The Briefing

There are 450,000 Australians living with Dementia. Our parents or grandparents drift away from us as the disease takes hold. So are we doing enough to manage the crisis? Closed wards, limited interactions with the outside world, a long list of medications, in some cases restraints, doesn’t sound like the way we’d like to see our loved ones treated. In this episode of The Briefing, we’re joined by...

Tony Armstrong is a proud Gamilaroi man and former AFL player, turned TV presenter, podcaster and two time Logie winner. With his moustache and cheeky smile all over our screens as the sports presenter on ABCTV News Breakfast and a regular on the project, Tony seems to have it all. In this chat with Tom Tilley, Tony unpacks his relationship with Adam Goodes, how he feels since the Voice referendum...

Azure Antoinette is a Grammy nominated poet, a corporate crisis fixer, a public speaker and a global ambassador for living with multiple sclerosis. Azure moved to left LA and arrived on Australian shores a few years ago, both for love, and because of threats from the Ku Klux Klan which drove her from home. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Azure breaks down what it’s like being the co-host of...

Taylor Swift is the talk of the town, with the icon shortly kicking off her leg of the Australian Eras Tour show tonight in Melbourne. The hype is real, with Swifties creating palpable levels of excitement right across the country. So why have we become so caught up in Swiftmania? And in a broader sense, why do fan girls cop more criticism than sports fans, who are often just as passionate? On tod...

Measles is making a comeback. Here’s what you need to know. Australia was declared Measles-free ten years ago, but a resurgence in cases, largely from people visiting from overseas, has seen it return. It’s not just a itchy rash, either. It can lead to very serious health problems. So in this episode of The Briefing, how and why has Measles returned to Australia and what you need to know to stay s...

Tasmania, currently the last Liberal government in the country, will head to an election more than a year earlier than planned. Yesterday, Premier Jeremy Rockliff announced that Tasmanians will vote on March 23rd, amidst claims that the parliament has become unworkable after two former Liberal MPs ditched the party and won’t agree to pass legislation. On today's afternoon episode of The Briefing,...

Gen Z or a Millennial? You’ve probably been told you’re more likely to vote toward the left of the political spectrum, only to drift further right as you get older. Well new research suggests that’s not actually the case. Gen Z and Millennials are sticking with the left. They’re deciding things like LGBTQI+ issues, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander issues, wider gender issues and climate chang...

Valentine’s Day for most usually means overpriced chocolates, flowers, presents (and maybe even sex). But Chanel Contos says it's also a particularly good time to talk about consent, and how to keep it front and centre in our intimate relationships.  The pressure surrounding Valentine’s Day can be overwhelming, with partners seeking consent often forgotten about or assumed. Is there a larger conve...

We’re all recycling, buying electric cars, taking paper and recycled bags to the supermarket, but do our climate change actions really move the needle on global warming? There are anti-global warmists who say renewable energy is a myth, you achieve nothing by recycling your bottles and cans, and putting your paper in the paper bin is a waste of time. Are they right...? In this episode of The Brief...

From disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong to Russia systematically doping its Olympic athletes, there has been no shortage of drug cheating scandals in the world of sport.  But what if we throw out the rule book, letting athletes push their bodies to the maximum possible performance - using whatever drugs they want?   Aron D'Souza is the president of the proposed Enhanced Games, an elite internationa...

Climate change is having an incredible impact on the continent of Antarctica. Historic drops in sea ice are accelerating the melt of ice sheets and the slowing of ocean currents, as well as catastrophic failures of emperor penguin colonies. A deteriorating climate in Antarctica will have a devastating impact on Australia. In this episode of the Briefing, we’re joined by Professor Matt King, an Ant...

Did you see the video and memes over the weekend of Nationals MP and former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce lying down next to a planter box on a Canberra footpath at night, swearing loudly into his phone? Since the video surfaced, Barnaby Joyce has said he’d been "drinking" and was on "prescription medication" at the time. However, the incident raises a question on the expectations we place o...

Australia has a dire shortage of apprentices. Some say it’s because of low pay and physically demanding work. Others argue Generation Z is simply too lazy or soft. Advocates want more subsidies and investment to boost the workforce. But some young apprentices have reported toxic workplaces and hazing. Meanwhile, older tradies are struggling amid a surplus of work and drought of young workers. So h...

