-editor of Spinach7 Magazine, assistant commissioning editor of The Next Big Thing edition of the Griffith REVIEW and has been a freelancer for outlets as diverse as Punk Planet in the US and Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat program. She has also worked as a sub-editor, website administrator and festival director.
Rod McGuinness, Managing Editor
Rod has worked in the arts, the community sector and the corporate world. He was an independent film producer at True Vision and a producer in theatre for Hair of the Dog Productions, as well as a number of roles with Griffin Theatre Company. He was manager of the Arts Law Legal Centre and business manager with Beasley Intercultural before commencing with newmatilda.com in 2004.
Brendan Phelan, Associate Editor
Brendan has worked as an editor, subeditor, ghostwriter, researcher and freelance writer for a range of magazines and newspapers in Australia and the UK, including The Human Rights Defender, That’s Life! and the London Times. He was a co-founder of Lanfranchi’s Memorial Discothèque, a multi-purpose venue in Sydney.
Catriona Menzies-Pike, Associate Editor
Catriona has taught modern English and American Literature to undergraduates in Sydney since 2002. She currently edits InSight, the monthly policy journal of the Centre for Policy Development and co-edits M/C Reviews. She has a PhD in English Literature and has worked as a writer, editor, and researcher in both academic and civilian contexts.
Rachel Maher, Communications Director
Rachel has a long-time involvement in a range of media and arts projects. Rachel broadcasts regularly on community radio and has freelanced as a producer for SBS, ABC Radio National and the Pacifica Network in the US and has produced several short films. Rachel has worked on campaigns and media training projects for the National Ethnic and Multicultural Broadcasters Council, VCOSS and several Indigenous media organisations.
Phil Rutherford, Advertising Manager
Phil has been in marketing and sales for approaching 20 years but is new to online media. Phil worked in the UK and New Zealand before moving to Sydney in 2007. Phil’s work has been in a diverse range of industries including construction of low cost housing for rent, manufacturing, professional services consultancy and computer software.
Scott Mitchell, Intern
Scott Mitchell is currently studying government at Sydney University. His other accomplishments include graduating high school, where he was the recipient of upwards of four merit awards. Scott brings his valuable inexperience to newmatilda.com, along with a pseudo-ironic, quasi-intelligent outlook on the world around him.
Ben Eltham, National Affairs Correspondent
Ben Eltham is newmatilda.com’s National Affairs Correspondent. He is a Fellow of the Centre for Policy Development (CPD) and an Associate Fellow of Eidos. He trained to postgraduate level in neuroscience and is currently completing a PhD at the University of Western Sydney’s Centre for Cultural Research. Ben is currently co-writing a book for UNSW Press about Australian public policy with CPD Director Miriam Lyons, to be released in early 2009.
Mustafa Qadri, Middle East and South Asia Correspondent
Mustafa Qadri has reported widely from Israel and Palestine, London and Pakistan. He used to be a lawyer specialising in public international law and has worked at the Australian Attorney-General’s Department representing the Government in native title claims and international crime treaty negotiations.
Ben Pobjie, Resident Satirist
Ben Pobjie is a writer, poet and comedian who has been a fixture on Melbourne’s comedy and spoken word performance scenes for the past five years. In other lives, Ben is a bit of a game show aficionado. He was a winner on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, scoring $125,000; Deal Or No Deal, bringing in $20,000; and The Einstein Factor (defeated by a Eurovision specialist in the second round).
Jennifer Mills, Oracle
Jen "Jen" Mills is newmatilda.com’s resident astrologist (the Down to Earth Starguide for Skeptics and Cynics can be found here every Monday morning). When she’s not being psychic, she writes fiction, poetry and essays and dabbles in journalism. Her debut novel, The Diamond Anchor, will be published by University of Queensland Press in 2009.
