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The economic roundtable: Where is Labor’s ambition?

21 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week in Canberra, the press, unions, business leaders and politicians have all been talking about one thing: the economic roundtable.  It&rs...

Is Qantas sorry – or just sorry it got caught?

20 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Qantas has been told it’s the “wrong kind of sorry”. Five years after illegally outsourcing 1,800 ground staff, the airline has been...

Trump v Zelensky: Round 2

19 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Fresh off the back of his meeting with Putin in Alaska, US President Donald Trump has held talks with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky.  While ...

Part 1: Inside Australia's secretive crocodile skin industry

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Darwin’s crocodile farms supply some of the world’s most exclusive fashion houses. But as award-winning journalist Katherine Wilson starte...

Part 2: Crocodiles, crimes and conservation claims

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is part two of a two-part series. Start with Part 1: Inside Australia's secretive crocodile skin industry. The lucrative Australian crocodile ski...

Inside the Islamophobia envoy’s private briefings to parliament

17 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When the Australian government appointed its envoy to combat Islamophobia, it came amid escalating violence in Gaza.  But signs have emerged that...

AI: ‘The biggest act of copyright theft in history’

14 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A few weeks ago, Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar addressed the National Press Club to discuss what he describes as the “next great industria...

Conspiracy Nation part 2: From fringe to Parliament

13 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s easy to dismiss conspiracy theories as fringe or imported. But conspiratorial ideas are gaining traction with everyday Australians – ...

Conspiracy Nation part 1: The COVID conspiracy pipeline

13 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Australia – like many countries – saw protesters take the streets. They weren’t just protesting lockdo...

The giant cuttlefish and the deadly algal bloom

12 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When dead fish began washing up on South Australian beaches earlier this year, Dr Scott Bennett was alarmed. Scott’s a marine ecologist at the U...

What does Australia’s recognition of Palestine actually achieve?

11 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia will recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced. Albanese claims the mo...

‘We do not feel safe’: Kumanjayi White’s grandfather on the danger of the NT police

10 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In May this year, Kumanjayi White died after being restrained by police inside a supermarket in Alice Springs. Just weeks later, the coroner released ...

The political calculations behind Albanese’s economic roundtable

07 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Labor is laying the groundwork for a major overhaul of Australia’s tax system.  In just over a week, a hand-picked group of people from bus...

Collapse or coexistence: Avoiding Israel and Palestine's bleakest futures

06 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As ceasefire talks with Hamas stall, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to convene his security cabinet to agree on a new Gaza str...

Part 2: A warning from an undercover ASIO informant

05 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When ASIO’s spy chief Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, it was widely seen as a recruitment drive. He talke...

Part 1: The spiritual leader of Sydney’s pro-ISIS network

05 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At the height of the Islamic State’s power in Syria, hundreds of Australians are thought to have joined their ranks. But as security agencies cr...

Could Australia get a national truth telling commission?

04 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For nearly two decades, Australian governments have pledged to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians — in health, educ...

A collective howl of protest on the Sydney Harbour Bridge

03 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In spite of pouring rain, government opposition and a failed police ban, 90,000 people marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge yesterday. It was the ...

Anthony Albanese's long held hopes for Palestinian statehood

31 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Anthony Albanese has been waiting decades to recognise a Palestinian state.  Now, as countries like France, Canada and the UK all declare their o...

How the internet is about to change for everyone

30 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia’s plan to ban teenagers from social media has been called “world‑leading”. The law, which comes into effect December 10,...

How China uses persuasive technology for social control

29 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As companies across the world pursue generative AI technology, new forms of manipulation become possible. At the forefront of this are neurotechnologi...

Richard Flanagan on the 'ludicrous' deal derailing Tasmanian politics

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Tasmanian premier Jeremy Rockliff struck a deal with the AFL to build a brand new stadium in Hobart's historic center, it was a decision made wit...

The students behind the historic ICJ climate ruling

27 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countries have a legal obligation to tackle climate change, according to a landmark finding from the world’s highest court.Last week, the Intern...

Amy Remeikis on parliament’s ‘messy’ return

24 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When parliament returned this week, the seating chart said it all. With 123 Labor members in the parliament – the government is taking up much o...

Could Syria be headed for another civil war?

23 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When an Israeli airstrike hit the gate of Syria’s Defence Ministry in central Damascus, the blast echoed far beyond the capital.It was a warning...

The AFP's failure to investigate itself

22 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Australian Federal Police investigate some of  the country's most serious crimes - terrorism, corruption, drugs, and human trafficking. ...