Josh Thomas became a house hold name after his series Please Like Me was nominated for an Emmy, hitting the global stage. The Aussie comedian has spent the last seven years living in LA - but has decided it’s time to come back home. In this chat with Tom Tilley, Josh unpacks his new stand up comedy show, Let’s Tidy Up, about his ADHD, autism and how that turns into a messy house. Send us your Week...

Ellie Cole is Australia's most decorated female Paralympian, but that’s not what bought her happiness. When Ellie claimed her seventeenth Paralympic swimming medal in Tokyo she made history. And this year she was just recognised in Australia Day honours. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Ellie explains how she found true happiness once she stopped swimming. Weekend List: Fly screens from Bunni...

The US Supreme Court has a massive decision to make – whether to kick Donald Trump off the ballot in the 2024 election.   It follows a decision of Colorado’s top court that Trump is ineligible to be on the ballot in that state. But should a court strip voters of their right to choose the next President of the United States? Dave Levinthal is Editor-in-Chief of Raw Story. He joins Bension Siebert f...

The dog-loving world went into meltdown recently, with the announcement of a brand new drug to help increase the life expectancy of large-breed dogs. The company behind it, Loyal is on the path to getting conditional approval from the US FDA for the drug and has also just kicked off a new study for a pill that’d see our smaller four-legged friends live longer, too. So how soon can we expect to see...

Have you seen the #legginglegs hashtag that was circulating on TikTok and Instagram? The trend saw female influencers posting videos of themselves wearing leggings, with the subtext promoting the idea that you need slim legs to do so. It quickly saw backlash over concerns that it could lead girls towards unhealthy eating or exercise behaviours, even leading to intervention from TikTok itself, now...

Taylor Swift is a global superstar. She’s sold over 200 million records and is the highest-grossing female touring artist of all time. And now she’s the subject of a MAGA conspiracy. Donald Trump supporters are spreading the theory Taylor Swift is working with the Democrats to ensure Joe Biden is re-elected at the November US presidential elections. AND they’re going so far as to say her boyfriend...

How often do you work outside of your paid hours? Are you checking emails, or Teams messages, or taking phone calls when you could be spending that time with loved ones? The Government is looking at giving you the 'right to disconnect', as federal parliament kicks off for 2024 this week. If successful, the new law could mean you get the right to switch off your devices, and refuse to engage with w...

The Albanese government’s tax plan will see Australian women taxpayers, on average, receive a tax cut of $1,649 from 1 July. Childcare workers, disability carers and aged care workers are some of the most likely to benefit. In this episode of The Briefing we’re joined by Minister for Women Katy Gallagher to find out how the tax cuts will work and what they mean for you. Headlines: US court rules D...

News broke this morning that King Charles has been diagnosed with cancer, with an official release from Buckingham Palace stating that while he "remains wholly positive about his treatment", he will be stepping away from his public-facing duties. Despite the high hopes for the monarch’s future health, the situation has raised concerns over Australia’s lack of regency laws – which cover what happen...

16,000 sheep and cattle have been stranded on a ship off the coast of WA for just over a month. The livestock were being exported to the Middle East but the ship was turned back because of the conflict in the Red Sea. Several hundred head of cattle disembarked over the weekend – when temperatures hit the mid-30s. But there are still thousands of animals stranded at sea. In this episode of the Brie...

Thousands of people marched down the streets of St Kilda, south of Melbourne, yesterday for the annual Victorian LGBTQIA+ pride march at Midsumma festival.  Queer and ally police officers were among the marchers, joining the celebration when about 50 people tried to block the officers’ way. Some of them were chanting ‘cops kill gays’ and there were banners that read ‘no cops at pride’, with outwar...

Evergrande used to be a market giant, and now it's become the poster child of the bust. It received a liquidation order from a Hong Kong court on Monday two years after officially defaulting on public debt. Its collapse is the largest in a crisis that's dragged down China's economic growth and led to a record number of defaults by developers. What is this firm, who is it run by and how did Evergra...