With just four days to go until Australians head to the polls for the Federal Election, new data from media monitoring company Streem reveals a sharp divide between traditional media coverage and social media momentum in the 2025 election campaign.
Across print, online, radio, TV, magazines and podcasts, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has dominated the share of voice during the campaign, securing 56.3% of traditional media mentions compared to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s 43.7%.
Streem’s research shows Peter Dutton leads in the ‘traditional’ media share of voice.
However, the social media landscape paints a different picture.
On platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and X, Anthony Albanese has maintained the upper hand for most of the campaign period, capturing 54.7% of the conversation compared to Dutton’s 45.3%.
The divergence highlights the evolving nature of election campaigning and the increasingly distinct audiences reached via traditional and digital platforms.
Albanese’s lead across social platforms suggests a younger demographic is making up the volume of audience.
Streem’s research shows Anthony Albanese leads across social media.
Meanwhile, Streem’s analysis shows that cost of living and housing have overwhelmingly defined the election narrative, mentioned 2.3 times more often than the next biggest issue, infrastructure and transport.
With Australians facing persistent economic pressures, it’s no surprise these themes have dominated both political messaging and media reporting.
The insights cover the campaign period from 28 March to 28 April.
As candidates enter the final days of campaigning, ending on Saturday 3 May, the battle for influence across both media spheres, traditional and social, will be critical in swaying undecided voters.