7am
Episodes
Why time’s up for Coles and Woolies
21 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Supermarket prices have finally caught the attention of our leaders.While the cost of living crisis continues, customers and, now, politicians are bec...
The ‘elephant in the room’ at the Australian Open
18 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Professional sport has grappled with how to address athletes’ domestic violence and sexual assault allegations for years.It’s an issue that’s cu...
Why America is willing to re-elect Trump
17 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Donald Trump has passed the first electoral test of his ambitious campaign to return to the White House.The former president convincingly won the Repu...
The chaos at the ABC
16 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The ABC is facing mounting scrutiny over the sacking of radio presenter Antoinette Lattouf, just days into a short-term contract.In a Fair Work case a...
A major hospital in strife
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The catholic church is known for running schools and charity services in Australia, but it also operates more than 20 publicly funded hospitals. It’...
What will happen if the Israel–Hamas war lasts for all of 2024?
14 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza now seems like it will last even longer, with the Israeli military saying it is prepared for a long conflict – ...
The Summer Read: New nipples with tattoo ink
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A clinic inside Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital is quietly changing lives through the power of tattoos. The Combined Breast Service offers bre...
The Summer Read: Richard King on how ChatGPT is changing how knowledge is shared
10 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, writer Richard King, with his piece ‘Machine Learning’ about the AI chatbot ChatGPT.He begins his story with discourse sweeping...
The Summer Read: Christos Tsiolkas on pieces of fiction that stay with us forever
09 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, author Christos Tsiolkas with a recent piece from The Monthly. “The Past is a foreign country: they do things differently there”...
The Summer Read: Carrie Tiffany on sugar, family and loss
08 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, author Carrie Tiffany, with her piece from The Monthly. After the death of her mother, Carrie reflects on the hold of sugar upon h...
The Summer Read: John Safran on life lessons from Father Bob
07 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, writer and filmmaker John Safran, with his piece from the latest edition of The Monthly. Father Bob Maguire was an icon in his own...
Read This: The Cause and Effect of Richard Flanagan
04 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Described by the Washington Post as "one of our greatest living novelists", Richard Flanagan has been writing for more than three decades. His 2013 no...
Read This: Melissa Lucashenko is the Poet Laureate of Ratbags
03 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Melissa Lucashenko writes about big ideas and brutal experiences, but she does so with grace, with generosity and – maybe above all else – a rich ...
Read This: The Three Words That Made George Saunders a Writer
02 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
George Saunders is one of literary fiction's most acclaimed living writers. Along with his many collections of short stories, he also published the Bo...
Read This: Kate Grenville Makes History
01 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kate Grenville has spent her career bringing history to life, often using the lives of her own family to tell stories about the kinds of voices who ar...
Read This: Tony Birch Doesn’t Believe in Luck
31 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Award-winning writer and historian Tony Birch grew up listening to stories from his nan, Alma. In this episode, from Schwartz Media’s podcast Read ...
7am in 2023: The Literary Scandal
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
John Hughes was once hailed as a young literary genius, and won a scholarship to Cambridge.Yet he found himself back in Australia working as a librari...
7am in 2023: The Teals
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The 2022 federal election saw a historic loss for the Coalition and a historic shift towards independent candidates like Allegra Spender in Sydney, Zo...
7am in 2023: The Result
19 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia voted in the first referendum in over 20 years this year — a referendum billed as the culmination of decades of reconciliation work.Today,...
7am in 2023: The Trailblazer
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia can claim a significant world first: a special government adviser on Women’s Affairs.Fifty years ago, Elizabeth Reid stepped into the newl...
7am in 2023: The Whistleblower
17 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Those who imagined, designed and delivered robo-debt put their personal ambition above the wellbeing of the people they were meant to serve. But there...
The Weekend Read: Suzannah Marshall Macbeth on the role of predators
16 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
At certain times of the year, a group of volunteers can be found roaming Canberra’s bush reserves bearing raw chicken carcasses – all in the name ...
‘Machine of violence’: Behrouz Boochani on Australia’s immigration system
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When Behrouz Boochani first wrote about life on Manus Island for The Saturday Paper in 2016, he described it as an island of the damned.Writing throug...
The power and influence of Alan Jones
13 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Former radio host Alan Jones was once the most influential broadcaster in the country.Now, he’s been accused of indecent assault by six men who reve...
'Bad vibes': Bruce Lehrmann and the Reynolds office
12 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The defamation trial between Bruce Lehrmann and Network Ten is nearing its end. More than two weeks of the hearing has revealed emotional evidence fr...
