Background Briefing

As part of a Background Briefing series on mental illness in the work place, Di Martin spoke to Justice Shane Marshall of the Federal Court. In an Australian first, the judge spoke candidly about his struggles with depression and the mental health issues that face the legal profession.

The sudden deaths of four young doctors have raised serious concerns about the mental health of medicos working in an overloaded health system. And many doctors claim that a mandatory requirement to report ‘impairment’ discourages them from seeking help. Ann Arnold investigates.

While Western countries urge their Muslim citizens to embrace the secular values despised by Islamic extremists, the self-declared Islamic State is using brutality, bureaucracy and a steady cash flow to control its ‘Caliphate’ in Syria and Iraq.

As of 1 January 2015 residents of Indigenous towns in Queensland have the option to buy their homes and convert communal land to freehold. Many want ‘the great Australian dream’, but it will extinguish native title and may expose communities to the open real estate market for the first time.

Twenty million feral cats are behind a deadly second wave of extinctions in Australia. Can they be stopped or will they finish off what 230 years of settlement began? Gregg Borschmann investigates. (This program was originally broadcast on 12 October 2014.)

As it embarked on its annual fundraising weekend, one of our oldest charities faced claims of child sexual abuse. The Salvo's had at least one known paedophile in its ranks. Sarah Dingle investigated. (This program was originally broadcast on 25 May 2014.)

Traumatised police are shunned, isolated and put under secret surveillance. They lose their careers, friendships and often their homes, marriages and children, and a growing number are taking their own lives. William Verity investigates the silence around police, post traumatic stress and suicide. (This program was originally broadcast on 2 March 2014.)

With growing evidence that concussion is linked to long term brain injuries, collision sports are on notice. But the AFL's concussion experts have attacked the evidence. Reporter Wendy Carlisle investigates the AFL’s concussion games. (This program was originally broadcast on 22 June 2014.)

Away from the Canberra spotlight the Palmer United Party made an audacious play for power in the NT, shaking up the status quo and a lot more. Ann Arnold travelled north to investigate the new force in Territory politics. (This program was originally broadcast on 13 July 2014.)

Monika Chetty died from severe chemical burns three weeks after she was found in bushland. The identity of her attacker is not yet known, and the police are still investigating but there is mounting evidence that she was involved in a fraudulent marriage visa scheme. Hagar Cohen investigates. (This program was originally broadcast on 6 April 2014.)

Forty years ago highly dangerous asbestos insulation fluff was pumped into Canberra and NSW homes by a contractor known as 'Mr Fluffy'. In Canberra houses are being bulldozed and cancers are being discovered. Di Martin investigates the Mr Fluffy fiasco. (Originally broadcast on 10 August 2014.)

Obesity is now the leading cause of premature death and disease and doctors are commonly seeing obesity-related illnesses in children that they didn’t see 20 years ago. So what happened to the national obesity strategy? Sarah Dingle investigates.

If you have a hearing test in Australia there’s a good chance your audiologist is on a bonus to sell you a hearing aid. So why has a practice that’s not acceptable in other parts of the health profession become industry standard in audiology? Hagar Cohen investigates.

Ebola had crippled three African nations before the world woke up when it reached the US and Europe. Wendy Carlisle charts the rapid spread of the virus and the belated response of nations, like Australia, best equipped to treat it. 

Animal welfare activists are at war with pig farmers, targeting and secretly filming piggeries across the country. They say it’s the only way to force changes to farming and slaughtering practices, but farmers say their livelihoods and families are being threatened and they’re fighting back. Ann Arnold investigates. 

The Abbott government is tying the success of its Direct Action policy to a clean coal technology that is still in the very early stages of development. Paddy Manning tracks the quest for the clean coal holy grail and investigates the men getting unspeakably rich from the search.

Minor offender Mark Payne was on 24-hour suicide watch in a maximum security South Australian prison cell when he died. No one noticed because Yatala prison had a fatally inadequate electronic monitoring system. Sarah Dingle investigates.

With HIV infections at a 20 year high there’s a push to subsidise a daily pill that can stop infection. But health professionals and the gay community are split over the use of the PrEP pill, which many say will encourage risky sexual behaviour and could place a huge burden on the public health purse. Hagar Cohen investigates.

It’s estimated thousands of Australians are risking arrest by using cannabis for medical reasons. A national clinical trial has been announced but legalisation could be many years away, and then for expensive pharmaceutical drugs only. Di Martin investigates the science and the politics of medical cannabis.

Twenty million feral cats are behind a deadly second wave of extinctions in Australia. Can they be stopped or will they finish off what 230 years of settlement began? Gregg Borschmann investigates

New legislation to give businesses twice the vote in choosing the Sydney City Council is under attack for being undemocratic and an attempt to oust the long serving Lord Mayor, Clover Moore. Ann Arnold reports on the players behind this contentious bill. 

A big win in the federal court should have delivered fairer wages for people with disabilities. But could it throw thousands out of a job? Melinda James investigates

The deaths of two elderly women raise serious questions about the way nursing homes are accredited and who is held accountable for failures of care. Anne Connolly investigates.

A common provision allowing foreign investors to sue host governments has become a ticking time bomb inside trade agreements, like the soon to be signed TPP. Some countries are now refusing to agree to the provision and question its legal legitimacy. Jess Hill investigates.

The Aquis casino resort planned for Cairns would dwarf its competitors. So do the numbers add up, and what are the downsides?