Spin Cycle

This week, Spin Cycle's producer Adam joins Jess and Charlie in the studio to discuss a meaty GQ profile on the Liver King, which they find equal parts illuminating and silly. Jess and Charlie's guest is Cam Wilson, Crikey associate editor, focusing on tech and internet culture to discuss a report into workplace culture and Junkee Media.

In this episode, Najma, Charlie and Jess debrief on the erratic media coverage of the Victorian State Election before Jess and Najma have an in depth conversation with author and journalist, Paddy Manning, about his unauthorised biography of Lachlan Murdoch, The Successor. The team wrap the show with a chat about the guilty pleasure that is having Scott Morrison back in the media glare doing very Scott Morrison-like things.

Jess and Charlie are joined in the studio by Katerina Kostakos and Jonathan Hawes to talk about MOJO Media, the broadcasting and news organisation run by Monash University journalism students. They also cover the Victorian state election, news editors behaving badly and the real life implications of media whipping up divisive hysteria over social issues. 

Charlie talks to Anna Draffin, CEO of the Public Interest Journalism Initiative, about the latest Australian News Data Report and what it may suggest about the near future of journalism and news consumption in Australia. Charlie also talks about reporting for the State election as well as the on-going drama around the Group Voting Tickets, Preferential voting and the 'preference whisperer' Glenn Druery.

Jess is joined in the co-host chair by Rachel Withers, contributing editor of The Politics at The Monthly. They discuss journalists ramping up personal attacks on each other and the perennial problem of misogyny in the media. They also drill down on the war on Dan Andrews in this state election campaign, particularly from The Herald Sun who are happy to entertain Q level conspiracy theories to fuel their attacks on Victoria's premier.

Just when you thought Twitter couldn’t get any worse – Elon Musk took over. Since the tech billionaire purchased the platform, he's made striking moves, including displaying his commitment to free speech by tweeting and deleting misinformation. Joining Jess and Charlie to talk about the impact Musk's takeover might have on Twitter as a nexus for journalists, activists and whistleblowers is writer and Program Lead at Digital Rights Watch, Samantha Floreani. Plus we look at the shift in rhetoric surrounding the death of Cassius Turvey, the predictable coverage of the Victorian state election and some weirdness featuring the late author Bryce Courtenay.

It's a heavy news week as Jess and Charlie discuss this week's Four Corners investigation into missing and murdered Indigenous women. The show revealed an epidemic of violence in Australia and yet the news media's response has been muted. They also cover the media response to the killing of 15-year old Cassius Turvey and the  #justiceforcassius campaign on social media. Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners are warned that this episode contains the names of deceased persons.

Najma is back with Jess for a fascinating chat with Walkley award winning reporter, Ben Doherty, about The Guardian’s remarkable new podcast, Ben Roberts-Smith v the media. The team also ask what’s going down at the BoM? There’s a storm of controversy brewing at the Bureau of Meteorology. 

This week Spin Cycle welcomes The Age State Political Reporter, Sumeyya Illanbey to the studio to talk about the machinations of covering the November 24 Victorian state election. What do news rooms choose to focus on and what do they leave out? We also chat about the results of the Alex Jones Sandy Hook trials, the inquiry into the Queensland Police Force and why the media love hounding politicians over election promises.

Luke Henrique-Gomes, The Guardian's social affairs and inequality editor, joins Jess and Charlie on the show this week to discuss current issues being covered in the media. They cover the crisis with cost of living in Australia, robo-debt and welfare services. Jess and Charlie also discuss Essendon football club, the usual drama of the news cycle, and hi-fiving kids.