7am

Pauline Hanson has spent decades casting herself as the outsider, the voice of people who feel ignored by the political class. 

Now, One Nation is surging in the polls and in donations. On Friday their fundraising site crashed under the weight of more than three million dollars in new money, forcing Labor to treat Hanson less like a fringe dweller and more like a direct threat.

But as Hanson’s popularity grows, so does the scrutiny of what sits behind it. This week, she admitted she’s taking policy advice from Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart, the billionaire mining magnate she describes as a friend and supporter. 

Today, contributing editor at The New Daily, Amy Remeikis, on Pauline Hanson’s growing momentum and the billionaire and corporate backing of her outsider politics. 

 

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Guest: Contributing editor at The New Daily, Amy Remeikis

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The scenes in Belfast this week have been horrifying to watch - ugly clashes, masked men rioting in the streets, immigrant families begging neighbours to hide their children - fearing for their safety.

Politicians, far-right agitators, and billionaire Elon Musk have been accused of sparking the riots - weaponising a brutal stabbing attack, to ramp up anti-migrant rhetoric and whip protestors into a frenzy.

Today, British journalist and host of The News Agents, Emily Maitlis on the far-right forces at play in the UK, and why the Belfast riots should serve as a warning to Australia, and the world.

 

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Guest: Journalist Emily Maitlis

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Donald Trump is right now following through on his threats to “hit Iran hard again” unleashing another round of strikes.

Trump says he wants a peace deal, but in the past 24 hours, the war has escalated again. Iran and the US have traded strikes, and one of the most important oil routes in the world remains severely restricted. The ceasefire is still supposed to exist, as is the promise of an imminent peace deal. But the closer Trump says he is to ending the war, the harder it is to tell who's actually in control of it.

Today, editor-at-large of The National Interest, Steve Clemons, on Trump's war with Iran, the fragile push for a deal, and why Benjamin Netanyahu may still be the person most capable of blowing it all up. 

 

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Guest: Editor-at-large of The National Interest, Steve Clemons

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When Julia Gillard delivered her now-famous misogyny speech in 2012, it was against a backdrop of some horrendous sexist attacks.

One of the most prominent was “Ditch the Witch” – a slogan on a placard then-opposition leader Tony Abbott was photographed standing in front of at an anti-carbon tax rally.

Now, the ugly slogan is back. This time, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is the target.

“Ditch the Witch 2.0” has put a spotlight on the treatment of women in politics.

Today, Victorian MP Georgie Purcell on her own experience of sexist abuse, the threat it poses to democracy, and why she’s putting political differences aside to stand up for her rival.

 

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Guest: Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell

Photo: ABC

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Last month, the federal government announced that the biggest neo-Nazi organisation in the country would be listed as a hate group.

A few days ago, The Age revealed the group’s former leader, Thomas Sewell, has been living in a $2.5 million estate in Melbourne’s suburbs. 

So what are Sewell’s plans for the compound, and who are the wealthy backers making it possible?

Today, crime reporter at The Age Sherryn Groch on the neo-Nazis’ next move.

 

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Guest: Crime reporter at The Age, Sherryn Groch

Photo: AAP Image/James Ross

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The conversation you’re about to listen to is almost certainly unlike any interview you’ve heard before. It’s unlike any 7am has ever done.

Dr Jeni Haynes has dissociative identity disorder, otherwise known as multiple personality disorder. In 2019 she set a world first legal precedent when her alters were allowed to testify in court against her abusive father, who was later sentenced to 45 years jail.

Now, she and her two thousand plus alters are speaking out in a new SBS documentary We Are Jeni.

Today you’ll hear from Dr Jeni Haynes, as well as from some of her alters in a rare glimpse into multiple personality disorder, and how it saved Jeni from her abusive father, who triggered the disorder in the first place.

And a warning, while this story doesn’t go into graphic detail - it does reference child abuse.

 

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

 

And We Are Jeni is available to stream now on SBS On Demand 

 

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Guest: Dr Jeni Haynes

Photo: AAP Image/Jeremy Piper

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Right now, AI data-centre mega-hubs as large as 350 hectares are being planned across Australia – that’s the equivalent of 175 MCG playing fields.

And the energy they need to fuel them is just as huge: more than the total output of an entire coal plant.

The solution? So-called “shadow grids” built in partnership between the data centres and big gas, where gas-fired power plants are placed directly on site, powering the centres and generating huge emissions in the process.

Today, Ketan Joshi, climate expert and co-author of a new Greenpeace report, on the relationship between fossil fuel companies and data centres, and Australia’s vulnerability in the AI race.

 

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Guest: Climate expert Ketan Joshi

Photo: REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol

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Earlier this year, authorities found something extraordinary inside a Cambodian scam compound: a fake Australian Federal Police office.

There were Australian flags, AFP-style logos, and desks staged to look official – all part of a six-storey compound used by scammers impersonating police forces from around the world.

It was a reminder that the scam messages Australians receive are often connected to a far more sophisticated and exploitative criminal industry.

New figures show Australians reported more than $2 billion in scam losses last year, and a recent UN report has detailed how people are trafficked into scam centres, held against their will, and forced to target strangers online.

In early 2024, Ben and his wife were kidnapped and trapped inside one of these Cambodian scam factories. This is the story of how they escaped – and why so many others can’t.

This episode was originally published in March 2025.

 

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

 

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Guest: Ben Yeo, ambassador for the Australian International Counter Slavery Alliance (AICSA)

Photo: AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit

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Tony Abbott is back at the centre of Liberal Party politics. 

The former prime minister has been elected unopposed as federal Liberal Party president – a role that sounds administrative, but carries real political weight at a moment of deep trouble for the Coalition.

The Liberals are watching voters drift to One Nation, while Abbott argues the answer is to take the fight directly to Labor. But his return sharpens a deeper question inside the party about whether the Liberals can rebuild by reviving the politics of the Abbott era, or whether that only deepens the crisis they’re trying to escape. 

Today, press gallery veteran Paul Bongiorno, on Tony Abbott’s comeback, the future of the Liberal Party and how the government is trying to turn the opposition’s crisis into a test of its own authority. 

 

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

 

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Guest: Press gallery veteran Paul Bongiorno

Photo: AAP Image/Joel Carrett

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In Melbourne, few names carry the weight of Mick Gatto. 

For decades, he’s been known as a survivor of the gangland wars, a man whose influence has stretched from the city’s underworld into the heart of the construction industry.

This week, police raided his home. Gatto and his wife were arrested, then released without charge. He says it was all over a driving infringement. Police say they’re investigating alleged financial offences. 

But the raid has landed in the middle of a much larger fight over corruption, intimidation and alleged underworld influence inside Victoria’s building sector. 

Today, investigative reporter Nick McKenzie, on Mick Gatto, corruption in the construction industry, and the reckoning now facing the state’s Big Build.

 

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

 

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Guest: Investigative reporter for The Age and SMH, Nick McKenzie

Photo: AAP Image/James Ross

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