The gas project threatening a world heritage site

21 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When UNESCO voted to put the Murujuga Cultural Landscape in north-west Australia on the World Heritage List, they recognised the ancient rock art as a...

Part 2: 'Another wonderful secret': The letter Trump denies sending Epstein

20 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second episode in a two part series. If you haven’t yet, start by listening to Part 1: How the Epstein conspiracy turned MAGA agains...

Part 1: How the Epstein conspiracy turned MAGA against Trump

20 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As Donald Trump tries to hose down criticisms over his mishandling of the Epstein files, some of his most ardent supporters are now turning against hi...

Will Australia go to war over Taiwan?

17 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia is caught in a perilous balancing act.  This week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met with Premier Xi Jinping to stabilise ties with C...

‘Mabo didn’t win the first time’: Torres Strait Islanders will continue climate fight

16 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Federal Court has dismissed a landmark class action brought by Uncles Paul Kabai and Pabai Pabai – two Torres Strait Islander men who said C...

Why the Envoy’s plan to tackle antisemitism could backfire

15 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been a year since the Albanese government appointed Jillian Segal to the role of Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism in Australia.Last wee...

How China took over the world’s critical minerals

14 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Anthony Albanese’s meeting with Xi Jinping this week is a crucial opportunity to strengthen relations with our biggest trading partner. But it c...

The war inside the Liberal Party over quotas

13 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Liberal Party knows it needs to change. But the battle over how is already tearing the party apart. Sussan Ley has declared herself a “zealo...

Fake bands, real weapons: How Spotify is fuelling the arms race

10 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Spotify has transformed how the world listens to music. But as it’s grown, the company behind it, and its founder Daniel Ek, have been reshaping...

Antoinette Lattouf on beating the ABC in court

09 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When journalist Antoinette Lattouf picked up a casual contract with ABC Radio Sydney, she didn’t expect it to end in court. But after she reshar...

How Kumanjayi Walker’s death should change the NT Police

08 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the Central Australian community of Yuendumu, Kumanjayi Walker’s family gathered this week to hear coroner Elizabeth Armitage share her findi...

Inside the courtroom for Erin Patterson's guilty verdict

07 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Erin Patterson has been found guilty of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, after serving her estranged ex-husband’s famil...

Adele Ferguson on why children aren’t safe at childcare centres

06 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A child care worker in Victoria has been charged with more than 70 offences relating to the sexual abuse of children. Following the arrest, the state ...

Amy Remeikis on Australia's critical minerals bargaining chip

03 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia is positioning itself as a critical supplier of the minerals the world needs to build clean technology. But for now, China dominates the mar...

Weaponising AI: How chatbots are becoming tools for domestic abuse

02 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

AI chatbots have crept into our lives – and some abusers are weaponising them. By feeding intimate details about their partners into tools like ...

Part 2: The truth has been told

01 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second installment of a two part series about the history and impact of the Yoorrook Justice Commission. In this episode, we hear the stor...

Part 1: The road to Yoorrook

01 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For generations, First Nations people have called for a truth telling process so their stories can be heard. In Victoria, for the first time in Austra...

'A horrifying new pattern': Palestinians killed as they wait for aid

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz published testimony from Israeli soldiers who admitted to deliberately shooting unarmed Palestinian civilians...

We love Read This

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two years ago, some of our colleagues had the idea to start a show about books. The result was Read This – a weekly podcast about the books we l...

Are BYD cars Chinese spyware?

29 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A sleek Chinese-made ute is suddenly one of the most popular vehicles on Australian roads. It’s cheap, fast and packed with tech. But behind its...

Read This: We Went to Helen Garner’s House

28 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this inaugural episode of Read This, host Michael Williams and founding editor Sarah McVeigh head to Helen Garner’s house for cake and conver...

Why Albanese backed Trump’s Iran attack

26 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When US President Donald Trump ordered strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, the world watched for a response. But in Australia, there was silence. It too...

The widening gaps in Albanese’s climate promises

25 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cyclone Alfred should not have tracked as far south as it did. But in March it tore through Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Northern Rivers, affectin...

Giving birth to a stranger's baby: The cost of IVF mistakes

24 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A mistake at an IVF clinic has led to a woman giving birth to a stranger’s baby. It’s a catastrophic error and not the first one that&rsqu...

A 'rathole of retaliation': Trump, Iran and what happens next

23 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

America’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites over the weekend mark a terrifying turning point. Donald Trump has taken the US into direct conf...