Will 2023 convince Albanese to change course?
11 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This time last year, the government was confident, popular and getting its agenda through without controversy.But a year later, the Labor government h...
How COP28 became the ‘Burning Man’ of climate summits
10 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The world’s biggest climate change summit, COP, is held every year with a bold vision: to bring nations together to negotiate and find solutions for...
Rupert: The last mogul: There’s only one Rupert
08 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert Murdoch’s global media empire is in decline - yet, as Malcolm Turnbull tells Paddy, he was still able to roll a sitting prime minister and be...
Australia is being toxic about immigrants again
07 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A High Court decision ruling indefinite detention unlawful – leading to the release of 148 immigration detainees, some of whom are criminals – has...
Joe Biden's five 'noes' in the Israel-Hamas war
06 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is well and truly over, with the war expanding to include southern Gaza, where many have already fled to escape...
Arrested 22 times, Colette has no plans to stop protesting
05 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It had been over 10 years since anyone in the state of Tasmania was sentenced to prison for protesting.But that all changed when Colette Harmsen faced...
Why private school kids run the country
04 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In Australia, where a person went to school increasingly tells a story about their privilege, class and academic opportunity. While the majority of A...
Bruce Lehrmann vs Channel Ten
03 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In searching for the truth, the defamation trial between Bruce Lehrmann and Network Ten has been defined by the discovery of lies. In the witness box...
The Weekend Read: The Bhutanese nuns editing Wikipedia to share their culture
02 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A 14th century monastery in Bhutan might be the least likely place to find a hive of busy Wikipedia editors, but for Bunty Avieson, it was the perfect...
Rupert: The last mogul: Next in line
02 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Around the turn of the century, Rupert’s empire hits a peak. But he’s about to face two of the biggest crises of his career - the phone hacking sc...
Is it finally time to change immigration detention?
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the past few years, Australia’s immigration detention policy, which was once the feature of political debates and elections, has stopped making...
The moment boomers cooked the housing market
29 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia has one of the most expensive housing markets in the world, with values soaring much faster than wages.This has altered Australian society, ...
Is Australia’s regime of secrecy over?
28 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Critics say Australia may be the world’s most secretive democracy, with a patchwork of laws and obstacles standing in the way of transparency and pr...
What does the Israel-Hamas ceasefire really mean?
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The first brief ceasefire has taken effect in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.As the shooting stops, families are being reunited, as hostages...
Lachlan Murdoch’s first big move
26 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
At the shareholders meetings for News Corp and Fox Corporation this month, for the first time, Rupert Murdoch wasn’t the star of the show. The meet...
Rupert: The last mogul: Attack, attack, attack
24 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
By the 1990s, Rupert is cemented as one of the world’s most powerful and divisive men, but his unrelenting drive is beginning to take a toll. As Rup...
How Australia is taking advantage of one nation’s climate crisis
23 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As climate change threatens to sink small and vulnerable countries, large and powerful ones are seeing an opportunity.The climate crisis is giving the...
The ceasefire and the Israel–Hamas war protests
22 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Israel’s government has agreed to a four-day ceasefire with Hamas in exchange for the release of 50 hostages held in Gaza – but promises to push a...
Why army whistleblower David McBride pleaded guilty
21 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
David McBride is the first Australian who could face jail in relation to alleged Australian war crimes in Afghanistan.But McBride isn’t who committe...
The ‘missing’ robo-debt recommendation
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The royal commission into the robo-debt scheme delivered 57 recommendations to the government in July.Four months later, the Albanese government has g...
Ali Jan’s family speaks: We want to testify against Australian troops
19 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the spring of 2012, an unarmed Afghan villager, Ali Jan, was allegedly kicked off a cliff by Ben Roberts-Smith, who then purportedly directed anoth...
The Weekend Read: Jack Manning Bancroft on Indigenous knowledge systems
18 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, Author and founder of AIME (the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience) Jack Manning Bancroft.Published on the day of the refer...
Rupert: The last mogul: My dear Prime Minister
17 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Off-the-record lunches, handwritten notes and a bouquet of red roses mark Rupert’s secret friendship with Britain’s most controversial PM, Margare...
‘Extremely dangerous’: Did Dutton’s question go too far?
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Social harmony in Australia is under threat. The war in Gaza is prompting concerns about rising anti-Semitism and Islamophobia locally, and these deep...
Will Hezbollah and Israel bring war to Lebanon?
