Rupert Murdoch's Australian newspapers are biased against the Gillard Government and would attack the Prime Minister at any opportunity, a major inquiry into the nation's media has heard.

Dr Martin Hirst, associate professor at Deakin University’s School of Communication, told the independent inquiry he was "blown away’’ by newspaper coverage of federal politics, particularly in News Ltd’s broadsheet, The Australian.



He told the inquiry’s first public hearing in Melbourne today that he agreed with those who said News Ltd held an anti-Labor bias.

"Every (News Ltd) story about federal politics is slanting in a way that’s against (the government),’’ he said.



"If they can find a way of attacking (Prime Minister) Julia Gillard ... they will do so.’’



Dr Hirst also argued the mainstream media in Australia lacked a diversity of views, and opinion writers were predominantly held centre-Right views.



He said the Australian media often made excuses for questionable behaviour by claiming it was in the public interest.



‘‘If the media is claiming to have this role of defending the public interest, being the watchdog, the fourth estate ... then I think the public citizens have a right to expect that what they’re getting from the media is living up to those ideals,’’ he said.



‘‘I think sometimes it doesn’t.’’



He said cases such as the recent federal court ruling against Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt highlighted the need for a limitation on freedom of speech where it breached more important human rights, such as the right not to be vilified.

High-profile Melbourne academic Robert Manne, author of a highly critical Quarterly Essay article focusing on The Australian’s political coverage, told the inquiry it was indefensible that "that one company owns 70 per cent of print circulation’’.

"I think that would be regarded in the English-speaking world as laughable,’’ he said, arguing that the group should be broken up.