G20 Policy Brief - The G20: Circus without a Ringleader?

The thirteenth G20 summit took place in Argentina in November/December 2018. It was only the second time (after Mexico 2012) it had been held in a developing country. Mauricio Macri’s government laid out an expansive agenda of particular interest to developing countries. Over 2,600 journalists were accredited, yet little of the substantive reporting focused on the themes that were supposedly guiding the agenda: the future of work; infrastructure for development; a sustainable food future; and gender mainstreaming. The focus on immediate personality politics and, at times, trivia, tends to crowd out the substantive agenda and reflects structural problems with the G20 itself. The ensuing ‘circus’ represents easy reporting for journalists socialised into the politics-as-parlour-game conceit of the hyper-speed social media and rolling news era. Without a better response to the upheavals of the contemporary era, and perhaps even institutional reform, the G20’s potential as a serious multilateral steering committee for the global economy will remain unfulfilled.

To read Matt's brief please click here.