Spin Cycle

Rachel is back in the studio with Jess and Charlie, and they are joined by Esther Anatolitis. The four discuss the news stories of the week - including the productivity commission, the revelations about Iran’s involvement in anti-semitic attacks in Australia, Linda Reynolds’ defamation win against Brittany Higgins, and the media response to the police killings in Porepunkah.

They also interview Nick Pickard from APRA AMCOS to discuss the real threat posed to Australian writers and creators if AI companies are given free reign to steal their work.

Charlie and Jess are joined by OG Spin Cycler, Najma Sambul, and junior Spinner, Donnie, to celebrate Triple R’s radiothon festival. They discuss all the reasons why it is more important than ever to support independent media right now, reflecting on the guests of the show over the last 12 months. Subscribe at rrr.org.au to keep Spin Cycle broadcasting.

Jess and Charlie begin the show discussing the media’s failure to report Israel’s targeted attacks on journalists accurately. They talk to freelance photojournalists Alex Zucco and Jay Kogler about their experience photographing a neo-Nazi gathering in Bacchus Marsh, how they responded when they came under attack, and what it’s like working as an independent photojournalist in Australia.

Charlie and Jess also remember the life and work of film critic, David Stratton.

Jess and Charlie discuss the search for offence in the media's coverage of the March for Humanity in Sydney over the weekend, and discuss conservative media's coverage of protests more generally. They are then joined by Guardian reporters Sarah Collard and Ella Archibald-Binge to discuss their incredible investigative series with Lorena Allam, The Descendants, that draws direct lines between frontier massacres of Aboriginal people and the Australia we exist in today.

In this week' Spin Cycle, Charlie and Jess discuss mushroom robots, and the media’s shift in reporting on Gaza. In particular they focus on the use of the image of toddler Muhammad al-Matouq and the heartless debate around its context. The team then share Jess's interview with Palestinian journalist, Plestia Alaqad, about the reality of reporting on the ground in Gaza, and her book, The Eyes of Gaza: a diary of resilience.

The Spin Cycle team’s reference to Israel committing genocide in Gaza is based on findings from both genocide scholars and human rights organisations, including the below:

Genocide scholars unanimous Israel is committing genocide

United Nations
Amnesty International

Medecins Sans Frontieres
Israeli humanitarian orgs accuse Israel of genocide

Crikey reporter Daany Saeed joins Jess and Charlie to talk about Trump, Murdoch and Epstein - what are the differences between defamation in Australia and the US, and is this finally a turning point for Trump's unravelling?

Jess and Charlie also cover the continuing misinformation around Israel's War on Gaza and some of the imbalanced censuring of MPs upon Parliament's return.

Donnie joins Jess to discuss a new record-breaking Roblox game 'Grow a Garden', and the Moo Deng celebration in Thailand raising awareness for the conservation of pigmy hippos.

They are then joined by Nick Feik to talk on the history of Jillian Segal, in light of her new plan to combat anti semitism in Australia. They discuss what the plan is about and how the media has contributed to the conflation of anti-semitism with genuine criticisms of Israel.

Joey Watson joins Jess and Charlie to discuss online radicalisation in light of his new Listnr investigative podcast ‘Lone Actor’, which delves into the background of the Christchurch shootings.

Jess and Charlie also talk about the mushroom murder convictions, and the government’s conflation of the purpose of protests in the name of broader regulation.

Investigative reporter for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, Eryk Bagshaw, joins the Spin Cycle team to review his recent exposure of hospitality giant Merivale’s exploitation of migrant workers. Together they discuss the background of the story, and how the series of articles came together with the work of multiple journalists.

In Spin Cycle this week, Charlie and Jess recap the success of Antoinette Lattouf in her case against the ABC, and the larger ramifications of the verdict.

They are also joined by writer and photographer Alistair Kitchen,  to share details on his deportation from the US, and discuss the threat against journalism abroad.