“We all know Kevin’s a media tart,” one of his colleagues protested to The Sydney Morning Herald in the same week that Rudd rose to the Labor Party leadership, “but frankly we would have thought it was more important to sort out the shadow ministry.” No no no. Claims of being overly amorous with the media bounce off Kevin Rudd like bullets from Superman, and perhaps that’s why he’s such a polished media performer — shameless yet effective. Which makes complete sense when you consider who he is up against, and the recent Labor Party imagery that has to be reconstructed in the eyes of a bemused electorate. This is the time for a tart, or at least the right kind of tart. For all those reasons, Kevin Rudd is the runaway winner of Crikey’s Peter Beattie Media Tart Award for 2006.

Crikey readers say:

“Julia Gillard for skillfully undermining Kim Beazley amidst assurances of absolute loyalty particularly on Australian Story, as well as in several speeches, interviews, etc.” – Kathleen Neale

2005 Winner: Queensland Premier Peter Beattie.