She was just a 17-year-old business owner, reacting to the Federal Budget the same way the rest of us were: with a mix of disbelief and dark humour.
But what happened next is one of the most powerful examples of earned media I've seen in my entire career as a journalist and media trainer. And it has everything to teach small business owners about the power of a well-timed story.
Sienna Jovcevski is the founder of Tweeny Skin, a skincare brand she launched at just 12 years old after she couldn't find products formulated for her age group. She's now 17, she's been running her business for five years, and earlier this year, she and her mum completed the Media Masters Academy as part of our 2025 cohort.
She is, in every sense, exactly the kind of founder journalists love: young, articulate, solving a real problem, with a story that writes itself.
On Tuesday 13 May 2025, in the days following the Federal Budget announcement, a meme trend swept across Australian social media. Small business owners were sarcastically introducing Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as their new "silent shareholder," referencing the tax burden the budget placed on businesses.
Sienna jumped on the trend immediately. She posted a version introducing the PM as her new 47% "not so silent" shareholder.
It went viral.
Not just a little viral. Big viral.
The meme's reach caught the attention of the Deputy Treasurer's office in Canberra. Deputy Treasurer Tim Wilson included Sienna and her story in his official budget reply speech in Parliament.
A 17-year-old skincare founder from a viral Instagram post, cited in Parliament. Let that sink in.
That same evening, Channel Nine News featured the moment in their 6pm bulletin.
Sienna had not pitched a single journalist. She had not hired a PR agency. She had not sent a media release. She posted a meme and the story took on a life of its own.
This is the part I want every small business owner reading this to pay close attention to.
1. Timeliness is one of the most powerful media triggers there is.
Journalists are always looking for real people affected by real events, right now. The Federal Budget was the story of the week. Sienna was a real small business owner with a genuine reaction. That combination is irresistible to a newsroom.
2. You don't always need to pitch. Sometimes you need to participate.
Sienna didn't pitch the story. She participated in a cultural moment and let the story find her. That's not luck. That's visibility. When you show up consistently, share your authentic perspective, and position yourself as a relatable expert in your space, the media has something to grab onto.
3. Your "ordinary" reaction is often extraordinary content.
Sienna's meme wasn't a carefully crafted media strategy. It was an honest reaction to something that directly affected her business. That authenticity is exactly what makes content cut through and what makes journalists take notice.
4. Newsjacking works, when it's genuine.
Newsjacking is the practice of inserting your story into a current news cycle. When it's forced or opportunistic, it falls flat. When it's genuine, the way Sienna's was, it can carry you further than any press release ever could.
Here's where I have to be honest with you, because this is important.
With the viral attention came trolls.
Awful comments on Sienna's social media. Comments bad enough that when I reached out to offer her the chance to appear on Sky News and other outlets, she sent me a voice message back saying she'd decided to step back from political conversations for the sake of her business.
I understood completely. She made the right call for her at 17 years old.
But I won't pretend it didn't break my heart a little. Another young female founder, trolled into silence.
This is the side of media visibility that nobody talks about enough. Exposure brings opportunity, and sometimes it brings noise you didn't ask for. Knowing how to manage that, how to protect your energy and your brand while still leveraging the attention, is a skill. It's something we talk about inside Media Masters Academy, because it's real, and it happens.
Whether Sienna steps back into the media spotlight or not, her story is already a masterclass.
She showed up authentically. She participated in a timely conversation. Her story had genuine newsworthiness. And the media came to her.
That is what earned media looks like when it works. Not a polished pitch from a PR agency. A real person, with a real story, at exactly the right moment.
If you're a small business owner wondering whether you have what it takes to get media attention without a PR budget, the answer is yes. You already have the most important ingredient: a real story.
The question is whether you know how to use it.
The Media Masters Academy teaches small business owners how to pitch their story to journalists, build media relationships, and get featured in the outlets that matter to their audience, without hiring a PR agency.
Our next intake is open now. [Join the waitlist / Apply here]
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