Emerson began his media career in 1988 as a cadet journalist with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in Brisbane and helped launch Triple J in Queensland in 1990.

[3] In 1991 he moved to Sydney to work as a reporter on ABC Radio's current affairs programs, AM, PM and The World Today.

[8] At the 2017 State Election, Scott was unable to win re-election for the new seat of Maiwar which covered a significant part of his former electorate.

After leaving parliament in 2017 Emerson returned to business consultancy and journalism, writing columns for The Australian and as a contributor on Sky News Australia.

[9] In May 2022, in the week after the 2022 Australian federal election, Emerson’s interview with Labor Party senior frontbencher Tanya Plibersek sparked national headlines when Plibersek likened incoming Coalition leader and former senior Liberal Party minister Peter Dutton to Harry Potter villain Voldemort.

[12] Described as an avid adventurer,[13] Emerson has trekked the Himalayas including the 5400m Thorong La pass, climbed the 5900m Mount Kilimanjaro and hiked the Kokoda Trail.

He has also wing walked on a biplane while it performed aerobatics and, for charity, abseiled Brisbane's 134m AMP tower and swung off the Goodwill Bridge.

Emerson regularly competes in open water swimming races and in 2023 swam 3.2km from Alcatraz Island to the shore across San Francisco Bay.