The Briefing

Nitazene - the super-strength opioid turning up in our party drugs

20 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A new drug has been detected in Australia that can be up to 25 times stronger than fentanyl – which is already stronger than heroin. Introducing nit...

How to catch a killer when you don't have the body

19 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The search for a missing person can capture the attention of the entire nation.  Currently, we’re waiting to hear the outcome of an appeal of Chris...

Scott Morrison’s most awkward interview ever?

17 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Scott Morrison is the 30th Prime Minister of Australia, lover of chicken curries and author of his new book - Plans For Your Good: A Prime Minister's ...

Harrison Butker wants women to graduate to "wife" and "mother"

17 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Social media has gone into meltdown after a video from a US college commencement speech went viral. The footage shows NFL player and Kansas City Chief...

AI just got more human, should we be afraid?

16 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week Chat GPT revealed the next steps in the way their AI interacts with humans. Now the interface can recognise emotions and have more nuanced c...

Great holidays. Secure job. So why are teachers quitting?

16 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australia is in the grip of a teacher shortage that is a decade in the making.   New research by McCrindle has revealed more than half of educators ...

Do we have a secret role in the war in Gaza?

15 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For over half a century, the US and Australia have operated Pine Gap - a joint top-secret spy base at Alice Springs in the heart of outback Australia ...

How Coca-Cola is selling you bottled water you already own

15 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When you take a gulp of bottled Mt Franklin spring water, you might imagine it comes from a pristine and abundant water source in an exotic wildernes...

Federal Budget - The top five things that matter the most

14 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last night, Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed down the Budget, aka the economic plan for the next four years and beyond.  On the positive side, he delive...

Is Vladimir Putin about to hit the nuclear button?

14 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Russian President Vladimir Putin is threatening nuclear war as his invasion of the Ukraine continues. Putin last week ordered Russian troops to perfor...

Copycat stabbings: is social media fuelling knife crimes?

13 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been a month since the horrific attack at Bondi Junction Westfield, during which a man stabbed 18 people, killing six. Most of his victims were...

Dementia kills children at the same rate as cancer. Here's why.

13 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Childhood and dementia aren’t two words you’d expect to hear together, but children are dying from this disease at the same rate as they are dying...

The Atlantic ocean current that will change life as we know it

12 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

There’s a critical current in the Atlantic that moves heat, carbon, and nutrients from the tropics, which is cooled and sinks once it reaches the Ar...

Making space for the motherless on Mother's Day

11 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For most families, Mother’s Day is about celebrating our mums and all they do for us. But for those whose Mum is no longer around, it can be a prett...

Keiynan Lonsdale: The Western Sydney kid who made it big in Hollywood

10 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Keiynan Lonsdale grew up in Sydney’s Western suburbs, with 11 siblings and a dream to make it in Hollywood. From the small screen with shows like AB...

Your guide to Eurovision 2024

10 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This year marks the 68th Eurovision Song Contest. Starting out as an expression of unity and goodwill after WWII and a technical experiment to create ...

How Cosmo plans to make the comeback of the century

09 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Once upon a time, women’s magazines had a place on every hairdresser’s bench top, family kitchen table and teenager’s bedside drawer. That all c...

Facing the consequences of our Baby Reindeer obsession

09 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Some true crime content – like The Teacher’s Pet or Up and Vanished has helped lead detectives to suspects, even resulting in convictions on cold ...

Drake v Kendrick Lamar isn't just a war of words

08 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Popular rappers Drake and Kendrick Lamar are currently embroiled in a very public spat. It’s a feud that has a long history, but things have really ...

Confronting the instigator of the same-sex book ban

08 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A local council in Sydney has voted to ban books about same-sex parents from its libraries. Six Cumberland City Councillors voted in favour of the ban...

Why Australia’s birth rate is lower than ever

07 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australia’s birth rate has been in a relatively steady decline since a peak in the early 1960s. It’s rebounded a small amount after hitting a reco...

This is why Israel is about to invade Rafah

07 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Israeli tanks have reportedly been spotted just 200 metres from the edge of Rafah, less than a day after an estimated 100,000 Palestinian civilians we...

Why witch hunts are still happening in 2024

06 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Witch hunts aren’t just the stuff of colonial America; they’re happening right now all around the world. People are still being persecuted and oft...

How our youth are being radicalised, and how we can stop it

06 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Over the weekend in Perth, a sixteen-year-old boy has been shot dead by police after allegedly wounding a man who was unknown to him with a knife. WA ...

Could Beijing be underwater in 100 years?

05 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cities in China are sinking and satellite imagery shows Beijing is among one of the fastest going under. According to a new study in the journal Scien...