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If it wasn’t for the images of devastation emerging from Gaza in the Israel-Hamas war, this conflict would have the world on edge.It is happening ju...
The murder of Lilie James and the culture at private schools
14 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The murder of a young woman at an elite private school – and the reaction from a former principal – has led to nationwide outrage.It’s also high...
Heather was eligible for parole, but she died in custody
13 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The parole system exists to help people in prison who are no longer deemed a risk to the community begin to re-enter society.But the death in custody ...
Who’s driving inflation? (hint: they’re wealthier and older)
12 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia is not out of the woods on the cost-of-living crisis – prices are still rising too fast.Last week, the RBA were so concerned that they hik...
Rupert: The last mogul: The kingmaker and his king
10 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert wields enormous influence over Australia’s political landscape, but it wasn’t always this way. In the 1960s and ’70s, Rupert's struggle t...
The war’s impact on children in Gaza
09 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Humanitarians say the crisis in Gaza is like nothing they’ve ever seen before. There are especially grave concerns about the lives of children, aft...
'Handsome boy': Albanese meets Xi Jinping
08 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been a long time coming, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese finally met Chinese President Xi Jinping this week.The friendly meeting is in star...
A game-changing victory for renters
07 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Renters across Australia are facing a worsening housing crisis. With hikes in rents and growing complaints about the quality of living in rental homes...
Monique Ryan on the fight to free Julian Assange
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the years, countless efforts have been made to release Julian Assange.As of now, he’s still likely to be extradited to the United States to fac...
From ‘jokers’ to right-wing slogan masters
05 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
While they’re far from a household name, almost all Australians have now heard the political messages they craft. Advance, a right-wing campaigning...
The Weekend Read: Nicole Hasham on a Christian monument a decade in the making
04 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, journalist Nicole Hasham, with her piece from a recent edition of The Monthly. On top of a hill in a remote Aboriginal community, hours from A...
Rupert: The Last Mogul: Two blasted young reds
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
After his father’s death, a young Rupert inherits a small newspaper in 1950s Adelaide. There, he teams up with the paper’s editor to save a man se...
Are our leaders playing politics with war?
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As images of the Gaza ground invasion continue to dominate the news, many Australians are distressed and grieving.Divides in the community are also re...
Israel, Hamas and what comes next
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ian Parmeter was Australia’s ambassador to Lebanon when Hezbollah was fighting Israel in the late 1990s.And although there are parallels between wha...
'Interests not friends': Australia's $368 billion submarine gamble
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As Anthony Albanese and Joe Biden toasted each other last week, one of the most significant deals in Australian history hung in the background.The AUK...
Why Australia refused to vote on a truce in Gaza
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the weekend, Israel said it was entering the ‘second stage of war’ with Hamas.Israel destroyed phone and internet capabilities in Gaza, while...
Inside the new China-Australia relationship
29 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For three years, China and Australia had virtually frozen their diplomatic ties – our largest trading partner and regional superpower was not pickin...
Rupert: The last mogul (Episode 0)
27 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert Murdoch is the media’s most powerful man. His newspapers and TV networks can topple leaders, change policies and throw into doubt the outcome...
What was the point of Albanese’s US trip?
26 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Anthony Albanese was given the highest honour a guest of the US president can receive, a state dinner – attended by powerbrokers from Was...
Secret hostage negotiations and the delayed invasion in Gaza
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Calls are growing louder for a ceasefire, or at least a “humanitarian truce”, in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.Israeli troops are still on...
‘Too slow’: Zali Steggall assesses Labor’s climate action
24 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Independent MP Zali Steggall has used her time in parliament to advocate for stronger climate targets, and criticised both Labor and Coalition governm...
‘Payment suspended’: Hundreds of thousands caught in unfair system
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In Australia, if you’re on welfare your payment can be suspended by a for-profit, private company – even if you’ve done nothing wrong.With tens ...
Thomas Mayo on what follows the Voice
22 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas Mayo, one of the most prominent “Yes” campaigners for the referendum, is still reeling from its defeat. But after observing a week of sile...
Read This: David Marr vs Australia’s Old Lie
21 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For many Australians, facing the reality of this country is a task that has proved enduringly difficult, both at a public and a political level. For i...
Treaty: Is it possible after a Voice defeat?
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
After the Voice to Parliament was rejected, attention turned to Canberra this week to ask what’s next.But for those who held out any hope our politi...
