Headlines: Women launch class action against BHP and Rio Tinto over alleged decades of sexual harassment, Anthony Albanese supports exclusion zones near houses of worship, Saudi Arabia chosen to host FIFA world cup, and HECS balances will be slashed from today.

Deep Dive: A viral on the street interview turned Hailey Welch from a normal girl to an internet celebrity overnight.

Becoming Hawk Tuah Girl, she has since used her sudden fame and millions of followers to pivot into a podcast, brand deals and merch line.

Last week, she started a new venture – creating her own cryptocurrency called $HAWK. The digital coin hit a $490 million market cap shortly after it was launched, but lost 95% of its value within hours. 

Does this massive depreciation mean it was a scam? And who is to blame for those who lost out when buying into the currency? And how can any of this be legal? 

In this episode of The Briefing Helen Smith is joined by Daniel Gozman, Associate Professor at the University of Sydney, to explain the complex world of crypto and pump and dump schemes.

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Are public figures fair game when it comes to parody and satire? Personally, your answer might shift depending on who that public figure is, while legally, the answers are a little more clean cut.

It’s a question being asked following reports the legal team of Rachael Gunn, Australian academic and competitive breakdancer also known as Raygun, had a parody musical on her journey to the 2024 Paris Olympics cancelled ahead of its trial show.

Raygun: The Musical, a creation of Aussie comedian Steph Broadbridge, was set to debut in Sydney on Saturday. However, after the venue received a cease-and-desist notice from the break dancer’s legal team – that show was canned.

Joining Chris Spyrou on this episode of The Briefing, solicitor Jahan Kalantar explains it all.

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The fire attack against a Jewish synagogue in Melbourne has intensified a battle between our politicians over the meaning of anti-Semitism, and who is responsible for encouraging it in Australia. 

Meanwhile, many people are struggling to know how to talk about anti-Semitism, Israel or Gaza without fear of saying the wrong thing. 

In part two of The Briefing’s two-part special episode on anti-Semitism in Australia, Bension Siebert speaks with writer and co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, Alex Ryvchin. 

Listen to part one here: https://play.listnr.com/podcast/the-briefing/episode/the-politics-of-a-jewish-synagogue-fire-attack-par?

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Headlines: PM’s pitch to families ahead of election announcement, Syria’s new PM meets old government officials to aid transition, Telstra fined $3 million for 000 network outage, and two new sounds have been added to Australia’s sound archive.

Deep Dive: The fire attack against a Jewish synagogue in Melbourne has intensified a battle between our politicians over the meaning of anti-Semitism and who is responsible for encouraging it in Australia. 

Meanwhile, many people are struggling to know how to talk about anti-Semitism, Israel or Gaza without fear of saying the wrong thing. 

In part one of The Briefing’s two-part special episode on anti-Semitism in Australia, Bension Siebert speaks with human rights lawyer and Executive Officer at the Jewish Council of Australia, Sarah Schwartz. 

Listen to part two here:  https://play.listnr.com/podcast/the-briefing/episode/the-politics-of-a-jewish-synagogue-fire-attack-p-1?

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A group of sexy Queensland concreters have created a the "Sexy Concreters" calendar, featuring 12 Gold Coast tradies posing shirtless in wheelbarrows, pouring iced coffee over themselves and eating meat pies.

The calendar was created to raise money and awareness for men’s mental health, with the first print of the calendar selling out in just two hours.

In this episode of The Briefing, Bension Siebert is joined by Jesse Stenroos, Mr April and director of the concreting business Conseq Group, and Anthony Savage, the creator behind the project.

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Headlines: Antisemitism taskforce announced as travel warning issued for Jews heading to Australia, Australia fires new Tomahawk missiles for the first time, person of interest interviewed in CEO shooting case and Starbucks Australia posts $5.8 million loss.

Deep Dive: A major health insurance company CEO was shot dead on the street in New York City last week, and many are celebrating. 

A Facebook post by UnitedHealthcare to remember its assassinated CEO, 50-year-old Brian Thompson, received tens of thousands of laugh reacts over the weekend. 

In the US and in Australia, many cultural commentators have echoed this sense of glee. 

So who was Brian Thompson, why are so many people happy he’s dead, and what does it say about who we are in the current cultural moment? On this episode of The Briefing, Bension Siebert unpacks the reaction with US-born activist and public speaker Azure Antoinette.  

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Rebel forces in Syria captured the capital over the weekend in a move that saw the nation’s president, Bashar al-Assad, flee the country.

It comes after a 13-year civil war and over five decades of his family’s brutal autocratic rule.

The news has been widely welcomed by those living in the country, who are celebrating liberation – a similar sentiment echoed on the streets back here in Australia. But how did we get here and who steps in now that a dictator has been toppled?

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou speaks with Chair in Global Islamic Politics at Deakin University, Professor Greg Barton to discuss.

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Headlines: Syrian rebels bring down Assad regime, new poll spells more bad news for Albo and Donald Trump attends the reopening of Notre Dame.

Deep dive: The price of a cup of coffee has always been debated, and now, global coffee prices have reached their highest in over 50 years.  
 
It boils down to many factors across the industry, including bad weather in Brazil and Vietnam where most of the world's coffee comes from and international trade. 
 
So how will this impact the price of our daily cup of coffee going into 2025? 
 
In this episode of The Briefing, Helen Smith is joined by Kirk Pearson, the owner of Project Zero Coffee and the host of It’s Just Coffee the podcast, to explain how it will all impact us here in Australia.  

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Noni Hazlehurst has been a beloved fixture in Australian homes for decades, from Play School to Better Homes and Gardens.

In her new memoir Dropping the Mask Noni opens up about her journey to self-discovery and concealing her true self to fit the roles others expected of her.

In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Noni shares her MeToo moment for the first time when a senior entertainment executive locked her in a room, changing her perspective forever.

You can grab a copy of Dropping the Mask from any good book store or online  

Weekend List

• TO EAT: Mango and avocado salsa
• TO WATCH: Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story on Stan
• TO WATCH: Saturday Night Live on Binge
• TO WATCH: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk

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Settling in to watch a Christmas movie is one of the hallmarks of the festive season for a lot of us, with titles like Elf, Die Hard and Love Actually usually at the top of the most-streamed list.

But does it feel like it’s been a while since we’ve seen a great Christmas movie?

Time Out’s list of the ten best ever doesn’t feature a single title from after 2005, which has us asking – have we seen the last of the great Christmas movies?

Ash London, radio queen and passionate Chrissy movie advocate joins Sacha Barbour Gatt on this episode of The Briefing to discuss.

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