‘A very dangerous man’: How Alex Antic is shaping the Liberals

22 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Having fought his way to the top of the South Australian Liberal ticket, Alex Antic is working to reshape the party as a radical outfit more intereste...

Read This: John Rebus Will Outlive Ian Rankin

21 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ian Rankin introduced Detective John Rebus in his 1987 novel Knots and Crosses. Since then, Rankin has published another two dozen books in the s...

What Trump’s no-show means for AUKUS

19 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At the G7 summit in Canada, Anthony Albanese had prepared carefully for a meeting with Donald Trump – even reaching out to Trump’s golfing...

How Trump could make Australian medicines more expensive

18 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Medicine in Australia could soon become more expensive and harder to come by. The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme – the safety net that keeps our...

How abortion is weaponised in the courts

17 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Abortion was fully decriminalised across Australia in 2023, meaning people can end a pregnancy without fear of prosecution. But that hasn’t stop...

Why Israel attacked Iran in the middle of US-Iran talks

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On Friday, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, sending roughly 200 fighter jets to hit more than a hundred sites across Iran – including part...

The consulting firms reshaping our universities

15 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A quiet transformation is underway at Australian universities. Behind closed doors, powerful consulting firms are helping to reshape higher education;...

Read This: Hoot and Holler for Kaliane Bradley

14 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On the surface, Kaliane Bradley’s debut is a time-travel novel — it’s speculative fiction meets romance and espionage. But underneat...

From AUKUS to tariffs: Should Albanese repair ties with Trump?

12 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As Anthony Albanese heads to the G7 summit, the future of Australia’s most important defence pact is suddenly uncertain.  The Trump adminis...

Trump, Musk and the big, beautiful break-up

11 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Elon Musk and Donald Trump were once political partners – sharing praise, power and ice-cream parties. Now the pair have been trading insults on...

How Trump’s mass deportations sparked a riot

10 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

US President Donald Trump’s agenda of mass deportations has reached a tipping point. After ICE raids in Los Angeles sparked street riots, the pr...

Albanese’s ‘bizarre’ reversal at Home Affairs

09 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Anthony Albanese first became prime minister, he began dismantling the Home Affairs super-ministry, which had been overseen by Peter Dutton. Labo...

What young voters want from Albanese

08 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At the recent election, a generational shift became undeniable.  Nearly half of all voters were Millennials or Gen Z – and their votes help...

Read This: Torrey Peters’ Never-Ending Transition

07 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Torrey Peters’ debut novel, Detransition, Baby, was an instant sensation. Longlisted for the Women’s Prize in the UK and named one of...

Albanese’s push-back against Trump

05 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Donald Trump’s return to power is testing Australia’s decades-old reflex to stand with the United States. When the US defence secretary, P...

The years of lobbying behind Woodside’s North West Shelf approval

04 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Greg Bourne, former BP Australasia president, once worked alongside Australia’s biggest LNG venture: Woodside’s North West Shelf. Now a co...

How Labor’s new super tax works

03 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Labor is poised to move forward with its plan to increase the tax on superannuation balances over $3 million. Critics are calling the idea unfair and ...

How Advance ‘siphoned’ funds and helped the Liberals lose

02 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the search to explain the Coalition’s disastrous election results continues, there’s one group being singled out inside Liberal campaig...

Sussan Ley: ‘I’ve been underestimated a lot’

01 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For anyone doubting her ability to rehabilitate the Coalition after its thumping May 3 loss, Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has a message: people have q...

Read This: Kevin Wilson Is Wonderfully Weird

31 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Kevin Wilson writes weird books about weird people — in the best possible way. In 2019’s Nothing to See Here, two children have a con...

Fresh cabinet, old wounds: The Coalition’s uneasy truce

29 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After a week of turmoil, the Coalition has patched things up and Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has unveiled her new shadow ministry. The appointments s...

‘A total, miserable, self-loathing poser’: The neuroscientist taking on Elon Musk

28 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Philip Low’s brain-mapping breakthrough made him a billionaire. Now a blistering Facebook post has thrust the neuroscientist into a new fight &n...

Syria’s president: From rebel fighter to meeting with Trump

27 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Until late last year, the United States had a US$10 million bounty on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. A former leader of the al-Nusra Front and al-Q...

‘A cancer’: How Abbott and Credlin control the Liberals

26 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Tony Abbott was on a layover in Dubai when he phoned Natasha Griggs – the president of the Country Liberal Party – and set off a chain rea...

