Full Story

Ben Roberts-Smith v the media is a five-part series available via Guardian Australia’s Full Story podcast feed. All episodes streaming now. In the defamation trial of the century, Australia’s most-decorated living soldier is seeking to defend his reputation against reports in three newspapers that he says falsely accuse him of being a war criminal. His lawyers argue Roberts-Smith has been unfairly targeted by envious comrades and assisted by credulous journalists. The newspapers’ lawyers say their reporting is true, and that Roberts-Smith broke the ‘moral and legal rules of military engagement’, something he denies outright. But who is Ben Roberts-Smith, and how did he earn the military’s highest honour, the Victoria Cross?

Netball Australia has been in the news after players expressed concern over wearing the logo of mining company Hancock Prospecting on their uniform. But netball isn’t the only sport to make headlines recently relating to claims of sportswashing. The Socceroos issued a statement this week about human rights abuses in Qatar ahead of the World Cup next month. In this episode of Full Story, Gabrielle Jackson talks to Lenore Taylor and Jo Tovey about players finding their voice, the politics of sport, and sportswashing

In 2021, Grace Tame became a household name after she was recognised as Australian of the Year for her work advocating for survivors of child abuse. In the year that followed, Tame’s story of being assaulted and groomed by her teacher became common knowledge, with the activist facing multiple challenges in getting her story - and stories of other abuse survivors - heard and accurately represented. Grace Tame speaks to Laura Murphy-Oates about sharing her story in her own words in her memoir The Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner, keeping power accountable, and how her foundation is creating meaningful change for victim survivors of child sexual abuse

Australia’s most decorated living soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith, is suing three of the country’s most trusted newspapers for defamation over articles he says falsely accuse him of war crimes. Whatever the outcome, the ramifications will be immense for public interest journalism, Australia’s military and the man venerated as a modern-day war hero

Labor’s first budget in a decade warns of dire economic conditions on the global stage and the risks of rising inflation. It delivered on promises made on childcare, parental leave, housing and skills but deliberately contained no surprises. Laura Murphy-Oates talks to Guardian Australia’s editor Lenore Taylor and political editor Katharine Murphy about Labor’s plans for the nation and how it intends to roll out its progressive policies slowly and steadily

In 1934, Pitjantjatjara man Yukun was killed in a police shooting at Uluru, with his remains then dug up and kept in museums for decades. After a journey of discovery involving a long-lost diary and a forensic search of hundreds of Aboriginal remains, Yukun has finally been laid to rest by his descendants – nearly 90 years after his death.Indigenous affairs editor Lorena Allam speaks to Yukun’s family and historian Mark McKenna about what really happened to Yukun, and the journey to bring him home

Liz Truss has resigned as UK prime minister after a disastrous premiership marked by U-turns and a self-inflicted economic crisis. Sonia Sodha analyses what’s next for the Tories: will a new leader solve their problems? When could the next election be and could Labor win it?

In June 2018, an SAS soldier known in this defamation trial as Person 18 says he received two threatening letters at his barracks in Perth. In their defence, the newspapers allege that these letters were written by Ben Roberts-Smith. He denies this outright. In this episode, Ben Doherty explains why the newspapers think these letters are important to their defence of this case and we hear testimony from Ben Roberts-Smith, as well as his former employee John McLeod and ex-wife Emma Roberts, who are witnesses for the newspapers, read by voice actors. We also hear closing arguments from both sides and from a defamation barrister about what this trial tells us about defamation law in Australia

On 12 April 2009, the SAS arrive in the village of Kakarak in Afghanistan’s Uruzgan province. It’s a Taliban stronghold where an Australian soldier was killed just a month earlier. It’s here, in a compound known as Whiskey 108, that one of the most contested events in this extraordinary defamation trial take place. In their defence, the newspapers allege that at Whiskey 108 Ben Roberts-Smith murdered an Afghan man with a prosthetic leg and ordered a junior member of his patrol to murder another Afghan man as part of a military ‘blooding’ ritual. Roberts-Smith strenuously denies these claims and says the two men who were killed were legitimate engagements shot lawfully in the heat of battle. In this episode, Ben Doherty takes us inside the raid on Whiskey 108. We hear evidence presented by Ben Roberts-Smith and others who support his version of events, as well as witnesses for the newspapers, read by voice actors

An affair between Ben Roberts-Smith and a witness known to the court as Person 17 is one of the key contested elements of this extraordinary defamation trial. The newspapers as part of their defence allege that Roberts-Smith committed an act of domestic violence against Person 17. He denies this allegation, saying it is a complete fabrication. In this episode, host Ben Doherty takes us through both sides, detailing the breakdown of Roberts-Smith’s marriage to Emma Roberts and his affair with Person 17. We hear testimony from Roberts-Smith himself, as well as from Person 17 and Emma Roberts – who appear for the newspapers – read by voice actors