‘Totally f***ed you over’: Australia’s reputation on climate
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia’s record on climate action places us well behind other countries. But, at a global summit in New York last month, you’d be forgiven for...
Right-wing politics and the lie of 'activist judges'
17 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The US Supreme Court has become extraordinarily politicised. Judge appointments are watched like a spectator sport and decisions like the overturning...
What would an Israeli ground invasion of Gaza mean?
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The international community could soon bear witness to the ground invasion of Gaza, one of the most densely populated residential areas in the world.T...
The ‘true elite’ behind the ‘No’ win
15 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The “No” campaign’s victory was anything but assured 12 months ago. It’s victory came from the elevation of key spokespeople and talking point...
Australia votes 'No': Is this the end of reconciliation?
14 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australians have resoundingly voted against the Voice to Parliament referendum in every state. First Nations Australians won’t be recognised in the...
The Fight for a Voice: The future
12 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Tomorrow, Australia will vote on the future of reconciliation.It’s a binary question, but we’re being asked to consider the country’s relationsh...
The Fight for a Voice: The conservative case for ‘No’
11 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There was a time when conservatives could have supported the Voice, by backing a proposal brought by Indigenous Australians at the request of then pri...
The Fight for a Voice: Inside the case for ‘Yes’
10 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The “Yes” campaign set out to accomplish a rare feat in Australian politics: to win a majority of Australians and a majority of states. That is, t...
The Fight for a Voice: The progressives voting ‘No’
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the course of the referendum’s official campaign, the case against the Voice has been dominated by the conservative “No” campaign, led by O...
The Fight for a Voice: The road to the referendum
08 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On October 14, we will be asked a question to which we must answer yes or no.While the question itself is simple, the issues in and around the debate ...
The Weekend Read: Robyn Annear on the untold history in our public toilets
07 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, writer and historian Robyn Annear, with her piece from the September edition of The Monthly. While researching the opening of the ...
Is this week a turning point for ‘Yes’?
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia will vote in the historic Voice to Parliament referendum in just over a week.While the “Yes” camp has lost support throughout the campai...
Micheline Lee on fixing the NDIS
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Barely a decade ago the NDIS, the scheme to support Australians living with a disability, was called the social reform of a generation.Last week it wa...
Is Australia about to burn again?
03 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Over the weekend, 85 fires blazed across New South Wales. Fires remained out of control in Victoria’s Gippsland yesterday, and more threatened homes...
How an Australian pastor is influencing the presidential race
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, is hoping to be the next president of the United States.To become the Republican nominee, Ron DeSantis knows wh...
The woman fighting to end sex discrimination in Australia
01 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Australia has a new Sex Discrimination Commissioner.Anna Cody will be tasked with tackling discrimination on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation an...
The Pezzullo texts: How power really works in Canberra
28 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of Australia’s top-paid public servants has been accused of trying to pull the strings of senior federal politicians. Texts from Mike Pezzullo,...
Olympus has fallen: Dan Andrews is gone
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dan Andrews was a premier like no other. As Labor’s longest-serving Victorian leader he provoked outrage, conspiracies and adoration beyond his stat...
Inside Lachlan's plans for the Murdoch empire
26 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert Murdoch changed the face of global media – and now he’s stepping down from his empire and giving it to his son, Lachlan. Only a few years ...
Is Australia about to waste our biggest opportunity?
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When US President Joe Biden was looking at how to make the largest economy in the world switch to electricity, he turned to an Australian…Dr Saul Gr...
The Albanese interview: There's still hope for the Voice
24 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese joins us for a special conversation about the Voice to Parliament. In this episode, the prime minister shares ...
The Weekend Read: Patrick Dodson makes his case for the Voice
23 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode is a very special edition of Weekend Read. Patrick Dodson is a respected Aboriginal elder, a federal Senator, and widely known as t...
Is the ‘No’ campaign imploding?
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The campaigning around the Voice to Parliament has been heated, but this week figures in the “No” camp threatened to turn that negativity on each ...
‘Why I’m on trial for protesting climate change’
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this year, climate activist Joana Partyka illegally spray-painted Woodside Energy’s logo on a painting in the Art Gallery of Western Austral...
The media's campaign against trans kids
19 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Transgender people in Australia are facing rising levels of hate and discrimination – and according to advocates, irresponsible media reporting is p...
What the Voice polls aren't telling you
18 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A month out from the Voice referendum, according to the polls, the ‘Yes’ campaign is struggling. Across the board, they show a big lead for ‘No...