Journalism and Public Communication with Chris Kohler

In this episode, Chris Kohler joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to discuss how financial information cuts through in a noisy digital world. Chris is Finance Editor at 9News, author of How They Get You, and host of the podcast How We Got Here. He has also built one of Australia’s largest independent finance audiences, with more than 750,000 followers on Instagram, by explaining complex financial systems clearly and accessibly. The conversation explores why clear communication matters, especially when products and platforms are deliberately designed to influence consumer behaviour. Chris and Sally discuss how short-form videos can reveal the mechanisms behind pokies, lotteries, sports betting, prediction markets, loyalty schemes, buy-now-pay-later products, and other systems that often work against consumers’ interests. They also consider the limits of communication. If people understand that a product is designed to influence them, does that knowledge actually change behaviour? What can public-facing communication do that official warnings, academic research, or government messaging often cannot? And where does responsibility sit when legal products are built around psychological pressure, persuasive design, and information imbalance?  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/  Show notes and links: Chris Kohler on Instagram: @chriskohlernews Chris Kohler on YouTube: @ChrisKohlerNews Chris Kohler on TikTok: @chriskohlernews Books: How They Get You by Chris Kohler: Available through Penguin Random House Australia and all good booksellers. How We Got Here podcast: Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Acast. Australian Government Response: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs/Onlinegamblingimpacts/Government_Response  Note: Correction - The Government Response was released over the Easter long weekend, not the Anzac Day weekend. Some of our favourites from Chris Kohler:  Pokies: instagram.com/reel/DCQbGEzgvXZ/   Lotteries: youtube.com/shorts/XrENnU5l3hw Sports betting: instagram.com/reel/DQlN9aoEuqE/ Prediction markets: youtube.com/shorts/HBiWxEPCiWk