We should levy Facebook and Google to fund journalism. Here's how

Google, Facebook constitute an effective duopoly on online Australian media

There was a fascinating moment towards the end of Wednesday’s hearings of the Senate Inquiry into the Future of Public Interest Journalism.

Journalist Michael West was at the stand. West’s experience is in many ways emblematic. Once a marquee investigator for Fairfax Media with multiple scoops to his name, West was made redundant in one of Fairfax’s seemingly endless rounds of job shedding in recent years. He used his redundancy cheque to found a startup, MichaelWest.com.au, and took a position as an adjunct professor at the University of Sydney.

West has long been a dogged