Background Briefing

You think you know the story. You know how it ended. But you don’t know how it began. In the first episode of The Road to Bondi, reporter Josh Robertson traces the decades-long path that led a father and son to carry out their plan. He takes us from the narrow streets of old Hyderabad in India, where a young man grew up in a respectable family, to the western Sydney suburbs, where he begins to unr...

In an ordinary Australian suburb, a father and son are secretly planning something terrible. One fateful summer evening, their path brings them crashing into the lives of strangers from around the world whose own stories haven’t yet been told. You might think you know the story, but there's so much more to tell. In a new three-part series, Background Briefing investigates how the road to Bondi beg...

Insiders from the Harrow-Balmoral football club decide to break the code of silence. For Elise, it’s time to rebuild her life. But her story inspires other women to emerge with their own troubling accounts of the town’s club culture. When the convicted men were freed, Balmoral threw them a hero’s welcome; after everything, what was actually learned? 

A key witness submits a startling new statement that topples the guilty verdict and forces a retrial. This time, the men accused will not give evidence. But Lisa Hutchins, the trusted bush nurse will take the stand again — now for the defence.

As the criminal trial unfolds, witnesses from Balmoral waver on the stand, and the judge is "taken aback". The courtroom is heaving with supporters of the accused but the verdict is not what they're expecting.

A respected bush nurse with close ties to the accused becomes a key police witness. As the investigation quietly gathers pace, locals start to choose sides and the family of the victim feels ostracised. 

A 21st birthday party becomes a crime scene, but some locals carry on like nothing’s happened. 

In this one-street town of 280 residents, there’s an unspoken code: don’t rock the boat, or risk being cast out. Balmoral is a small Victorian town built on tradition, loyalty and knowing your place. For newcomers, the fastest way in is the football club. It’s where friendships are forged and status is earned.

When a young woman accuses a talented local footballer and his friend of rape, the town reveals where its true loyalties lie. The beating heart of Balmoral, a tiny Victorian town in Australia, is the football club. It’s where children grow up, where families belong and where people learn the cost of rocking the boat. Background Briefing investigates what happens when town pride, sports club cultur...

This week, Prianka Srinivasan arms herself with a burner phone and a fake name, and sets out to learn how Instagram’s algorithm really works.

When the founder of a skincare company discovers his zinc sunscreen product potentially isn't achieving the protection it's supposed to, it doesn't take long before he realises the problem is far bigger than he first thought.

The injectable industry is booming, but behind the glossy ads and plump looks, some patients are discovering filler that doesn’t dissolve. This week reporter Gina McKeon reveals the hidden risks of chasing an Instagrammable face.

For young men struggling with body image, social media offers a radical solution: get taller by breaking your legs. As the cosmetic limb-lengthening industry booms worldwide, Emilia Terzon explores the secretive online communities obsessed with undergoing the procedure, and meets the doctors left to deal with what happens when it goes wrong.

Hair loss ads are everywhere. Telehealth clinics with thousands of five-star reviews promise fast consults and discreet delivery to your doorstep. But what happens when the treatment messes with your brain chemistry?

Before and After is a new series by Background Briefing that exposes how medical hype spreads online, who profits, and who pays.

Kim saw a teacher’s aide laughing at a video of a vulnerable student and reported it to the principal. She had no idea it would come to define the next seven years of her life.

After years of manipulation, Alliyah is determined to see justice done. When Kellie appears in the dock, what will she say? And how will the judge respond?

Alliyah steps into a police station on the outskirts of Brisbane, and says: “I want to report a crime.” After keeping the so-called relationship with Kellie secret for almost a decade, Alliyah is finally ready to tell their story. 

A new job and a surprise encounter show Alliyah that another way is possible. Will they manage to slip out of Kellie's control?

When the principal discovers Alliyah and their teacher Kellie are exchanging secret messages outside class, Kellie is warned — but not fired. Then, on the last day of Alliyah’s graduation, another message arrives: “Secret squirrel… you can’t tell anyone.” As suspicion mounts at home, Alliyah's connection with Kellie grows stronger and more dangerous by the day.

12-year-old Alliyah’s clowning around in science class, testing the waters to see how the new teacher will respond. An unusual bond grows between them — and what starts with a death stare and a smirk, soon slips into a world of secrets.

She's every student’s favourite teacher — warm, funny, the kind who bends the rules. But for one 12-year-old, Alliyah, her attention goes far beyond the classroom. The Favourite is a five-part series by Background Briefing about how a secret remained hidden in plain sight for nearly a decade.

When a marine scientist starts picking up traces of pesticides in oysters, she follows a trail that leads inland — to NSW blueberries carrying a poison not permitted for use in Australia. 

Catherine Taylor investigates how money, disadvantage and resources risk holding back our brightest students.

The Yes In My Backyard movement is lobbying for denser cities and more housing in places people want to work and live. The YIMBYs want these homes built yesterday, but as Gina Rushton explains, the NIMBYs haven’t given up yet.