The Briefing
Episodes
A new program for people who have attempted suicide
26 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
More than 3,000 Australians take their lives each year and a further 65,000 attempt suicide. A suicide aftercare service developed by Beyond Blue is h...
Art Simone says Aussie Drag does it differently.
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The incredible Art Simone, fan favourite on Ru Paul’s Drag Race Down Under, joins us on this week’s episode of The Weekend Briefing. In this co...
Avoiding passport hell
23 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Pandemic restrictions have mostly lifted and Australians are gearing up to travel overseas. But many can’t get their passport to allow them to leave...
The game-changing week for trans women in elite sport
22 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been a big week in international sport with FINA and the International Rugby League announcing bans on transgender athletes. It follows an anno...
A new era in Australian space exploration
21 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
NASA is preparing to launch three rockets from the Arnhem Space Centre in the Northern Territory, scheduled for the end of this month and early July. ...
Fossil fuel subsidies and the energy crisis
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
An energy crisis across Australia took us to the brink of blackouts last week. A cold snap; the war in the Ukraine; and escalating global coal and g...
Teacher’s Pet: the Chris Dawson trial
19 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s January 1982, Lyn and Chris Dawson appear to have the perfect marriage. He's a star footballer and popular high school teacher. She's a devoted...
Pete Helliar is one funny dude
17 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Pete Helliar is one seriously funny dude. He is also seriously busy.Pete is a regular host on The Project and the creator and star of 10's How To Stay...
Tik Tok and the war against online drug trading
16 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Tik Tok has been the fastest growing social media app ever. In just five years it has had over 2 billion downloads and now reports 1.6b regular users ...
The RBA's big mistake
15 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Reserve Bank of Australia provides forward guidance for the economy. One of the key levers of fiscal policy is interest rate projections. RB...
The four-day work week: a step closer to reality?
14 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The concept of the four-day working week has been around for almost a century, but like the idea of working from home which needed a pandemic to make ...
Johann Hari and why you can't focus
13 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Johann Hari’s new book Stolen Focus is all about the crisis in concentration sweeping the world. The book goes into why it’s happening, ho...
Is it time for Australia to become a Republic?
12 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Australia’s new government has appointed an Assistant Minister for the Republic. Matt Thistlethwaite has been tasked with taking the Labor...
Sophie Cachia - Then There Was Her
10 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sophie Cachia has always been in a rush. At twenty she met a bloke and fell in love, by age twenty-three she’d given birth to her first child, a...
Toadie and the end of Neighbours
09 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Filming on Australia’s longest-running television show Neighbours, finishes today…..after nearly 9,000 episodes, 63 weddings, 20 births a...
An Australian journalist locked up in a Chinese prison
08 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Australian journalist Cheng Lei has been charged in a Chinese court of supplying state secrets. Detained since August 2020, her family and friends now...
The massive inheritance being passed from Boomers to Millennials
07 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the next 20 years, almost 250 billion dollars will be transferred from baby boomers to Generations X, Y and Z. We’re joined by Aleks V...
What does Joe Biden have to do to curb US gun laws?
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Will Joe Biden be the US President who actually changes gun culture in America? 19 students and two teachers were shot at an elementary school ...
A new LiSTNR podcast you might like.....
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The LiSTNR team has launched a new podcast, Post: News In Five Hosted by journalist and producer Ninah Kopel, Post: News In Five&nbs...
Why some superstars have had enough of TikTok
05 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In just 12 months, the video app TikTok has transformed the music industry….artists can reach audiences like never before. Directly getti...
Daniel & Luke - Yiayia next door
03 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Daniel and Luke Mancuso are brothers who live in Melbourne’s northern suburbs. In 2010, after 23 years of marriage their parents separated. What...
A Young Liberal’s brutal take on the election
02 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Liberal Party began its rebuilding process under new leader Peter Dutton this week. The Young Liberals are the next generation of conservati...
A reminder what the Uluru Statement actually is
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
New Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised a referendum on the Uluru Statement from the Heart. So what is it? What will Australians ...
Dave Sharma on the Liberal electoral failure
31 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Liberal Party has a new leader – and an uncertain future. Australia voted to send a message in last month’s election….the...
Should we be worried about 'flu-rona'?
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Everyone knows someone who’s been floored by the flu. And many say this flu virus is the worst they’ve ever experienced. They say they fee...
