The Briefing

Millions of you donated to help the bushfire victims. But have we helped the people that need it?   Before the pandemic the devastation and the smoke from the bush fires was all consuming.   Over 18.6 million hectares of land was burnt, 33 people were killed and almost 6,000 buildings were destroyed. Along with the personal pain it also caused a lot of political tension.    In...

Defunding the police - What does it mean? and why is the US police force so different from our own?   One of the demands of protestors since George Floyd’s death is the call to defund the police. Today we dig deeper into this call, and find out what it actually means.   We’ll take you to Atlanta where protestors have hit the streets after Rayshard Brooks was shot dead by poli...

Will COVID produce the opportunity of a generation for young people desperate to crack the housing market?   Decades of surging house prices have created some intense intergenerational debates around fairness, with Median home prices increasing to more than seven times the median incomes today.   There were pandemic predictions that prices could fall by up to 30% however most banks have...

It’s a debate that’s happening across the world right now: Should we pull down statues of people whose actions now appear hurtful and deeply offensive in today’s context?   Since the Global Black Lives Matter Protests a statue of Christopher Columbus in the US was decapitated, a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was thrown into a river in the UK, and in Belgium a statue...

Question: What do a former Liberal party cabinet minister and the rave scene have in common?  Answer: An appreciation of the drug MDMA.    Experts are warning Coronavirus will have a huge impact on our mental health and former Liberal minister Andrew Robb thinks psychedelic drugs might be a solution.   MDMA, the key ingredient in party drug ecstasy and psilocybin...

The record breaking protests in the US have rightly put questions about the way Australia’s indigenous people are treated by police back on the agenda. Indigenous incarceration rates here in Australia are on the rise, and First Nations people are now more likely to be locked up than African-Americans. One recommended way of fixing this problem is by increasing the number of Indigenous people...

In this Bonus Episode hear our full interview   How does a former ‘Tiger King’ Animal Keeper feel about the court awarding Joe Exotics Zoo to his nemesis Carole Baskin?   We speak to ‘Saff’ the former Animal keeper who lost his arm to a tiger attack, and fan favourite of the Netflix series.   The recent big news for fans of the series saw a US court awarding...

How does a former ‘Tiger King’ Animal Keeper feel about the court awarding Joe Exotics Zoo to his nemesis Carole Baskin?   We speak to ‘Saff’ the former Animal keeper who lost his arm to a tiger attack, and fan favourite of the Netflix series.   Joe is the controversial former tiger zoo operator who’s serving a 22 year jail sentence for attempting to order a...

One of the most contentious issues of the pandemic has been Australia’s state border closures, with 3 out of 4 of us supporting them.  Where do you stand? The federal government and the NSW premier want the other states to open up their borders faster... but the WA and QLD premiers in particular are pushing back. Today we speak to Professor George Williams (Constitutional Expert) and Me...

Welcome to your Queens Birthday edition of The Briefing.   Top 5 Briefing Episodes … as downloaded by you   While many of you are enjoying a long weekend Tom Tilley and Jan Fran bring you this special episode, revealing the top 5 episodes as downloaded by you.   The Briefing started at the height of the Covid-19 lockdown, and more recently the focus has been on the race riots...

Our farmers have been going through hell with one of the worst droughts in Australia’s history. But with above average rainfall expected for winter, could the drought be breaking? Joining us today we speak to Dr Andrew Watkins (Head of Long-range Forecasts at the Bureau of Meteorology), James Nalder (a young cattle farmer from Coonamble in North West NSW) and Wayne Dunford (a Parkes farmer a...

Robodebt is the story the government didn’t want you to hear about, but last week it admitted defeat and agreed to refund thousands of Aussies it sent flawed demands to as part of its controversial robodebt recovery scheme. We speak to Joel Townsend -  Program Manager of Economic and Social Rights at Victorian Legal Aid,  which has been acting on behalf of people dudded by robodebt...

Since the riots broke out in America, small groups of Australian protestors have been raising the uncomfortable question: do we face similar problems here? Today we find out how Indigenous people in Australia are reacting to what’s happening, and what we can learn from it to help solve our problems here. Joining us is Professor Marcia Langton AM is one of Australia’s most outspoken Ind...

