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Shenane Hogg spent nine months in a coma after suffering abuse at the hands of her partner.

During her recovery, she discovered her abuser had amassed $56,000 of debt in her name.

Shenane’s story is just one of many that was heard at a parliamentary inquiry into how the financial system can be used to abuse women.

The inquiry has heard chilling evidence of a sharp rise in financial abuse that can manifest as offensive and threatening messages in streams of bank transfers, raiding of a partner’s super benefits, or making them liable for joint debts.

Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Barlow on the cost of financial abuse, and why we’re failing to prevent it.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Barlow.

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The attempted assassination of former US president Donald Trump shocked America.

Prominent public figures from all sides of the political spectrum have spoken out and condemned the use of violence, with President Joe Biden saying “it’s not who we are as a nation”.

But is that true?

And does this response downplay just how pervasive political violence has been in US history?

Today, journalist and author of The Forever War: America’s Unending Conflict with Itself Nick Bryant on America’s long and sordid tradition of violence and dangerous rhetoric.

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Guest: Journalist and author of The Forever War: America’s Unending Conflict with Itself Nick Bryant

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In Queensland, one issue is already dominating the upcoming state election: youth crime.

So when the Liberal National Party launched their campaign, Peter Dutton was the perfect man to help sell their pitch.

The federal opposition leader and former Queensland cop has been stressing his closeness to his home state.

Already Peter Dutton has promised to crack down on crime, slow immigration, break up supermarket monopolies, and shift the green energy focus to nuclear.

So will the Queensland election be a testing ground for Dutton’s federal agenda?

Today, special correspondent for The Saturday Paper Jason Koutsoukis on how Peter Dutton is marketing himself, and whether Australia is ready to look more like Queensland.

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Guest: Special correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Jason Koutsoukis.

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Long before she was hosting 7:30 on the ABC, Leigh Sales dreamed of becoming a novelist. In this episode of our sister podcast, Read This, she joins Michael to discuss her secret desire to write fiction, the art of crafting a good story, and how being a journalist allowed her to become a professional stickybeak.

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When Mostafa Azimitabar was imprisoned on Manus Island, he was overcome with a desire to paint.

With no art supplies, he used a toothbrush – a technique he continues with to this day.

Mostafa survived the brutality of Australia’s asylum seeker detention system for more than eight years. Freed in 2021, he now lives in Sydney.

His art has been shortlisted for the Archibald prize twice. But he paints from the edges of a country whose systems remain hostile towards him, as he navigates temporary visas with no stability, at constant risk of deportation.

Today, artist and refugee Mostafa Azimitabar on how his work is a testimony to his suffering and the one thing authorities can never take from him.

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Guest: Artist and refugee, Mostafa Azimitabar.

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In 2018, then prime minister Scott Morrison announced a royal commission into aged care, shedding light on the astonishing prevalence of abuse in residential facilities.

It’s been three years since its final report was handed down and advocates say very little has improved.

The commission highlighted just how difficult accountability and justice can be to achieve after someone in care is harmed. Especially when the abuse is at the hands of those in charge of the nursing homes and home care services.

The federal government is attempting to remedy this with new laws that could see directors and management jailed in particularly egregious cases.

Today, poet and aged care advocate Sarah Holland-Batt on whether the government's new laws will be enough to turn around the disaster that is our aged care system.

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Guest: Poet and aged care advocate, Sarah Holland-Batt

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There's a shadow world beneath Canberra, fed by the defence, foreign affairs and security communities, and it is hugely influential in how the government responds to our biggest geopolitical challenges.

Margaret Simons has spent decades keeping a close eye on this world. Recently, the story of one think tank, China Matters, caught her attention.

The group, dedicated to bettering Australia’s understanding of China, was defunded during a time of aggressive posturing towards the superpower and talk of war.

Today, investigative journalist and contributor to The Monthly Margaret Simons on why this influential think tank came undone, and how a crew of anti-China politicians called the ‘Wolverines’ led the attack.

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Guest: Investigative journalist and contributor to The Monthly Margaret Simons

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If you pick up a copy of The Age or The Sydney Morning Herald, you’ll see the tagline ‘Independent. Always.’ under the masthead.

Now, as journalists at those papers reel from an announcement that Nine Entertainment is slashing 200 jobs across the company, some are wondering if they’re being targeted for the papers’ recent coverage of Nine’s troubled culture. 

Are the cuts payback for certain papers being too independent? 

Today, National Correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe on why Australian media is struggling and what the future of independent news looks like.

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Guest: National Correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe

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Donald Trump’s lead in the polls for the 2024 presidential race has widened following a fumbling debate performance from Joe Biden, and concerns about the President’s age.

With the increasing likelihood of a second Trump presidency, attention is now turning to his potential governing agenda.

The blueprint, called Project 2025, is more than 900 pages long and includes calls to sack thousands of civil servants, expand presidential power, and dismantle federal agencies.

Today, senior researcher at The Australia Institute, Dr Emma Shortis, on Project 2025, and the threat of ‘a second American Revolution’.

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Guest: Senior researcher in International and Security Affairs at The Australia Institute, Dr Emma Shortis

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George Saunders is one of literary fiction's most acclaimed living writers. Along with his many collections of short stories, he also published the Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo. To celebrate Read This' first birthday, we're bringing you Michael Williams' interview with George Saunders. They talk about his life and career and the three words that made him a writer.

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