In what came to be known as the #Twitdef defamation case, an academic Julie Posetti posted tweets purporting to summarise sentiments expressed by Wahlquist in a speech given at a Journalism Education Conference in Sydney in November 2010.
The speech was attended by Posetti, whose tweets on Twitter suggested Wahlquist found the editorial direction of The Australian's editor-in-chief Chris Mitchell "prescriptive" and stifling.
[6][7] Mitchell threatened Posetti with defamation as a result, indicating after audio recordings of Wahlquist's speech surfaced that Australian law does not protect individuals who are "repeating accurately allegations falsely made".
"[10] In 1996, Wahlquist won a Walkley Award for a three part series called The Gutting of NSW, published in the Australian rural newspaper The Land.
[13] Also known as Karin, she is one of the children of Gilbert ("Gil") Wahquist (1927-2012), an Australian journalist and "pioneer organic wine producer", and his wife, Vincie (née Porter), a school teacher.