Today we take you to the streets of Washington DC, the heart of one of America's most intense rallies where looters have overrun the streets and fires have been ignited near the White House.   Today's headlines: White House protests force President Trump into bunker Hundreds gather for Australian George Floyd protest Youngest man to die of covid-19 tests negative Uber trials new ‘Uber R...

On today’s episode we’ll take you to streets of Minneapolis and speak to Aussie journalist Tim Arvier who was detained at gunpoint while reporting on the riots.   In today's headlines: Rioting spreads to London, Canada, Germany over George Floyds death Former Robodebt tribunal member doubts the government can pay it all back Our states are continuing to open up Superannuation bein...

The coronavirus pandemic has been a financial nightmare for young people. They’ve been much harder hit by job losses and they’ll also be the ones paying back the debt we’ve accumulated in the long term. This week we also found out it is younger Australians who have rushed to cash out their super to get through the pandemic. Today we speak to award winning finance expert Natasha J...

Australians are keen to get back on the sporting field but given the close contact and the huge numbers of people involved, could it spark a second wave that undoes all our hard work? We speak to Tim Cotter  - Head Coach Newcastle City Blues Australian Football Club and Paul Kelly  - Deputy Chief Medical Officer.   In today’s headlines: 30-year-old man becomes Austra...

The Gig Economy can provide flexibility and freedom for task by task workers like delivery drivers. Last year an Australian study found that 13% of the workforce had used a digital platform to find work and that number is expected to grow massively, particularly for young workers. But how we can protect independent contractors who work in this free market system? We speak to Diego the Delivery Dri...

Hydroxychloroquine is the drug at the centre of public debate and Donald Trump has revealed he’s been taking it to try and reduce his chances of getting Covid-19. Professor Marc Pellegrini (Walter & Eliza Hall institute of Medical Research) is the lead researcher on the Australian trial and joins us on today's show.   In today's news headlines: Bushfire royal commission hears black...

Warning - Adult/Explicit content in this episode. It’s hard to imagine a work practice any more socially non-distant than sex work. To talk about the impact of the pandemic on this racy industry, we speak to sex worker and CEO of Australian Sex Workers Association Scarlet Alliance - Jules Kim. (⚠️ Warning: obviously there is a discussion of adult themes in this episode, so it's recommended n...

Why is COVID-19 killing more men everywhere? Why do men and women die differently? Why do women outlive men? To find out, we speak to Dr Sharon Moalem - Author “The better half. The genetic superiority of women” and Dr Rebecca Kippen – a Demographer from Monash University.   Today's news headlines: QLD Premier not bothered by Pauline Hanson’s threat to take state to Hi...

Despite advice from the overwhelming majority of scientists, the concerns and conspiracies around 5G continue to get traction with so many people. Today we find out why. This is part 2 of our Briefing on the 5G Corona Conspiracy. Today we find out why the 5G concerns have gained so much traction during this pandemic with Dr Robin Canniford University of Melbourne who researches Human Behaviou...

The coronavirus pandemic has sent 5G fear into overdrive, with several conspiracy theories emerging. So we put all the big questions to Professor Rodney Croft from the Australian Centre for Electromagnetic Bio Effects research at the University of Wollongong.   In today's news headlines: Qantas unveils “Fly Well” program: face masks but no spare seats China labels Australia’...

Health experts believe vaping is more effective than nicotine patches and gum and is the most popular quitting aid in countries where it is available... then why is it illegal in Australia? We’ll explain the key arguments and find out why Australia is taking a tougher stance than other western countries, and why its such a divisive issue here. To find out more we speak to Professor Colin Men...

Millions of us are currently working from home because of the pandemic, but could working from home become the new normal? Today our guest is Organisational Psychologist Amantha Imber.   In today's news headlines: 62 countries back Australia’s call for a coronavirus enquiry Western Australia, Tasmania opening up as Victoria reveals its roadmap Police still not sure how AFL player was st...