Menstruation leave in Australia
29 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Menstruation is having a bit of a moment in Australia. Victoria and South Australia made tampons and pads free last year. The federal government...
Laura Henshaw is making us healthier
27 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Laura Henshaw looks like a model. But when she speaks? She defies all those stereotypes about what a woman who has been beautiful for a living might b...
Greensland: the rise of the Greens at election 2022
26 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Everyone’s talking about the Labor Party’s big win in last weekend’s election. But the Greens too, have had an incredibly succ...
The Liberal Party's problem with women
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Women voted to send Scott Morrison a message on Saturday: the Liberal Party has a problem with women….and his government was going to pay for i...
Could the Biloela Tamil family finally be on their way home?
24 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Asylum seekers Priya and Nades came to Australia separately by boat from Sri Lanka a decade ago. They met in detention and were given bridging v...
How much power will the 'teal independents' have?
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The big story out of the weekend’s federal election is the so-called ‘teal independents’. Six women elected in key Liberal sea...
What happened to the Liberal Party with Annika Smethurst
22 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The election is done and dusted..... Anthony Albanese has claimed an historic win – becoming only the fourth Labor leader to take t...
Breaking News - Anthony Albanese the next Prime Minister of Australia
21 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Polls show Anthony Albanese will be the next Prime Minister of Australia!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Yael Stone says green is the new black
20 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yael Stone took the world by storm, as Lorna Morello on the hugely popular Netflix original Orange is the New Black. After Orange is the New Bl...
Your verdict on tomorrow's election
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Australia heads to the polls tomorrow to elect the 47th Parliament of Australia. Labor is ahead of the Coalition in the polls, but the margins h...
An election cheat sheet if you tuned out ages ago
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What do I do when I get handed the two ballot papers on election day? One is the size of a tablecloth...and the other makes no sense at all. &nb...
Housing policy bonanza: will it actually help young people?
17 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this election, it finally feels like young first home buyers are front and centre with both major parties trying to woo voters with some ...
Intermittent fasting: myth or genius hack
16 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Intermittent fasting is an eating plan that switches between fasting and eating on a regular schedule. It’s touted as a way to manag...
Nuclear energy: the good, the bad and the ugly
15 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In almost all energy debates in Australia you never hear about nuclear energy, even though it has a lower carbon footprint than fossil fuels, such as ...
Craig Foster on the human lottery
13 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Craig Foster was Australia’s 419th Socceroo and 40th Captain of our national men’s soccer side. He’s since had an illustrious career...
Are you the black sheep? Voting against family tradition
12 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when your political leanings completely contradict those of your family and friends? In 2019 the Coa...
TikTok trial: Amber Heard v Johnny Depp
11 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Hollywood stars Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are embroiled in a bitter court battle - and it's all playing out like a pretty disturbing film. ...
The rental crisis gripping Australia
10 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Australia is in the grip of a rental crisis. The number of rental vacancies is at a record low. On this episode of the Briefing, we hear ...
The brother who never gave up
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The man found guilty of the murder of US doctor Scott Johnson on Sydney’s northern beaches more than 33 years ago, was sentenced last week. ...
Election ads: from Google to Grindr
08 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
More than half of anyone born after 1997 uses social media as their main source of news. Google, Twitter, gaming and even Grindr, are being targetted ...
Antoinette Lattouf: How To Lose Friends and Influence White People
06 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Our very own Antoinette Lattouf joins us on The Weekend Briefing. Antoinette's book 'How to Lose Friends and Influence White People' has just h...
Everything you need to know about Roe v Wade
05 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A 50 year old US federal law guaranteeing the right to abortion could be overturned. The draft Supreme Court ruling would strike down the 1973 R...
Part 2: Jan Fran interviews Tom Tilley about ‘Speaking in Tongues’
04 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second instalment of Jan Fran’s interview with Tom about his new book, “Speaking in Tongues” Today we learn...
Part 1: Jan Fran interviews Tom Tilley about ‘Speaking in Tongues’
03 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Not many people know Tom Tilley was raised in a Pentecostal Christian community....his father was a pastor. The church expected him to live by a...
Election moments that even surprised Annika Smethurst
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We’re halfway through the federal election campaign – and Labor is well ahead in the polls. Anthony Albanese launched the ALP’...
