Professor Jenny Hocking
BSc (Mon); BEc (Mon); PhD (Syd)
Contact details | Research interests | Research supervision | Publications
Latest work
Gough Whitlam: A Moment in History
This moment was not his alone, nor could it ever have come about without him … Gough Whitlam turned to Graham Freudenberg, touched him lightly on the shoulder, saying, ‘It’s been a long road, Comrade, but we’re there’, and walked out to meet the spotlight … From his childhood in the fledging city of Canberra to his first appearance as Prime Minister (playing Neville Chamberlain), to his extensive war service in the Pacific and marriage to Margaret, the champion swimmer and daughter of Justice Wilfred Dovey, the biography draws on previously unseen archival material, extensive interviews with family and colleagues, and exclusive interviews with Gough Whitlam himself. Gough Whitlam: A Moment in History is a magnificent biography that illuminates the path that took one man to power and was shortlisted for The Age 2009 Non-Fiction Book award. View details and purchase the book from Readings.
Professor Jenny Hocking is a well-known biographer and a highly regarded scholar and commentator on Australian politics, counter-terrorism and security matters. Her latest work Gough Whitlam: A Moment in History (Melbourne University Publishing. 2008, 2009) is the first of a two-volume biography of the former Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam. Jenny has written extensively in these fields and her work has appeared in scholarly journals, newspapers, radio and television. She is a regular commentator on Australian politics and security matters in Australian media and for Radio Netherlands, and contributed the entries on Gough Whitlam and Lionel Murphy to the Oxford Companion to Australian Politics. Professor Hocking is also the author of two earlier biographies, Lionel Murphy: a Political Biography (Cambridge University Press. 1997, 2000); Frank Hardy: Politics Literature Life (Lothian Books. 2005) both of which were short-listed in national literary awards. She has appeared as a guest of several writers’ festivals including the Sydney and Melbourne Writers Festivals.
Jenny Hocking has also written extensively on counter-terrorism and democracy most recently in Terror Laws: ASIO, Counter-terrorism and the Threat to Democracy (UNSW Press. 2004). She is a member of the Executive Board of the International Australian Studies Association, a Series Editor of the Journal of Australian Studies and a long-standing Trustee of the Lionel Murphy Foundation, a not for profit organisation awarding national and international scholarships to postgraduate students. Jenny Hocking has made several submissions to parliamentary inquiries, including the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee, regarding the development of Australia’s counter-terrorism laws and her public presentations, invited papers and key-note addresses to national and international conferences include the University of Waikato, New Zealand, the University of Newcastle and the Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Western Australia.
Current research
Jenny Hocking is working on the second volume of her definitive two volume biographical study of the former Labor Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam, published by Melbourne University Publishing. The biography draws on Jenny’s unprecedented access to archival material, interviews with family and colleagues and exclusive interviews with Gough Whitlam himself and examines Australian political and cultural developments in the twentieth century through the life of one of its most significant public figures.
The project is supported by an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant (2009-2012) with partner organizations the National Library of Australia and the National Archives of Australia and with the support of the Whitlam Institute within the University of Western Sydney. Volume II of Gough Whitlam: The Biography will be published in 2012.
Research interests
Jenny Hocking was appointed Research Professor and Director of Research with the National Centre for Australian Studies in the School of Humanities, Communications and Social Sciences, in 2007. Her PhD, from the Department of Government and Public Administration at the University of Sydney was in the field of Australia’s counter-terrorism developments.
Research supervision
Areas of supervision include:
- Australian labour history
- Australian biography
- Public sector broadcasting
- Communications and media policy
- Australian governance
- Counter-terrorism
- Australian politics
Political biography
Jenny Hocking is the author of two political biographies, of the former Attorney-General and High Court justice Lionel Murphy, Lionel Murphy: A Political Biography (Cambridge University Press. 1997, 2000), and of the Australian communist, political activist and author Frank Hardy, Frank Hardy: Politics Literature Life (Lothian Books. 2005). Lionel Murphy: A Political Biography was short-listed for the South Australian Literature Awards for best non-fiction in 1997, Frank Hardy: Politics Literature Life was short-listed in the 2006 NSW History Awards. Jenny co-wrote the award-winning documentary film about Lionel Murphy, Mr Neal is Entitled to be an Agitator (Film Art Doco, ABC-TV 1991) and has been an academic advisor to several Australian documentary productions. She also co-edited with Associate Professor Colleen Lewis the 2003 volume It’s Time Again: Whitlam and Modern Labor.
Counter-terrorism, security and democracy
Jenny is a prolific writer and contributor to public debate on counter-terrorism and democracy, in her first book, Beyond Terrorism: the Development of the Australian Security State (Allen & Unwin. 1993) and Terror Laws: ASIO, Counter-terrorism and the Threat to Democracy (UNSW Press. 2004) as well as numerous book chapters, articles and opinion pieces. She has co-edited, also with Associate Professor Colleen Lewis, the international collection Counter-terrorism and the Post-Democratic State published by Edward Elgar in 2007. Jenny has made submissions to several parliamentary inquiries into these developments and is a frequent commentator in Australian and international media on these and other contemporary political issues.
