7am

Jimmy Lai is a media tycoon and hero of Hong Kong’s freedom movement. 

A symbol of the city’s fight for democracy and a free press – he has been silenced, handcuffed, and now sentenced to 20 years in prison by a Hong Kong court.

Seen as a traitor by Beijing, Lai has been jailed on charges of sedition and collusion with foreign forces – which he says are politically motivated.

Today, Sebastien Lai on fighting for his father’s freedom and what this case says about China’s ongoing crackdown in Hong Kong.

 

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Guest: Sebastien Lai, son of jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai

Photo: Kobe Li/Nexpher Images/Sipa USA

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Israeli President Isaac Herzog has arrived in Sydney for a four-day visit to Australia, invited in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack in December.

On Monday, Herzog visited Bondi and laid a wreath to honour the 15 people killed in the attack. 

At the same time, pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in Sydney’s CBD to oppose the visit – after organisers launched a Supreme Court challenge to the NSW government’s decision to declare the visit a “major event”, a move that activates special police powers in the city. 

It comes on top of the broader protest restrictions NSW introduced after Bondi – which the government says are about community safety in the wake of a terrorist incident – but which civil liberties groups argue tilt too much power toward police discretion and make political protest more difficult.

Today, 7am chats with protestors at the Sydney march, and NSW Council for Civil Liberties president Timothy Roberts, on the new limits being placed on protest in NSW – and across the country.

 

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Guest: NSW Council for Civil Liberties president, Timothy Roberts

Photo: AAP Image/Flavio Brancaleone

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It’s been just over two weeks since the Liberal and National parties’ dramatic split and now the Coalition is back together.

Sussan Ley and David Littleproud insist they’re now solid, guaranteeing that after two Coalition splits in the space of a year - this time, there’ll be no more break ups.

Today, press gallery journalist Karen Middleton on how the Coalition got back together after their big blow up, and whether this time it’s for good.

 

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Guest: Press gallery journalist, Karen Middleton

Photo: AAP Image/Lukas Coch

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TikTok is the most influential media platform for Australians under the age of 25. It’s where millions get their news – whether they realise it or not.

But TikTok is no longer just a cultural force. A Trump-aligned group of investors has taken over its American operations, aimed at keeping China at arm’s length.

Now, users are claiming that content about ICE and its operations in Minnesota, where two American citizens were killed by federal agents, has been difficult to post, has disappeared from the algorithm, or has reached far fewer people than expected.

TikTok has denied political censorship, saying the platform was experiencing technical disruption at the time.

But it’s raised the question: when it comes to TikTok, who gets to decide what Americans see – and what gets buried?

Today, Associate Editor at Crikey, Cam Wilson, on the Trumpification of TikTok.

You can read Cam’s reporting at Crikey.

This episode was first published in October 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: Associate Editor at Crikey, Cam Wilson

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This week Australians were hit with another reminder that the cost-of-living crisis isn’t over, and that the government's room to move is narrowing fast. 

An interest rate rise has sharpened the pressure on Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers, just as a federal budget looms. The government is now forced to weigh up expectations of economic reform vs political risk. 

Meanwhile, the Opposition is unravelling in plain sight; the Coalition split, with the Nationals relegated to the crossbench.

Today, press gallery veteran, Paul Bongiorno, on how exposed the government really is, how bold it can afford to be, and how the opposition’s collapse is reshaping the political contest. 

 

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/Mick Tsikas

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In the wake of the Bondi terror attack, the Prime Minister invited Israeli President Isaac Herzog to Australia, a move framed as an act of solidarity with the Jewish community. 

But that visit, which begins on Sunday, is now sparking criticism, including from within the government, with a series of protests planned across the country.

Supporters of the visit say Herzog’s presence will bring comfort to grieving families. But critics argue it risks deepening divides, particularly as Israel faces genocide allegations at the International Court of Justice, with Herzog’s own statements cited as evidence.

Today, Principal lawyer at Maurice Blackburn, Josh Bornstein, on the visit that’s raising tensions and dividing communities and whether those divisions can ever can ever be mended. 

 

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Guest: Josh Bornstein, Principal lawyer at Maurice Blackburn

Photo: AAP Image/Callum Godde

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Between them, the US and Russia hold 90 per cent of the world’s nuclear firepower.

But today, the New START Treaty, which limits the number of missiles and warheads in their arsenals, expires.

President Putin first suspended it two years ago.

Now, without a last-minute deal, it looks set to collapse for good amid fears of a new nuclear arms race.

Today, a view from the inside as we speak with Paul Dean – who helped implement the Treaty and is now a Vice President for the US-based ‘Nuclear Threat Initiative’ – on the threat of nuclear war.

 

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Guest: Paul Dean, Vice President of Nuclear Threat Initiative’s Global Nuclear Policy Program

Photo: U.S. Energy Department via AP, File

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For years, survivors of some of the worst crimes imaginable have been put through hell. Their perpetrators allowed to use glowing character references in court, in an effort to have their sentences reduced.

But today, that’s set to change as New South Wales introduces new laws scrapping character references for all criminal sentencing - in response to years of campaigning from sexual abuse survivors.

Today, ‘Your Reference Ain’t Relevant’ Cofounder Harrison James on what these changes mean and how the rest of the country is lagging behind on character reference reform.

 

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Guest: Cofounder of ‘Your Reference Ain’t Relevant’, Harrison James

Photo: AAP Image/Sarah Wilson

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When the US military seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, people in Colombia were left wondering if they were next.

Almost immediately, Donald Trump was accusing Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, of being tied to cocaine trafficking – without providing evidence – and publicly entertaining a US “operation” in the country.

Monica Villamizar, a Colombian-American journalist, says the mood on the streets has been a mix of shock and fear.

Now, following a phone call that temporarily cooled the crisis, Petro is due to meet Trump in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday – a meeting Monica calls a wild card.

Today, Monica Villamizar on the feud between Trump and Petro – and what’s riding on their meeting for Colombia, and the broader Latin American region.

 

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: Colombian-American journalist, Monica Villamizar

Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

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Australia likes to present itself as a defender of human rights. But right now, on the world stage, that reputation is being seriously questioned. 

Dozens of countries have called on Australia to stop locking up children, some as young as ten, and to confront the fact that Indigenous kids make up the overwhelming majority of those behind bars. 

For a nation that claims moral leadership on human rights, the scrutiny now facing Australia is deeply shameful and impossible to ignore. The tough-on-crime agendas of several state and territory governments risk undermining Australia’s reputation when it comes to the way we treat our own children.

Today, CEO of Change the Record, Jade Lane, and CEO of the Human Rights Law Centre, Caitlin Reiger, on Australia’s standing on the world stage, and why so many Australian children call prison home. 

 

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: CEO of Change the Record, Jade Lane and CEO of the Human Rights Law Centre, Caitlin Reiger

Photo: ABC Indigenous

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.