School of the Arts & Media
Realising meaningful political participation for Chinese and South Asian communities
Published on the 04 March 2026
Sukhmani Khorana co-produced a toolkit to promote meaningful political participation and media literacy among Chinese and South Asian communities in Australia. Photo: Adobe Stock images.
Addressing structural barriers enables greater civic engagement of migrant communities.
A UNSW-partnered toolkit promotes meaningful political participation for Chinese and South Asian communities in Australia. Its research-led recommendations address key challenges and support greater media literacy.
While migrants often actively engage in political news and debate, they face cultural, social and linguistic barriers that hinder their political participation, says project co-lead Scientia Associate Professor Sukhmani Khorana from UNSW’s School of the Arts & Media.
“Structural and everyday racism, gender inequities and instability or concerns around their immigration status can further compound this,” the leading scholar in media cultural studies says.
“Australian public agencies need to prioritise genuine engagement; this means understanding and integrating the socio-cultural norms of migrant communities, listening to their voices and meeting them where they engage with content.”
The research recommends more targeted communication strategies, managed inhouse, driven by research on the information consumption patterns of different demographics.
“Rather than the centralised distribution of translated content across limited national and ethnic digital media channels, this might mean capitalising on popular short-video formats, such as TikTok, RedNote or Xiaohongshu, WeChat’s Channels.”
Emphasising meaningful diversity – as opposed to tokenistic representation – in media and political landscapes can promote greater trust in Australian institutions, the research recommends.
“A lack of cultural and racial diversity in Australia’s political and media landscapes can lead to the exploitation and misuse of cultural and ethnic identities for political gain.
“Prioritising certain candidates for their visible difference rather than their track record within an electorate undermines the representation of ethnic communities’ issues.
“Achieving meaningful engagement demands we move beyond mere information translation, tokenistic gestures and one-way broadcasting.”
The UNSW Media Futures Hub partnered on the toolkit with the University of Melbourne and Allies in Colour, a peak body for multicultural Australians, ex-pats and non-citizens.
The resource is designed for political representatives; political party branches in culturally diverse electorates; electoral agencies; migrant community associations; diasporic media outlets; and mainstream national media.
Providing ongoing civics education is a key recommendation. “The lack of effective civic education tailored to migrant communities is pressing given our compulsory voting system,” A/Prof. Khorana says.
“This is currently confined to the Common Bond booklet associated with citizenship.” This lack leads community members to rely on immediate family and digital media for information, she says.
“Extended civic education, for example, during the citizenship process, could provide a valuable opportunity for trust building; we know already that naturalisation promotes interest in democratic and social participation.
“But this must be supported with sustained educational initiatives for all Australians to combat racism and structural inequities across educational institutions, workplaces and family settings.”
Understanding media consumption and political engagement
A/Prof. Khorana examines how migrant communities use media and storytelling to foster belonging and agency. She and Dr Fan Yang, University of Melbourne, have been researching political and media literacy among Chinese and South Asian communities in Australia since 2023.
“Migrants’ participation in Australia’s voting systems, their understanding of Australian democracy and the information they gather to make political decisions are under-researched.
“The lack of awareness about the disparities in civic knowledge and political participation among CALD [culturally and linguistically diverse] communities and other groups systematically disadvantages these communities and increases their vulnerability to political exploitation.”
The toolkit is informed by their study of first and second-generation South Asian and Chinese migrants who have lived in Australia for more than two years, conducted in collaboration with Allies in Colour.
The study surveyed 192 people and conducted seven focus groups with 14 participants who identify as having Chinese or South Asian cultural heritage in 2023-2024. More than 80% identified as ‘first-generation migrants’; more than 66% had resided in Australia for more than 10 years.
The bilingual survey examined civic participation and engagement; understanding of Australian voting systems; media consumption; trust in political news; and issues of concern for Chinese and South Asian communities.
The focus groups also explored participants’ experiences/challenges with civic participation; sense of belonging; media consumption; and strategies for mitigating mis-/disinformation in their communities.