Ziggy Ramo wants you to feel uncomfortable

03 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ziggy Ramo is a Wik man, powerful storyteller and rapper - but it took him fives years to release his first album because the world wasn't ready to em...

Why smut is the new porn

03 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Smut used to be the kind of genre you’d find hidden away in the back corner of bookstores. But not anymore. Now, smut series are being featured on t...

The Matildas effect: Is the soccer boom here to stay?

02 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Since the Matildas world cup frenzy we’ve seen a rise in soccer participation numbers – not just for young girls – but also boys and older women...

Are nicotine pouches the new vapes?

02 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Snus is a small tobacco sachet placed between your gum and upper lip. But now there’s a new form of ‘snussing’, with products that take out the ...

Inside student camps for Palestine at Australian universities

01 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A movement is growing around the world protesting Israel’s offensive against Palestine in the Middle East. This time it feels different. More than 1...

Driverless cars. Would you climb into an autonomous vehicle?

01 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Experiments on driverless - or autonomous - cars began 100 years ago, but only in the last twenty years have they become a genuine reality. Elon Musk'...

Arman's dad killed his mum. Here's how he broke the cycle

30 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Over the last few weeks, our national conversation has been heavily focused on the number of lives that have been taken by men because of domestic vio...

Ozempic has revolutionised weight loss. Can it help with addiction too?

30 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ozempic is the new wonder drug sweeping the world of weight loss. But now a new surprising side effect has potentially been uncovered. There's anecdot...

Does forcing mentally ill people into treatment work?

29 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Imagine going to your doctor and having treatment forced upon you. This is called compulsory treatment and in Australia it’s legal. Compulsory menta...

Finland is ending homelessness, so could we do it here too?

29 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At least 120-thousand people are experiencing homelessness in any given night in Australia. And this isn't a problem that only we are facing, with ma...

"Playboy Rapist” survivor on how we can stop more women dying

28 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Huge crowds gathered at the weekend to protest laws that see high-risk offenders released on bail. As anger mounts over this year’s soaring domestic...

How Tim Duggan got out of a one million dollar tax bill

27 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Do you feel like you have a good work-life balance? It’s something that most people struggle with, particularly with current cost-of-living pressure...

Nina Oyama is an iPad kid who wants us to hire more lesbians

26 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Nina Oyama wants people to hire more lesbians. She also has a fondness for iPads over mobiles. But most of all, Nina is funny. She’s a comedian, act...

Australia's space rocket industry is about to really take off

26 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A rocket is set to take off soon from North Queensland, becoming the first locally made orbital rocket to blast off from Australian soil. It will also...

Is Columbia University a defining moment in student protest?

25 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Columbia University in New York this week called in police to arrest pro-Palestinian protestors. Universities have always championed free speech. Is C...

The outback pub where two-up is legal all year round

25 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At pubs around the country, people are watching pairs of coins tossed in the air for the classic ANZAC Day tradition of playing two-up.  In most part...

The rise and rise of ANZAC day

24 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On this Anzac Day morning, we reflect on the rise and rise of Anzac Day and how only a generation ago, it was declining before a huge upsurge in inter...

Would tougher bail laws make women safer?

24 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At the beginning of this week, a woman was allegedly murdered by her former partner while he was out on bail. He’d been charged with her rape as wel...

More parents are choosing to keep their kids off socials

23 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Social media has become entrenched in our society, replacing town squares and the water cooler as the place we come together to share our lives, our t...

Meet the double act who want to be Australia's first job-sharing MP

23 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For the first time, two independent candidates are attempting to run for federal parliament as ‘job-sharing candidates’.   Lucy Bradlow and Bron...

Doctors Note: The consequences

22 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we bring you the final episode of our exclusive, three-part special investigation into the risky new frontier of Australia's healthcare system....

Doctors Note: The sting operation

22 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we bring you the second part of our exclusive, three-part special investigation into the risky new frontier of Australia's healthcare system.  ...

Doctors Note: What you don't know could kill you

21 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we bring you the first part of our exclusive, three-part special investigation into the risky new frontier of Australia's healthcare system.  ...

How Andreas Lundin survived Alone Australia and eating possum

20 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Alone has been dubbed the most successful original commission in SBS history. The series is a reality show like never before, where 10 people get drop...

Esme Louise James is the kinkiest historian you'll ever meet

19 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

History is a lot of things. Fascinating, confronting, sometimes shameful, often brutal, and also incredibly kinky. Esme Louise James is a sex historia...