The ‘carbon bomb’ awaiting Australia’s new environment minister

25 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia has a new environment minister – and he has a big job ahead of him: fixing the country’s broken environment laws. Murray Watt ha...

Read This: What’s On Jessica Stanley’s Bookshelves?

24 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

London-based Australian author Jessica Stanley’s second novel, Consider Yourself Kissed, opens with all the beats of a classic romantic com...

Is the Coalition back from the dead?

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Yesterday we were saying “rest in peace” to the Coalition – but today there are signs it could be reborn. The Liberal and National p...

RIP the Coalition

21 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just a week after taking charge in the wake of the Liberals’ disastrous election result, Opposition Leader Sussan Ley now finds herself without ...

The fake orphans trafficked to Australia

20 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Thousands of children from South Korea have been adopted by Australian families over decades. In many cases, these children were raised to believe the...

Why Trump didn’t visit Israel and what it means for Gaza

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced his plans to step up his country’s attacks on Gaza, with “extensive gro...

Larissa Waters seems nice

18 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Larissa Waters is the new leader of the Australian Greens. She steps in as the party reels from its election wipe-out, losing three of its four seats ...

Read This: Josephine Rowe Isn’t Interested In Efficiency

17 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Josephine Rowe’s writing has been described by the New York Times as “gorgeous” and “precise”. This is particu...

The quiet force behind Labor’s landslide

15 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Labor insiders are asked who was responsible for their thumping election victory, one name keeps coming up: Paul Erickson. Even though Erickon li...

Can Sussan Ley rebuild the Coalition?

14 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Three years ago this month, Sussan Ley stood beside Peter Dutton as his deputy, the newly installed pair projecting confidence about the contest ahead...

‘Factional assassins’ and Albanese’s new ministry

13 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Anthony Albanese’s new ministry was sworn in this week, it was overshadowed by the axing of Ed Husic and Mark Dreyfus. Husic in particular ...

Julia Banks on what it’s like to be a woman in the Liberal Party

12 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today, the Liberal Party will elect a new leader. Whoever is chosen will have to figure out how to attract women back to the party – both candid...

The Greens ‘stunning’ election defeat

11 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just before 4.30pm last Wednesday, Antony Green called it for the ABC: Greens leader Adam Bandt had lost his seat. Fifteen years after Bandt won the i...

Read This: James Bradley Thinks Kindness is a Superpower

10 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In addition to being an established novelist, James Bradley is also a journalist and writer of non-fiction, much of it concerned with the natural worl...

Anthony Albanese’s next big test

08 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A week ago, most pundits were predicting a hung parliament as the likely outcome of Australia’s federal election. Instead, Labor has secured one...

How ASIO’s pursuit of people smugglers really works

07 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1999, Ali Jafari fled the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and was resettled as a refugee in Australia. But then, while visiting Pakistan, his permane...

Firebombs and gang wars: The bloody fallout of Australia’s tobacco crackdown

06 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In January, Katie Tangey was killed in a Melbourne house fire believed to be part of the ongoing “tobacco wars”. Police say she was an inn...

Inside the battle for the soul of the Liberal Party

05 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As Peter Dutton conceded his 24-year hold on the Brisbane seat of Dickson, he said the Liberal Party will “rebuild”. The party’s sou...

How this victory will change Anthony Albanese

04 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Karen Middleton has known Anthony Albanese for more than 30 years – since before he entered parliament. She’s watched his rise, and docume...

Anthony Albanese’s election night party

03 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The mood inside Labor HQ was jubilant as it became clear that against all expectations, Anthony Albanese had led the Labor party to victory, with a si...

Sean Kelly on what killed Peter Dutton’s campaign

02 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s election day! While Anthony Albanese’s campaign has been modest and predictable, Peter Dutton’s has been marked by missteps and...

Why the major parties won’t fix the domestic violence crisis

01 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Since the election was announced, just five weeks ago, at least five women have been killed by their partners in Australia. Yet this crisis has barely...

Why Grace Tame will never go into politics

30 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There’s one question Grace Tame is asked all the time: when is she going into politics? And her answer is always the same – never. Like ma...

‘Devastating’: Why the Liberals are preferencing One Nation

29 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Under Peter Dutton’s leadership, the Coalition has placed One Nation candidates second on scores of how-to-vote cards across the country. In ret...

Adam Bandt’s plans for the next parliament

28 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If things go the Greens’ way this weekend, the party could hold the balance of power in a minority Labor government. But given the prime ministe...