The Briefing

Dilruk Jayasinha is one of Australia’s most in-demand comedians. His new stand up show is called Heart Stopper, named as such because in Hindi, Dil means heart and Ruk means stop. But the show’s title has since become especially apt because last year, at the age of just 37, one of the critical arteries in Dilruk’s heart gave out and he suffered a heart attack. As he says himself, spoiler alert, Di...

Facebook and Instagram users can now pay for their blue verified tick. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced last week what’s called the Meta Verification subscription bundle.  It will enable users to increase their security and reach. The new subscription model is only available in Australia and New Zealand and Meta will monitor the take-up and popularity of the new model before rolling it out world...

Renters across Australia are being ripped off - having to pay for so-called background checks to help them secure a property. The step is causing havoc and heartache in a sector already in crisis.  Last year, journalist Bension Siebert investigated real estate agents across the country using rental application platforms that pressure renters to pay for their own background checks. Bension, now a m...

Kathleen Folbigg has been in prison for nearly 20 years, charged with murdering 3 of her children and one charge of manslaughter. While she’s been behind bars, genetics research has made exponential leaps. New evidence uncovered by two Danish researchers could prove critical to her case. In this bonus episode courtesy of the Science Briefing, Dr Sophie Calabretto talks to Cosmos Magazine journalis...

Kathleen Folbigg is serving a minimum 25-year prison sentence after being convicted in 2003 of the murder of her three children, Patrick, Sarah, and Laura, and the manslaughter of her first child, Caleb. Each died suddenly between 1989 and 1999, aged between 19 days and 18 months. Her supporters say there's no pathological or medical basis to conclude homicide in any of the Folbigg children's deat...

Conversion therapy is banned in Qld, Victoria and the ACT, but it’s still legal in NSW. It's in the process of being banned in WA, but still looks to be legal in the NT and SA too. In NSW, Independent MP Alex Greenwich plans to introduce an omnibus Equality Bill including a ban on conversion practices. In this two-part special we find out the impact conversions therapy can have on individuals and...

Conversion therapy is banned in Qld, Victoria and the ACT, but it’s still legal in NSW. It's in the process of being banned in WA, but still looks to be legal in the NT and SA too. In NSW, Independent MP Alex Greenwich plans to introduce an omnibus Equality Bill including a ban on conversion practices. In this two-part special we find out the impact conversions therapy can have on individuals and...

Why are all the good songs written for people in their twenties? Why is it, as we get older and have partners, and children, pets and parents-in-law, mortgages and muscle aches, that music stops being written about our experiences? Claire Tonti is trying to change that. She’s a teacher turned podcaster turned musician and she’s just released her debut album Matrescence. Eleven original tracks, str...

Later this year we'll be voting in a referendum on the Voice, but how did it come about? In this bonus episode we go into the history of the Voice: the Uluru Statement from the Heart. The Uluru Statement originally called for an Aboriginal voice to parliament. It came from a convention bringing together over 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders at the foot of Uluru. We speak with Thom...

Footage from last month’s Invasion Day rallies around Australia featured speakers urging those gathered to vote ‘No’ in the promised Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum expected later this year. Most Australians would think the vast majority of First Nations people would support a ‘Yes’ vote – but that’s not necessarily the case.   In this two-part special, we speak to advocates from both si...

Footage from last month’s Invasion Day rallies around Australia featured speakers urging those gathered to vote ‘No’ in the promised Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum expected later this year. Most Australians would think the vast majority of First Nations people would support a ‘Yes’ vote – but that’s not necessarily the case.   In this two-part special, we speak to advocates from both si...

Pokies are responsible for more than half of Australia’s serious gambling harm, with NSW alone holding 35% of the world's pokie machines. Now, the NSW LNP government is pledging major reform ahead of the state’s May election.  In this episode, we speak to Drew Rooke - author of One Last Spin and ask how pokies took hold of Australia and why now is the time for reform. Headlines: - Putin pulls out...