'Cicada-geddon' is about to sweep across America

19 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This spring, up to 16 states across the US will see a natural phenomenon of spectacular proportions not seen in over 200 years, as an estimated trilli...

Could we be seeing the end of trial by jury? Higgins Judge weighs in

18 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week lawyers in New York are trying to pick the jury for Donald Trump’s trial. On the first day more than 50 potential jurors were dismissed, w...

After Bondi, here's what you should know about schizophrenia

18 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australia was shocked as a mass stabbing event unfolded at Sydney’s Westfield Bondi Junction shopping centre at the weekend. The centre reopened tod...

Something in the water? The Boomer stare explained

17 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The health issues associated with long-term lead poisoning are not secret and governments around the world have been making moves since the 1970s to l...

Behind the evil tech that DV offenders use to maintain control

17 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Malware, spyware and stalkerware programs give unauthorised and undetected insight into another person’s device. All too often, they are used as an ...

The significance of Iran's strike on Israel explained

16 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Iran dropped 300 missiles and drones on Israeli territory over the weekend after an air strike on Iran’s consulate in Syria last week. Most were int...

Why Gen Z needs a crash course in communication

16 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The National Institute of Dramatic Art has launched a new course to help teach Gen Z how to be in an office environment after they came of age during ...

Sex work in 2024: Is the world’s oldest profession still worth it?

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sex work is often referred to as the world’s oldest profession, and our attitudes to it are rapidly evolving. The language around it has changed, an...

Court finds Bruce Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Bruce Lehrmann has lost his defamation trial against Lisa Wilkinson and Channel Ten. The court today found that, on the balance of probabilities, Lehr...

Bondi Junction: a nation mourns

14 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australia stood still on Saturday afternoon when news reports started to feature reports of a stabbing at the Westfield shopping centre at Bondi Junct...

Sex work in 2024: Can your boss stop your sex work side hustle

14 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sex work is often referred to as the world’s oldest profession, and our attitudes to it are rapidly evolving. The language around it has changed, an...

Meet the 16-year-old news anchor Leo Puglisi behind 6NEWSAU

13 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Leo Puglisi is the 16 year old anchor-man who isn’t afraid of tackling the big dogs. When Leo was 11 years old he founded 6NEWS Australia which lead...

How Michael Shafar became the accidental Jewish rep of comedy

12 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Is laughter the best medicine? Well comedian Michael Shafar might be able to help with that. He’s probably the only person who can make fun being Je...

The textbook child star rebrand of JoJo Siwa

12 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The rebranding of child stars as they transition into more mature identities is nothing new. After Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus, we're now seeing Jo...

Why South Korean women are swearing off men

11 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Have you heard of the 4B movement? It’s a feminist action that’s taking hold of South Korea. The movement follows the four B’s: no marriage, no ...

Turns out we aren’t paying enough for our daily cup of coffee

11 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Plenty of Australians have been cutting down on their daily coffee amid the cost-of-living crisis, but new research shows that cafe coffee in Australi...

Why QLD's new coercive control laws may not be enforced

10 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

QLD has introduced strict new coercive control laws. Coercive control has serious and traumatic impacts for a victim. It can be subtle and insidious, ...

How the end of MONA's Ladies Lounge could still be part of the art

10 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Tasmania’s MONA has been forced to allow men into its women’s only Ladies Lounge.   A NSW man who was upset when he was denied entry into the lou...

The Youth Curfew in Alice Springs has been extended, so is it working?

09 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A few weeks ago, chaos erupted in the heart of Alice Springs, with unrest that saw buildings trashed, the doors of the local tavern kicked in, and a c...

Is AUKUS about to become JAUKUS?

09 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The federal government this morning announced that the AUKUS defence agreement partners (Australia, the United States and the UK) are considering expa...

Why the new flu jab is a game changer

08 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A new flu vaccine has arrived in Australia and it’s not like traditional vaccines – it's cell-based. Cell-based flu vaccines are developed differe...

Rhys Nicholson on RuPaul’s Drag Race & why redheads have more fun

08 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hey Briefers. An apology: this interview was scheduled to be released on Saturday morning, but due to a technical glitch it didn't, so it's appearing ...

Sex work in 2024: How the internet has changed the industry

08 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sex work is often referred to as the world’s oldest profession, and our attitudes to it are rapidly evolving.   The language around it has changed...

Sex work in 2024: how did we get here?

07 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sex work is often referred to as the world's oldest profession and our attitudes to it are rapidly evolving. The language around it has changed, and p...

How YouTubers Boy Boy snuck into a CIA base without getting arrested

06 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Imagine going to North Korea to get a haircut or breaking into a military base, well YouTubers Alex Apollonov and Aleksa Vulovic did just that. The gu...