Transgender athletes: what the science says
01 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Catherine Deves is the Liberal Party candidate for the Sydney seat of Warringah, handpicked by Scott Morrison, and she's been in the spotlight for off...
The Bodzilla on fat positivity and body acceptance
29 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
April Hélène-Horton isThe Bodzilla. An online moniker that has won tens of thousands of social media fans thanks to April’s loud a...
Inside China's Covid-Zero nightmare
28 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Shanghai, a city of 28 million people has been locked down now for five weeks... and dozens of other cities have had partial lockdowns. But covi...
Is Elon Musk making an expensive mistake re Twitter?
27 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Elon Musk has done the deal to buy Twitter. The announcement was made this week……Twitter’s board has agreed to sell the social med...
Can you trust election opinion polls this time?
26 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The polls were wrong ahead of the 2019 Australian federal election….and spectacularly wrong back when Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton at ...
Why our airlines and airports are in chaos
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Hundreds of thousands of Australians streamed through airports over the Easter and Anzac Day weekends. There were queues out the door and onto t...
A veteran’s brave battle to overcome PTSD
24 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2010, three years after Rachel Kerrigan left the RAAF, her mental health deteriorated rapidly. At her lowest point in 2012, Rachel attempted ...
A Candid Conversation with Chrissie Swan
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Chrissie Swan has spent almost 20 years being stared at down the barrel of paparazzi cameras. In that time, the beloved radio and television host, rea...
Fleeing Ukraine: a refugee’s new life in Australia
21 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created a massive refugee crisis. More than five million Ukranians have fled their country since the conflict be...
The French election: Europe on the brink
20 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
France will vote in a Presidential election this weekend that could really impact the very future of Europe. The race is between incumbent...
Zoe Daniel: An independent's view of the election
19 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Zoe Daniel is a former ABC foreign correspondent. She’s worked as a journalist for more than 30 years. So why on Earth would she con...
Cost of living: Australians on the bread line
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We’re repeatedly told this election is all about the cost of living. Basically, the cost of living is the amount of money it takes to cover basi...
Could Aussie craft chocolate be the next big thing?
17 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Craft chocolate companies in Australia have almost tripled over the last six years - from 12 to 34 manufacturers. They are a small but growing g...
LIVE: The Audacity of Roxane Gay
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jamila Rizvi would like to be Roxanne Gay when she grows up. Ignore the fact she’s “technically” a grown up already! Roxane Gay is a...
Joe Hockey…and what it’s like to play golf with Donald Trump
14 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Could you imagine playing golf with Donald Trump...? Getting face to face with Steve Bannon or trying to make a deal with Tony Abbott about when ...
What the Financial Review's focus groups tell us about Albo
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Australian Financial Review has today released research on focus groups it surveyed this week. The paper asked average voters what they made...
Part Two: Hannah Gadsby - Ten steps to Nanette
12 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Part two of Jan’s interview with the award-winning Australian comedian, Hannah Gadsby. Hannah’s new book is called “Ten ...
Part One: Hannah Gadsby - Ten steps to Nanette
11 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Hannah Gadsby’s new book is called “Ten steps to Nanette” and explores her journey growing up queer in Tasmania where homosexuality ...
The election’s been called: what happens now?
10 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The election campaign has officially begun. What now? Annika Smethurst is a Walkley award winning political reporter at The Age, an...
Darcy Vescio is a Godex on and off the field.
08 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Darcy Vescio has been playing footy since they were five years old. Growing up when there was no such thing as the AFLW, they were forced to give the ...
Hollywood: death by a thousand cuts?
07 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars, people all around the world started to ask if Hollywood if finally dying out. The world has sh...
Lismore - flooded twice in four weeks
06 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet visited flood-ravaged northern NSW this week to announce what’s called The Back Home scheme. The state will provid...
David Pocock: Why this rugby star is asking for your vote
05 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
David Pocock was no ordinary rugby player. He has always been a principled changemaker - he painted his rugby boots black when he made his super...
The murky world of Aussie casinos
04 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Money laundering, links to organised crime, private jets and debit cards that let high rollers from China gamble millions… it sounds like the s...
Zelensky: from comedian to Churchillian
03 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Ukraine president Vlodomyr Zelensky has refused to leave the country, despite reportedly being ‘target number one’ for Russian troops ...