Have you ever wondered why some people instantly click and others don’t? Dr Ali Walker is an Australian human connection scientist who's just written a book called Click or Clash. It covers why you bond easily with some people but have friction with others. It also looks at how we make friends and fall in love; the four types of belonging (and how to achieve them); the three types of loneliness (a...

Have you ever wondered why some people instantly click and others don’t? Dr Ali Walker is an Australian human connection scientist who's just written a book called Click or Clash. It covers why you bond easily with some people but have friction with others. It also looks at how we make friends and fall in love; the four types of belonging (and how to achieve them); the three types of loneliness (a...

Aaron Fa’Aoso is a film producer, director, screenwriter and actor, who also in his first career played professional rugby for the Canterbury Bulldogs.   Life for Aaron has been… so far, so good. His newly released autobiography is titled exactly that, and makes Aaron the first Torres Strait Islander to ever release a commercially published memoir.   In this chat with Jamila Rizvi, Aaron touches o...

The rise of online scammers has seen many Aussies losing their life savings with little to no hope of being reimbursed by their bank. In Australia, it’s estimated only 13% of scams are recorded, due to either embarrassment or the lack of confidence the victim will be reimbursed. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Consumer Action Law Centre are calling for Australia to adopt...

In the lead-up to International Women’s Day, we investigate the concept that women have to somehow ‘have it all.’ It comes as a recent article in a News Corp paper suggested a string of high profile women’s marriages broke down because they ‘dared to have it all.’ The BBC also questioned New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s ability to ‘have it all.' Antoinette wrote an op-ed in the Herald t...

This is our second episode focusing on adult ADHD. Two weeks ago we spoke with Bridget Pringle, a Melbourne based advertising professional and mother of two who was diagnosed about two years ago.  Bridget told us about what it was like living with ADHD – and how it answered lots of unanswered questions for her.  In today’s Briefing, we’re joined by Mark Bellgrove, the President of the Australian A...

Edelman’s annual Trust Barometer has revealed that the government and the media are among the least trusted by Australians. Whereas trust in business to take on social and structural issues, like climate change, is greater.   We’re joined by Tom Robinson, the Australian CEO of Edelman; and Zara Seidler is Co-Founder of leading youth news service The Daily Aus.  So in today's Briefing, why are Aust...

Australia has the highest skin cancer rates in the world - with one person here diagnosed with melanoma every 30 minutes. Last year alone, 17,000 people were diagnosed. Social media is adding to the problem with ‘suntanning’ now trending on TikTok and Instagram. So, how do we drive down the numbers when so many people are obsessed with tanning? In this episode, we’re joined by Samantha Brett, who...

Jeanette Francis, better known as Jan Fran, is one of our brilliant hosts of The Briefing podcast. Jan recently returned to the show after having her beautiful baby boy.   Jan Fran is a Lebanese-Australian journalist, presenter and is ridiculously accomplished. She has won a Walkley award, worked as a foreign correspondent and is well known as a television presenter and content creator.  In this e...

Last week a massive white balloon drifted across U.S. airspace before being shot down by the Air Force. But where did it come from? The US believes China was spying on its military camps with the 200ft balloon which contained sensors and surveillance equipment inside. The incident has sparked diplomatic tensions, China said the US overreacted by bringing the balloon down and the US Secretary of St...

Rural regions in Australia are facing major maternity shortages as services in rural hospitals are forced to close. Pregnant women are travelling for hours to get care – some fearing they may have to give birth on the side of the road. The problem is adding more pressure to Australia’s maternity crisis which has been ongoing for years.  In this episode, we speak to Sophie Walker - the founder of t...

The first baby born through IVF was in 1978 and since then the treatment has dramatically changed how the family unit can look. It has also given same sex couples more options when it comes to creating a family as well as solo parents, challenging the image of a nuclear family. Technology surrounding IVF is continuing to advance but there are still many common misconceptions and questions surround...

Women across Australia are continuing to choose to become solo mothers by choice, using assisted fertilization (IVF, donor) because of factors like age and social infertility.   We’re joined by solo mothers, Aoife Cooke and Liz Cashen who take us through their fertility journey.  The decision to start the journey as a solo mother can be a daunting step but with online communities and support group...