Hack

An estimated 15,000 Aussies head overseas for surgery each year – but some people are stepping off the plane home with botched results and infections. We hear about what changes Aussies are getting done overseas, and what's going wrong. And, three of Western Australia's biggest universities are potentially merging, but not everyone is happy about it.  Plus, Trump has called an ‘energy ceasefire’ between Ukraine and Russia, which was a surprise to Ukraine’s President Zelensky. So... what exactly is an ‘energy ceasefire’?

Listen now: 

01:13 – University merger  

12:26 – Energy ceasefire 

18:40 –  Medical tourism 

Guests:

• Dylan Storer, President of the Curtin University Student Guild
• Dr Matthew Sussex, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University
• Dr Lily Vrtik, President of the Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons 

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

This week the Coalition dropped it's new migration policy. It's promised to slash the number of international students coming to Australia and put a bigger focus on skilled migrants. 

So how does this stack up to what Labor and One Nation are proposing? And what would it mean for Australia's economy? 

On this week's Deep Dive, host Dave Marchese speaks to ABC Finance presenter Alan Kohler to unpack the Coalition's migration plan. Plus, Dave asks Liberal MP Andrew Hastie if his party is just copying Pauline Hanson.

Guest:

• Alan Kohler, ABC Finance  
• Andrew Hastie, Liberal MP, Shadow Minister for Industry and Sovereign Capability

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

Christa Pike is alive, talking, and reportedly ‘angry’, after surviving a botched execution. So what happens now?   And, a One Nation electoral ad has gone viral this week – but not only for its content. It’s raised the question, should AI be allowed in political ads?  Plus, is the ‘singles tax’ real? Apparently, it’s costing people thousands of dollars a year... 

Also, would you cheat... in a marathon? A fitness influencer’s been caught hitching a ride mid-race.  Host, Dave Marchese, is joined by Daily Aus Editor-in-Chief , Billi FitzSimons, and comedian, Billy D’Arcy. 

Listen now: 

04:10 – What now for Christa Pike?  

12:10 – AI in election ads 

19:50 – The ‘singles tax’ 

26:40 – Marathon cheater

Guests:

• Billi FitzSimons, Editor-in-Chief at the Daily Aus
• Billy D’Arcy, Comedian 

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

What are the risks of cutting back on immigration? Yesterday, the Coalition released its long-awaited migration policy to dramatically cut back on international students in favour of skilled migrants. Today, Liberal MP Andrew Hastie joined hack to respond to criticism about the plan.  And, we unpack a landmark High Court decision for a NSW coal mine and fossil fuel emissions.   Plus, would you commit to donating 10% of your income forever? How about a kidney? We’re joined by Hu Pennington - who has done both of those things - to hear about ‘effective altruism’. 

Listen now: 

01:13 – The Coalition on migration criticism 

14:00– Landmark climate ruling 

18:41–  Effective Altruism unpacked  Guests:

• Andrew Hastie, Liberal MP, Shadow Minister for Industry and Sovereign Capability
• Hu Pennington, Effective Altruism Australia board member

How far would you go to help people you have never met?

Would you commit to giving away a proportion of your income for the rest of your life or even donate a kidney?

Hu Pennington has done both in the name of "effective altruism" — a social movement centred around positive impact and charity.

In this chat with Dave, Hu explains why he decided to give his kidney to a stranger, and how his family reacted when he told them.

Guests:

• Hu Pennington, Effective Altruism Australia board member

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

The stories that matter to The Coalition have dropped their new migration policy with promises to slash visa numbers across the board. So what do the experts think? And how does it compare to the Labor and One Nation plans announced earlier this year? Plus, Christa Pike is talking in hospital after surviving a failed execution last week. Pike, 50, has been on death row for 30 years after murdering her classmate in 1995. So, what went wrong with the execution and what happens now?   And, how do you network when your nearest colleague is hundreds of kilometres away? We unpack the new initiative helping young rural workers connect. 

Listen now: 

01:21 – Migration policies explained 

11:14 – Christa Pike still alive 

25:21 –  Networking out bush

Guests: 

• Julian Koplin, Lecturer in Bioethics, Monash University
• Alan Kohler, ABC Finance  

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

young Australians, in your ears and 24/7 on your feeds.

The big tech companies were in the hot seat today, ready to be grilled at a parliamentary inquiry into artificial intelligence. We listened in to find out what they were asked, and what they had to say. And, the Greens want to force Coles and Woolworths to sell off 200 stores so they can be publicly owned - much like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's plan for his city. Why do this? To make groceries cheaper, says Max Chandler-Mather. But we have more questions. Plus, there's been reports of a suspected plague death in Russia that has health experts monitoring closely. So, how worried should we be?Finally, we talk about a country pub with some unexpected stars taking the stage.

Listen now: 

01:15 – AI inquiry

06:07 – The Greens’ supermarket idea

18:53 – Pneumonic plague

24:17 – Outback drag

Guests:

• Max Chandler-Green, Former Greens MP  & Executive Director, The Greens Institute
• Thomas Jefferies, Senior Lecturer of Microbiology, Western Sydney University

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

Australia's native reptiles are highly sought after overseas, with some fetching hundreds and thousands of dollars.

But exporting live native reptiles for commercial purposes is illegal — so criminal networks are finding other ways to get them out of the country.

This week, we're looking at the illegal trade in Australian reptiles, and the unlikely group of people getting caught up in it.

Host Gabby Katanasho is joined by Dr Sebastian Chekunov, who's extensively researched wildlife crime, to unpack how the trade works, where our reptiles are going, and why it matters

Guest:

• Dr Sebastian Chekunov, Adelaide University Wildlife Crime Research Hub

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

The lawsuit alleging a gang rape at Cornell University has sparked a cultural movement that might be the biggest since #MeToo. It's all anyone is talking about right now... but do enough men join the conversation when it really matters? And, how do we create a culture that doesn't enable sexual violence? 

And, Donald Trump decided AI needed a rebrand this week, and signed an executive order to rename it "Super Intelligence", or "SI". Catchy? Jury's out, but it got us thinking, what are some of the great rebrand flops of all time? 

Also, the Singapore government is trying to play cupid... for its staff! Is this a good idea or a very bad one? Host Gabby Katanasho is joined by author and creator Jack Toohey and senior writer at Pedestrian TV and co-host of Broadly Relevant", Simran Pasricha.

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm

Just 24 hours ago, the Greens got a new leader. David Shoebridge shares what he wants young people to know, how the party will combat its ‘unserious’ reputation, and his promise of a ‘red-hot fight’ against Labor and One Nation.   Plus, a plane flying to Tel Aviv dropped more than 15-thousand feet, in less than a minute, with a bloody struggle in the cockpit. We get into what's known. And, we're joined by Noongar woman, victim-survivor and DV advocate, Alison Scott. In 2019, her sister was murdered by her partner. She explains what it will take to protect some of the most vulnerable in our society, and what it's like for those who have lost family to domestic violence. 

Listen now: 

00:58 – Cockpit attack 

03:40 – Say hello to the new Greens leader 

14:51 – Australia’s DV crisis 

Guests:

• David Shoebridge, Leader of the Greens
• Alison Scott, DV advocate

Get the whole story from hack:

• Follow us on Instagram and TikTok
• Subscribe to the hack podcast
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live every weeknight at 5:30pm