Rhys Nicholson was born naked and the rest is drag
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rhys Nicholson is a multi-award winning Australian stand-up, writer, actor and judge on Ru Paul’s Drag Race Down Under.His stand up comedy is da...
Two years in an Iranian prison: Kylie Moore-Gilbert
31 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine being locked-up in an Iranian prison for more than two years – when you’re innocent. Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian exp...
Annika Smethurst on the politics of the Budget
30 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handed down the Budget on Tuesday night….a critically important budget with an election due to be called in w...
Warne: What made him a cultural icon
29 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Shane Warne’s send off at the MCG tonight will be one the biggest we’ve ever seen, especially when you consider the television audience, a...
Hillsong has gone even deeper into crisis
28 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What is going on at Hillsong...? The scandals at Australia’s most famous church have escalated to the point where its founder and global l...
The cost of living and what it means for you
27 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
You’ve probably heard a bit about the rising cost of living or you might have even noticed it yourself at the petrol bowser or the supermarket.&...
Dave Hughes on life when everyone knows your name.
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dave “Hughesy” Hughes is one of Australia’s all-time favourite stand-up comedians, radio hosts and television presenters.  ...
How journalists are covering the unpredictable war in Ukraine
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How are journalists managing to cover the war in Ukraine, given how unpredictable and dangerous it is. All the major Australian tv ...
Should we be worried about the BA.2 wave?
23 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Just as we begin to enjoy our renewed freedoms, a potentially more infectious coronavirus mutation is emerging. Across the globe, countries ...
The case for magic mushrooms as mental health treatment
22 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Could magic mushrooms hold the key to treating mental health problems? A group of Australians made up of psychiatrists, a former Federal Minister and ...
Will the Ukraine conflict spread into space
21 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nearly three decades of close collaboration in space between Russia and the western world seems to be coming to an end. Dr Mark Hilborne- Lecturer of ...
Independents Day: How worried should the LNP be come Election 2022?
20 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Support for independent candidates is growing steadily. We also know that Australians care about climate change. Now all of this is a perfect st...
Sean Szeps comes out wherever he is
18 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sean Szeps is a podcaster, content creator and presenter. Through kindness and humour, he is making life better for queer kids everywhere. Sean...
The Tragedy of Kanye West
17 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Is Kanye West wanting his divorce to entertain you? We speak to Atlantic Journalist, Spenser Kornhaber who has been following Kanye’s career and...
Mayor admits Byron Baes outrage was ‘a bit precious’
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The first Aussie reality show commissioned by Netflix- Byron Baes. The outrage from the Byron community was huge and they protected, trying to stop it...
Are $2+ petrol prices here to stay?
15 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Roberto Aguilera- Energy Economist Curtin University Oil and Gas Innovation Centre gives us a deep dive on fuel prices… The Prime Minist...
The unanswered questions of the Zachary Rolfe trial
14 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Samantha Jonscher has been reporting on the 5 week trial. The big news is the not guilty verdict on Friday... and as you’ll hear... the upcoming...
What Russians are being told about the war in Ukraine
13 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Daria Sukharchuk is a freelance Russian journalist living in Berlin. She’s been following the unfolding situation in Ukraine closely. &nbs...
Calling shotgun with George Ezra
11 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
George Ezra is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter and also one of the nicest guys in the biz. His smash hit ‘Shotgun’ is, inc...
More stories from the Northern Rivers flood fightback
09 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We go back to our amazing story of Australians rallying together …when the authorities don’t offer the support they should….and th...
The amazing helicopter flood mission on the Northern Rivers
08 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is an amazing story of Australians rallying together …when the authorities don’t offer the support they should. Michael Barne...
Badass women of Australian history
07 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s International Women’s Day – so why not celebrate by unearthing some of the most badass women in Australian history. Nancy...
The foreigners taking up weapons in Ukraine
06 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on "all citizens of the world" to join Ukraine’s defence. He said Ukraine would welcome overs...
Alice Zaslavsky on feeding the soul as well as the tummy
04 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Alice Zaslavsky writes the cookery column for The Weekend Australian Magazine and is the ABIA award winning author of the internationally acclaimed In...
Meet the Australian Winter Paralympics co-captain
03 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Winter Paralympics begin in Beijing tonight and snowboarder Ben Tudehope is co-captain of the Australian team. Ben became Australia’s...