The ABC, our important national broadcaster, has generated respect and admiration for its recent coverage of how new political ideologies are shaping our lives, even without our knowledge. Now, in a secret world of misinformation and disinformation, it publishes a warning for us to keep an eye on the Atlas Network.

On Australia Day 2026 ABC business reporter Gareth Hutchens published an analysis of how a network of “free market” thinks tanks, including the little-known Atlas Network, is now one of the leading objects in a federal parliamentary inquiry currently underway in Australia.

Read the analysis

One ABC Friend wrote in response, “This sort of ABC reporting in a world of misinformation and disinformation is desperately needed. In a world where more people get their news from unverified social media the threats to our democracy and rule of law are real and increasing every day.”

In July last year Australia’s Senate appointed a select committee to inquire into a number of global campaigns thought to be deliberately eroding public trust in climate science and delaying or derailing climate action globally. This came in the wake of a United Nations warning that “coordinated disinformation campaigns” have been hindering global progress on climate change.

We need to be aware that the Senate Select Committee on Information Integrity on Climate Change and Energy has received more than 200 submissions and held public hearings in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne. It is due to report to Parliament on Tuesday 24 March 2026, after the December 2025 deadline was extended.

The terms of reference include asking it to inquire into:

  • How misinformation and disinformation related to climate change and energy is financed, produced and disseminated.
  • Connections between Australian organisations and international think tanks and influence networks associated with the dissemination of misinformation and disinformation related to matters of public policy; and
  • The role of social media, including the coordinated use of bots and trolls, messaging apps and generative artificial intelligence in facilitating the spread of misinformation and disinformation.

The ABC article reveals the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, now called the Atlas Network, was incorporated in 1981 as an organisation dedicated to helping free market think tanks proliferate globally.

“In 2026, more than 40 years later, the Atlas Network now ‘partners’ with more than 500 free-market think tanks around the world, with 10 of them in Australia and New Zealand,” Gareth Hutchens said in his piece.

In its submission to the Senate inquiry the Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA) said there was a lot at stake on this issue.

“ASIO has identified the erosion of social cohesion and trust in institutions through disinformation and misinformation as critical challenges to our national security environment,” it warned.

The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) said in its submission that there was a “concerning prevalence of misinformation and disinformation” in Australia and the “coordinated use of bots and trolls” was a key tactic in disseminating climate-related disinformation.

But it said that efforts by governments to combat the problem must be grounded in human rights principles. While regulation was necessary, it must not come at the expense of freedom of expression, it cautioned.

Julia Steinberger, Professor of Societal Challenges of Climate change, said that traditional media had shown itself to be ‘shockingly vulnerable’ to the uncritical broadcasting of climate disinformation.

She said, ”in Switzerland traditional media very often rebroadcast communication from politically orientated actors, such as members of the Mont Pelerin Society or affiliates of Atlas Network think tanks, as though they were neutral commentators.”

In its submission the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) said misinformation was “a subjective concept and raised concerns about how the enforcement of misinformation and disinformation policies tended to be ‘politically biased’.”

The ABC report pointed out that there are not many reporters regularly covering these think tank networks in Australia.

It points out that Jeremy Walker from UTS is one of the most prominent Australians academics working in this space. He made a detailed 75-page submission to the select committee, number 243 if you’re interested. In his submission he touches on the corporate funding sources for the different free-market think tanks and the links between various groups.

Look out for the final report when it comes out at the end of March and watch this space.