Hack

Brain cancer. 

An Instagram account.

A cookbook and an app deal with Apple. 

There wasn't much that was going to stop Belle Gibson's rise. 

Until two journalists from The Age followed a tip off down the rabbit hole that unravelled Belle's story. 

Today, hack speaks to one of those reporters about what it was like breaking the story of one of Australia's most notorious scammers. 

Guest:

• Beau Donelly, former Age reporter and co-author of The Woman Who Fooled The World

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Sam Kerr was found not guilty of racially harassing a police officer. How did we get here and what does it mean for the future of her Matildas captaincy?

And the government wants to stop your HECS-HELP debt from holding you back on home loans. 

Plus, this is how climate change is putting Australia's surf economy under threat. 

Listen now:

01:14 - Sam Kerr verdict explained

08:30 - How HECS can hold back a housing dream 

21:48 - The surf breaks under threat

Guests:

• Megan McElhone, senior lecturer in criminology, Monash University
• Brendan Dixon, mortgage broker, Pure Finance
• Steph Curley, CEO, Surfrider Foundation Australia

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Australia is known for its beach culture. 

In fact, 1 in 10 of us surf.

But some of our most famous breaks are under threat from rising sea levels.

So is there anything we can do about it?

Guests:

• Steph Curley, CEO, Surfrider Foundation Australia

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Trump is imposing tariffs on steel imports, a major blow to a big Australian industry. So after a pretty important phone call, can Prime Minister Anthony Albanese talk his way into an exemption? 

Plus, the Antoinette Lattouf unlawful termination case against the ABC continues in the federal court with some of the broadcaster's top bosses taking the stand. What's gone down so far? 

And the Kendrick Lamar half-time show was just a visual spectacular, it was also deeply political. Here's how.  

Also we ask whether GP visits should be free (and how the government could make it possible). 

Listen now:

01:08 - Trump and Albo's tariff call

06:08 - Why the cost of a GP visit is holding back young Aussies

18:42 - The Lattouf case explained

24:56 - Kendrick's Super Bowl show unpacked 

Guests:

• Dr Ramya Raman, vice president, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
• Chantelle Al-Khouri, reporter, ABC News

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Ever skipped a doctor's visit because of the price?

You're probably not alone. 

Australians in their 20s are some of the most likely to avoid a visit to the GP due to the rising cost of living. Now a peak doctors' group is calling for free visits to address the issue. 

In this episode we explore how the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners plans to fix medical accessibility. 

Guests:

• Dr Ramya Raman, vice president, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Should the government consider future generations when making legislation? Well, this independent MP wants to make sure they do. 

And are we any closer to closing the disadvantage gap for Indigenous Australians? The federal government has released an update on how we are tracking...and where we are falling behind. 

Plus bike rideouts are taking over city streets, so who is behind them? 

Listen now:

01:23 - How close are we to Closing the Gap?

06:01 - The government bill trying to protect future generations

13:49 - The bike rideouts taking over city streets

19:30 - What the Bike Life organiser feels about its impact

Guests:

• Dr Sophie Scamps, independent MP
• Jordan Forte, organiser, Bike Life

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

Bike rideouts, where big groups of young guys take to the streets, have been popping up in the last few years everywhere from Perth and Sydney to the Gold Coast and Melbourne.

Organisers say they're all about getting young people off the streets and giving them something to do, but police are worried they’re dangerous, and some people are even threatening the riders with violence.

In Perth last year, a 16-year-old allegedly assaulted a police officer at a rideout.

So are these rideouts a solution or a problem?

We were at one in Melbourne over the weekend to find out.

Guest

• Jordan Forte, organiser, Bike Life

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

A transport minister stepping down after a winery lunch, an election promise for taxpayers to cover long lunches for businesses, and a literal Aussie Trump: we’re dissecting the week in politics.

And a "workforce of marshmallows": that’s what some bosses think of junior doctors who are threatening to walk off the job. 

Plus, the Anna v Mikaela beef: losing followers, "feeling broke" and influencer accountability. 

Hack host Dave Marchese is joined by political reporters Tess Ikonomou from AAP and Michael McGowan from The Sydney Morning Herald.

New hate crime laws have been rushed through Parliament, with mandatory jail time included. So how will it work? 

And Sam Kerr's racial harassment trial has been happening in London this week. Here's everything that's gone down so far. 

Also, the National Student Ombudsman opened this week. It's hit the ground running with the first complaint hitting the office within 15 minutes of the new website going live. 

Plus, the NFL is coming to Melbourne, with plans for a regular season game at the MCG. 

Listen now:

01:04 - Sam Kerr's trial explained 

09:02 - The new hate crime laws

13:47 - Meet the student ombudsman 

22:55 - The NFL is coming to Australia 

Guest:

• Johnpaul Gonzo, Europe correspondent, Network 10
• Sarah Bendall, first assistant, National Student Ombudsman
• Curtis Deboy, host, Outback Quarterback

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm

"Stupid and white."

Do those three words amount to racially motivated harassment? 

That's the question that's being unpacked in a UK courtroom, two years after Matildas star Sam Kerr was arrested in 2023. 

But is there more to it than that?

Here's everything you need to know about the case so far. 

Guests

• Johnpaul Gonzo, Europe correspondent, Network 10 

Get the whole story from Hack:

• Follow us on Instagram
• Listen to our deep dive wherever you get your podcasts 
• Listen on the triple j app or on your radio live at 5:30pm