Research grants
Professor Hocking has been the recipient of several competitive research grants including:
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ARC Linkage Grant (2009-2012) with Partner Organisations the National Library of Australia and the National Archives of Australia, Gough Whitlam: A Living Democracy
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ARC Linkage Grant (2005-2008) with Partner Organisations the National Library of Australia and the National Archives of Australia, Gough Whitlam: People, Party, Politics
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ARC QEII Research Fellowship (1999-2005), Frank Hardy: A Political Biography
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Harold White Fellowship with the National Library of Australia (2002), Examination of the Frank Hardy Papers MS4887
Research supervision
Jenny Hocking is an experienced and dedicated supervisor of research students and this is one of her great interests. She takes great delight in seeing students develop their ideas and their research and establish a publication record. Her areas of supervision and expertise include:
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Australian biography
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Public sector broadcasting
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Communications and media policy
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Australian governance
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Labour history
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Counter-terrorism
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Australian politics
Publications
BOOKS
2008 Gough Whitlam: A Moment in History Vol I of Gough Whitlam: The Biography Melbourne University Publishing/Miegunyah Press. Melbourne. 471pp. Paperback 2009
2005 Frank Hardy: Politics Literature Life Lothian Books. Melbourne. 310pp
2004 Terror Laws: ASIO, Counter-terrorism and the Threat to Democracy University of New South Wales Press. Sydney. 288pp
2000 Lionel Murphy: A Political Biography Cambridge University Press. Melbourne. Paperback edition with new Foreword by Justice Michael Kirby and new Epilogue ‘Did Lionel Murphy really happen?’ by the author. 382pp
EDITED BOOKS
2007 Hocking, J. and Lewis, C. (eds) The Post-democratic Era: Counter-terrorism and the State Edward Elgar Publishing. London.
2003 Hocking, J. and Lewis, C. (eds) It’s Time Again: Whitlam and Modern Labor Circa Books. Melbourne.
BOOK CHAPTERS
2007 'Counter-terrorism and the politics of social cohesion' in Jupp, J., Nieuwenhuysen, J., Dawson, E. (eds.) Social Cohesion in Australia. Melbourne: Cambridge University Press, :182-190
2007 with Lewis, C. ‘Counter-terrorism and the rise of “security policing”’ in Hocking, J. and Lewis, C. (eds) The Post-democratic Era: Counter-terrorism and the State Edward Elgar Publishing. London.
2007 ‘Academic Freedom in an Age of Terror’ in Turk, J. and Manson, A. (eds) Academic Freedom in Fearful Times James Lorimer Publishing. Canada.
2005a ‘History by Numbers’ Introduction to Nolan, S. (ed) Reflections on the Dismissal Melbourne University Press. Melbourne. :1-14
2005b ‘Liberty, Security and the State’ in Saunders, P. and Walter, J. (eds) Ideas and Influence: Social Science and Public Policy in Australia University of New South Wales Press. Sydney. :178-197
2005c ‘Frank Hardy and Power Without Glory: Prelude to the Split’ in Love, P. and Strangio, P. The Great Labor Schism Scribe Publications. Melbourne. :97-113
ARTICLES
2007 ‘Post-war reconstruction and the new world order: the origins of Gough Whitlam's democratic citizen’ Australian Journal of Politics and History 53 (2) :223-235.
2005 ‘The Anti-Terrorism Bill (No 2) 2005: When scrutiny, secrecy and security collide’ Democratic Audit http://democratic.audit.anu.edu.au
2004a ‘Protecting democracy by preserving justice: ‘Even for the feared and the hated”’ University of New South Wales Law Journal 27(1) Thematic Issue: The Legal Response to Terrorism :319-338
2004b ‘The end of dissent: Counter terrorism and the politics of repression’ Arena Journal No. 22 September :11-19
REVIEWS AND COMMENTARY
2006 ‘Australian Terror Laws Target Ideas, Debate and Dissent’ Academic Matters: The Journal of Higher Education in Canada Fall :10-12
2004a ‘Power, Glory and Myth’ review of James Griffin John Wren: A Life Reconsidered Scribe Publications The Age 13 March
2004b ‘National Security and Democratic Rights: Australian Terror Laws’ The Sydney Papers Vol. 16 No. 1 Summer :89-95
2003 ‘Past Imperfect, Present Tense’ review of Stuart Macintyre and Anna Clark The History Wars Melbourne University Press The Age 30 August :4
Parliamentary and policy submissions
2006 Submission to the International Commission of Jurists Eminent Jurists Panel Terrorism, Counter-terrorism and Human Rights Sydney.
2005 Submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee inquiry into the Anti-Terrorism Bill (No 2) 2005
2002 Submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee inquiry into proposed ‘terrorism’ offences and Executive proscription powers
2002 Invited to give evidence in person before the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee, Melbourne hearings
2002 Submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on ASIO, ASIS and DSD inquiry into proposed detention powers for ASIO
