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One of the cardinal Murdoch family rules is never speak about the family outside the family. So, when journalist McKay Coppins got in touch with James Murdoch back in 2024, he really wasn’t expecting a reply. But Coppins was curious – what would happen to the Murdoch empire when Rupert died? And what it would mean for his youngest son, James, who was seemingly an outcast from the famil...

As hard-fought gains in reproductive medicine, voluntary assisted dying and LGBTQI health care have been made – another story has emerged. One where religious pharmacists, doctors and hospital systems believe it's justifiable to withhold medication or support, often with devastating consequences. Now, one in five pharmacists in Australia will refuse you care if the medication you’re as...

Donald Trump wants to write the next chapter in US spaceflight history. With billionaire tech CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk by his side, he’s outlined an ambitious agenda: to land the first humans on Mars before he leaves office. Whether or not that goal is achievable, the plan would massively reshape America’s space program to the benefit of Musk’s company. NASA has already s...

Elon Musk is pressing NASA to abandon its planned journeys to the moon – projects that have been decades in the making, with billions already spent and contracts already signed. Despite backlash from NASA insiders and politicians on both sides of Congress – who view his plans as costly, disruptive and politically toxic – Musk remains resolute. Today,  Wall Street Journal rep...

In the 1990s, a small group of men in Silicon Valley imagined a world without governments or rules – a world run by code. They called themselves the cypherpunks , and they believed technology could replace politics entirely. Those ideas didn’t stay online. They shaped the culture of the tech industry, which in turn has reshaped Western civilisation itself. Now, the billionaires behind...

In just one year, Donald Trump has transformed America's government and its institutions. His actions and agenda reflect a far more emboldened president in his second term – and the guardrails designed to keep a president in check, from the courts to Congress, are buckling. Trump’s success in reshaping the system raises deeper questions about exactly what kind of country the United Sta...

After decades of spectacular growth built on property and heavy industry, China has tried to chart a new path – one driven by electric vehicles, green technology and AI.  But as those bets begin to falter, there are questions about whether China has reached its peak, with stubborn problems like high youth unemployment and an ageing population seemingly intractable. So as the new year be...

Like so many of us, Chloe Hooper spent 2025 obsessing over the triple murder trial of Erin Patterson. It was different to the crimes she’s written about before, in her books The Arsonist and The Tall Man , which was about a death in custody. For Chloe, it was the domesticity of the mushroom killings, the family dynamic, that drew her in. But why did this story captivate the country at-large?...

One of the big stories of the 2025 election campaign was the wipeout of the Australian Greens.  In a stunning defeat, they lost three out of their four lower house MPs, including their leader Adam Bandt. It left the party with big questions, about why they weren’t growing at a time when young people are more progressive than ever. Now, more than six months out from the election, and und...

This year, Anthony Albanese promised to make big changes — on childcare, on Medicare, on the cost of living. But while the government delivered some wins, it also quietly stepped back from the fights it didn’t want to have — on gambling, housing, and corporate power. Today, contributing editor of The New Daily , Amy Remeikis, looks back on yet another huge year in politics, on th...

It’s been a huge year for video games. Small developers are leading a renaissance of original ideas breaking through into the mainstream. They are going up against blockbuster franchises like Call of Duty – and winning. The 7am team debated adding “games” to our ‘best of’ features this year – but the numbers don’t lie. More than four out of five Aust...

Ruby Jones listens to a lot of podcasts.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, they all circle the same theme: journalism.  Today, she’s bringing you her favourite journalistic podcasts of the year – recommending everything from immersive narrative series to friends with chat shows.   If you enjoy 7am , the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/...

Kate Jinx watches hundreds of films every year – for her job programming feature films at the Melbourne International Film Festival, and, because she loves them. Today, she’s bringing you her five favourites from 2025. There’s Leonardo Dicaprio, of course. There’s also heists, collaborative theatre as film, PTSD but funny, and, there’s porridge.   If you enjoy&nb...

It’s been a heavy year in many ways. And when you work in news, there’s no shying away from that. But music can be a respite – something to help process the heaviness, and something that brings escape and joy. When we asked Head of Music at SXSW, Claire Collins, to pick her favourite albums of the year, both the heaviness and the joy were reflected back at us. She’s picked...

Marieke Hardy is a writer, broadcaster and former panelist on the ABC’s First Tuesday Book Club . Marieke’s passion and enthusiasm for the books she loves is contagious. But she’s also direct and unapologetic when a book isn’t for her, so you always know that when she recommends something, it’s going to be worth your time. Her list of favourite books starts with a spr...

Sarah Krasnostein has had a huge year. She’s teamed up with Helen Garner and Chloe Hooper to write The Mushroom Tapes – a true-crime book about Erin Patterson’s triple murder trial that asks what our fascination with the case says about us. She’s also continued her work as a television critic, watching a hell of a lot of TV. In her list of the best TV of 2025, Sarah Krasnos...

In the aftermath of the Bondi terror attack, the country is grieving. It's a moment that calls for unity and for leadership. But what we’ve seen is something else. Within days, political lines hardened. A former prime minister stepped in. The opposition shifted its message. And international leaders joined the chorus. With political venom so close to the surface, the moment has revealed some...

Two months ago, Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a ceasefire plan for Gaza. But since the truce began on October 10, Gaza authorities say Israel has carried out nearly 800 attacks, killing almost 400 people – including in a recent strike targeting a senior Hamas commander. Israel, meanwhile, says militants have repeatedly violated the ceasefire, killing at least three Israeli so...

As the country tries to understand how a Hanukkah gathering in Bondi ended with 15 people dead, more details about the alleged shooters have come to light. Authorities say the attack was inspired by Islamic State. The two gunmen had recently travelled to the Philippines for military-style training. The surviving gunman, now in custody, had been known to ASIO since 2019. And yet the attack still we...

Donald Trump has promised to deport a million people in his first year back in office. As a result, immigration officers are conducting widespread raids across the country – often targeting and locking up American citizens. The Trump administration says nearly 70 percent of the people Immigration and Customs Enforcement has arrested are criminals. But ICE’s own data shows the overwhelm...

On Sunday night in Bondi two gunmen opened fire on Jewish families.  Sixteen people, including one of the gunmen, are confirmed dead, making the tragedy Australia’s first mass shooting in nearly 30 years.  A further 42 people were taken to hospital, as well as the second gunman, who is under police guard.  ASIO has confirmed one of the gunmen was known to them, and there are r...

Catherine Liddle is the CEO of SNAICC, the national body that represents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and their families. Every year, Catherine and her team document how First Nations children are faring, and how they’re treated. And yet again, the picture is devastating. Catherine’s report shows that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are more likely to b...

This week, devastating figures were released that show the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care. It’s damning evidence that not enough has changed since the Stolen Generations.  Last year, we published a story about the long shadow cast by a policy of child removal, centred on the notorious Kinchela Boys Home in NSW. It’s a plac...

This week, Labor rolled out its flagship social media ban for under-16s. The reform was expected to be one last win for the government after a year of political victories. But while the spotlight was on the minister leading the charge, it was for all the wrong reasons. Instead of having runway to promote the ban, Anika Wells spent the week defending her use of taxpayer-funded expense entitlements....

Condoms and other contraceptives are set to become more expensive in China, as the Communist Party tries to boost population growth.  With the economy slowing, birth rates declining and the population ageing, the government is now trying all kinds of ways to make women have more babies – from taxing contraception, to new laws on marriages, to cash bonuses and propaganda campaigns. Repro...