“The study revealed that more than 90% of participants are actively involved in political activities, such as consuming news, expressing opinions publicly and participating in rallies,” A/Prof. Khorana says.
“Chinese respondents tend to engage more in news consumption and public expression, while South Asian respondents are more involved in running political campaigns.”
Despite this high level of engagement, nearly half of the participants reported not fully understanding Australia’s voting systems, creating a vulnerability to misinformation, the research found.
The researchers were commissioned to present their survey findings in a submission to the ‘Parliament Inquiry into Civics Education, Engagement and Participation in Australia’. The submission was widely cited in the Joint Standing Committee report tabled in Federal Parliament. Their recommendations are currently under consideration with government and peak bodies.
A/Prof. Khorana was subsequently invited to serve on the advisory group for media literacy in CALD communities for the Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia (FECCA). FECCA has now launched its media literacy program in partnership with community organisations.
Migrant communities are disproportionately targeted by mis- and disinformation
The toolkit responds in part to the need to address misleading information circulating in non-English speaking communities, A/Prof. Khorana says.
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) defines misinformation as false information spread due to ignorance, by error or mistake without the intent to deceive.
Disinformation is false information designed to deliberately mislead and influence public opinion or obscure the truth.
Frequently, education on civic participation in Chinese and South Asian communities occurs on social media platforms, such as WeChat, WhatsApp and RedNote, she says. “There’s a greater reliance on sources through these platforms, a lot of which are unverified.”
Online misinformation and disinformation circulated around non-English speaking communities or within private channels have long been overlooked by Australian regulatory bodies and national media outlets, she says.
In 2024, the Federal Government dropped its controversial misinformation bill due to opposition in the Senate. The legislation would have given the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) power to monitor digital platforms and required it to keep records about misinformation and disinformation on their networks.
During the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum and the 2025 federal election, misinformation and disinformation was reportedly prevalent, she says. “Communication from the AEC and the Australian Government to combat this proved less than effective.
“The AEC has very limited powers to regulate misleading electoral communications, where an elector is misled in relation to the casting of a vote.”
The limited visibility and closed nature of these communications on non-English social media platforms, such as WeChat, can aggravate national anxieties about foreign interference, A/Prof. Khorana says.
“This raises suspicions about migrants’ loyalty to the country, Australia’s national interest, and their citizenship, exacerbating everyday racism.”
The absence of legal intervention is exacerbated by a techno-social gap with malpractice increasing as artificial intelligence and technologies rapidly evolve, she says.
“Research has focused primarily on examining what misinformation and disinformation is being generated, by whom, and with which technologies.
“Our work complements this, providing qualitative data on how this can be tailored to capitalise on culturally or historically specific anxieties or fears in these communities.”
Grassroots contributions to civic education
Many civil society organisations have helped support more meaningful political engagement during election cycles, A/Prof. Khorana says.
“Organisations, such as Indian Link, the Arab Council, NRI Affairs, Chinese Australian Forum, and activists, for example, Varsha Yajman, promoted information, such as explainers on preferential voting. I worked with Browns for Better to translate my research into video segments for public dissemination.”
Additionally, the research found younger women were usually more politically and media savvy and worked to debunk misleading information at family dinners, community festivals and online.
“Most of these participants described this as ‘emotionally laborious’ but important work. Family dynamics, particularly those related to gender and generational differences, can hinder impact,” A/Prof. Khorana says.
“While these are significant interventions, we shouldn't put the burden on individuals who are not resourced to do this work.”
Ongoing civic education and tailored media literacy would help address knowledge gaps and prevent the spread of misleading information, she says. “Countries in the European Union, for example Finland, have incorporated media education or media literacy into the formal curriculum from the primary schooling level.
“Australia needs to invest in a more holistic and targeted approach to incorporate the expertise and lived experiences of our Chinese and South Asian communities.”
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Scientia Associate Professor Sukhmani Khorana
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