Pardon My Speech

Dr Ahona Guha is a clinical and forensic psychologist. Her first book, Reclaim: understanding complex trauma and those who abuse was published by Scribe Publications in 2023. She works with victims of abuse and trauma, and clients with a range of other difficulties — such as anxiety, depression, perfectionism, burn-out, and relationship problems. She also works with perpetrators of harmful behaviours to assess risk, and provides treatment to reduce the risk they pose to others. She writes widely for the media on matters related to mental health, health, social justice, and equity. Her work has appeared in The Age, The Guardian, The Saturday Paper, Breathe Magazine, SBS, and ABC. You can find out more about her work at www.ahonaguha.com.

Graeme Turner is Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of Queensland. He is one of the founding figures in media and cultural studies in Australia and a leading figure internationally. He has been writing books about Australian media, culture and society for many years, with a continuing focus on the idea of the nation. He has published thirty books, including Making it National (1994), Ending the Affair: The decline of Australian television news and current affairs (2005), Reinventing the Media (2016) and John Farnham's Whispering Jack (2021). His most recent book is The Shrinking Nation: How we got here and what can be done about it.

Amy Remeikis is the political reporter for The Guardian. She writes on the major political issues in Australia, crime, the courts and the environment. She is a regular panellist on the ABC's Insiders program and was the inaugural nominee for the Young Walkley awards.

Lucinda Holdforth is a speechwriter and author. After time spent in the Foreign Affairs Department and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, she worked for the Hawke-Keating Labor government up to 1996, including as speechwriter to deputy prime minister Kim Beazley. She has since worked with chairs and CEOs of top-twenty Australian companies, entrepreneurs and innovators, and not-for-profit organisations. She is the author of True Pleasures: A Memoir of Women in Paris (2004), Why Manners Matter (2008) and Leading Lines (2019). Holdforth regards the free play of speech and ideas as essential for democracy and shared progress.

Amber Gwynne is a researcher, writer and editor based in Meanjin/Brisbane. She is a senior officer in the public service, managing editor of the Journal of Australian Studies, and a lecturer in writing at The University of Queensland, where she completed a PhD exploring the ways in which readers with a history of depression choose and use self-help books. Her dissertation received a Dean’s Award for Outstanding Theses in 2018. Her essays and non-fiction have been published in Overland, Kill Your Darlings and Griffith Review, among others.