Larvatus Prodeo

In between the incessant ads for bicycles (amusingly, an ad featuring Lance Armstrong only claims that “we believe” his sponsor makes the “world’s best bikes” – which must be the first time ever Armstrong wasn’t sure about anything) , SBS’s tour coverage has featured a fair bit of promotion for a new documentary series – Liberal Rule. According to their program guide:

The 1996-2007 Howard government made the most determined attempt to change Australian society since the brief and revolutionary Whitlam era of the early 1970s. Was it successful? SBS presents a provocative consideration of how this country changed as a result of one man’s determination to make his particular mark.

The teaser preview (viewable on SBS’s website under “sneak peek TV”, though there’s no convenient direct link) suggests that this version will at least attempt some critical analysis, rather than just serving as a piece of extended stenography as The Howard Years did. The massive handwave about the sale of Telstra in the teaser doesn’t bode well, though.

ELSEWHERE: Joni at Blogocrats (and others in comments) have noted Gerard Henderson’s spray on the program, which he describes as a “shocker and a disgrace”. It sounds better already…