Politicians and observers alike in Western democracies watch with growing dismay the cynicism that pervades the electorate in response seemingly to any political initiative, regardless of its merit and from whatever side of the political spectrum it may originate.All too frequently, government announcements are dismissed as just more'spin'. Meantime, the party faithful despair that media strategies have taken precedence over ideological principles;that courting the media has become more important than(or synonymous with?) serving the public interest.Although empirically demonstrated that white adult males are responsible for most crime in Perth's premier entertainment precinct, the Labor State Government introduced a curfew targeting indigenous youngsters.Denounced privately by the newspaper editors as 'a cheap political shot that made a bit of a headline', the curfew was nonetheless applauded in their editorials for making the precinct safer.This behind-the-scenes examination of the interplay between government and media will interest academics, government policy- makers, media professionals and anyone concerned with race relations.