The Quiet on Set documentary is about to ruin your childhood nostalgia

05 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A new documentary exposing the dark underbelly of kid’s television in the nineties and early 2000s is dropping in Australia today.   Quiet on Set ...

Could Australia become a dumping ground for nuclear waste?

04 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australia could be taking on nuclear waste from the AUKUS submarine deal after new laws tabled in Parliament last year. The legislation says it would ...

The long road for those suffering with long covid

04 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It's been over four years since COVID-19 first shook the world. And though vaccines have allowed many of us to move on with our lives, a large number ...

What is the National Autism Strategy and why does Australia need one?

03 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this week the Federal Government released a draft of the National Autism Strategy, in the hopes to improve the lives of autistic Australians. ...

Could aid relief in Gaza halt after the death of innocent aid workers?

03 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Seven aid workers for the World Central Kitchen, including Australian Zomi Frankcom, are confirmed to have been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza...

What the Armaguard crisis tells us about the future of cash

02 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Armaguard, the cash delivery business, is going broke. No one uses cash anymore so the nation's number one cash-in-transit business is losing money. W...

Behind the first successful pig-to-human kidney transplant

02 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Late last month, Richard Slayman became the first person in history to successfully undergo an organ transplantation of a genetically modified pig kid...

Is this the end of Reddit as we know it?

01 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Reddit has gone public, making its debut on the New York stock exchange. Its value made it over $9b. Reddit is one of the world’s most popular websi...

How Black artists like Beyoncé are reclaiming country music

01 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Though Beyoncé has claimed that Cowboy Carter is a 'Beyoncé album', rather than 'a country album', it's a release that definitely dips into the genr...

Inbox Zero or Inbox 7,568? How you should manage your emails

31 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Do you have thousands of emails in your inbox, or are you an Inbox Zero type of person? A new study is looking at personal email management, and has f...

Why Tom Ballard is so angry at politicians

29 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Tom Ballard is possibly the most political comedian in Australia, with his stand up tackling issues including asylum seekers, racism, the monarchy and...

Radio Queen Emma Chow on balancing Mike E, the mic & motherhood

29 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Emma Chow is one half of the 14-years strong radio duo Mike E & Emma- broadcasting live every weekday nationally for their breakfast show. Emma ha...

It’s only March – why am I already exhausted?

29 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Everyone’s hustling, everyone’s struggling with cost of living pressures, rents are rising, interest rates are rising. We’re exhausted, and it’...

How chocolate has helped bring bilbies back from the brink

28 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Once upon a time bilbies lived all over Australia; where there was desert, there was a bilby. After the introduction of cats and foxes, the bilby’s ...

The truth about how ticketing for concerts works in Australia

28 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Right now, Moshtix is in the process of refunding all of the tickets for the Splendour in the Grass festival, after the unexpected news that the event...

Why Splendour is the latest in a long line of cancelled Aussie music festivals

27 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Splendour in the Grass will not go ahead this year, and we are yet to learn the official reason. This isn’t the first time the event has been hit wi...

An Australian engineer explains the Baltimore bridge disaster

27 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

About 1:30AM local time, the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the US city of Baltimore collapsed after being struck by a container ship. The loaded ship re...

Who is Kristi Noam, Trump's likely running mate

26 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Donald Trump and Joe Biden have now secured their respective parties’ presidential nomination for the November US presidential election.Biden will p...

Computer chips inside your brain are now possible. Here's how it works

26 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Noland Arbaugh was paralysed from the shoulders down after a diving accident eight years ago. But now, thanks to a brain computer interface chip, he's...

What is ISIS-K and why has it targeted Russia?

25 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Russia has suffered its deadliest terror attack in 20 years, after 133 people were killed and 100 were injured when gunmen opened fire at a theatre in...

This is why Tasmania's election was important

25 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The results from Tasmania's election, which took place over the weekend, are mostly in. While Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff called the election a ye...

Why are we making weapons for the US?

24 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Did you know Australia has been recruited by America to produce some of its weapons?The wars in Ukraine and Gaza have stretched US capabilities to mak...

Dr Zac Seidler on toxic masculinity and dealing with grief

23 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Zac Seidler is a clinical psychologist, researcher and leading men’s mental health expert. With seven men across Australia dying by suicide every...

Reuben Kaye on why trauma makes you funny

22 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Reuben Kaye is what happens when you tell your children they can be anything. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Reuben recalls the moment he disco...

Why politicians are always trying to build new stadiums

22 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Why are politicians so desperate for the sport vote?   As Tasmania head into an election this weekend, one of the major talking points surrounds whet...