KEY FINDINGS Finding 1: There are known and real issues with Australian media portrayals of ageing and older people While this research found there are some positive examples of Australian media reporting on ageing, these were found to be the exception. More commonly, there are problematic recurring themes which continue to persist in media portrayals. This research found these recurring themes to be: l l l l l the framing of ageing as a problem, accompanied by the recurring assumption of ageing as though it is something to be solved, fought or cured a prevailing narrative of decline, frailty and vulnerability, and a framing of older Australians as both fundamentally powerless and an impending social and economic burden. The process of ageing was also frequently associated with the inevitability of isolation and loneliness intergenerational conflict, with a focus on perceived tensions between older and younger generations, especially around wealth and finance gendered ageism, with stories on older women often focused on beauty and image, where ageing is framed as a critical aesthetic concern and a woman’s value is conflated with her appearance invisibility and the underrepresentation of older Australians, their lived experiences and the reality of age and ageing being characteristics that may result in discrimination. The research also shows there is a lack of focus on intersectionality and age Finding 2: Australian media representations reflect a broader mainstream culture that undervalues older people Many of the media professionals interviewed reported that older people are not valued in mainstream Australian culture the way they are in Indigenous communities or other cultures. Many also reported that the issues affecting older people are often regarded as ‘lesser’ than those affecting other groups such as women, people with disability and younger people. This culture of undervaluing older people underpins the specific media industry drivers outlined in Finding 3. Executive summary 7