Finding someone to trust: Why do reviews of Australian media regulations propose new independent authorities?

In 2011-2012, the Australian Government commissioned two separate reviews of the country's media regulation. Despite big differences in the way they approached their task and in the conclusions they reached, both reviews recommended the creation of new regulatory authorities backed by statute. Although for different reasons they also attached much significance to the idea of independence. Both reviews might have delivered better results if they had recognised that independence matters only as one of several factors affecting the broader and more important question of whether a regulator's decisions are regarded as legitimate.