The Briefing

Headlines: Trump calls Zelensky a ‘dictator without elections’, ASIO boss says multiple ‘hostile’ nations plotted to murder critics in Australia and Scott Morrison asks for photo album bought at south Sydney Salvos to be returned.

Deep Dive: Skibidi Toilet, the wildly popular YouTube web series featuring animated singing human heads emerging from toilets, is making its debut in an art gallery at the Institute of Modern Art (IMA) in Brisbane.

Since it burst onto the scene in 2023, the quirky series by Russian content creator Alexey Gerasimov has captivated audiences worldwide, amassing 18 billion views and has gained the attention of film director Michael Bay.

In this episode of The Briefing, Helen Smith is joined by Nick Aloisio-Shearer, the Assistant Director and curator of the exhibition at IMA, and Dr Nicholas Karah, the Director of the University of Queensland’s Centre for Digital Cultures and Societies, to explain the phenomenon that is Skibidi Toilet, and why we need to talk about it.

You can check out the exhibition until the 30th of March at Brisbane’s Institute of Modern Art.

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When a plane carrying 80 people crash landed, burst into flames and flipped upside down on the tarmac of a Canadian airport yesterday, it was the third plane crash in North America in less than a month.

18 people were taken to hospital but, amazingly, no-one was killed.

Although statistically, flying is a very safe way to travel – much safer than driving – these incidents make many of us increasingly nervous about the next time we get on a flight.

On this episode of the Briefing, Helen Smith asks President of the Australian Association of Psychologists Sahra O'Doherty for her top tips for keeping calm, especially when your flight hits a patch of turbulence. 

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Headlines: The Reserve Bank finally cut interest rates, man charged with online harassment of Antoinette Lattouf and a TikTokker finds an album of unseen photos of Scott Morrison from 1996.

Deep Dive: If you’re getting your pills tested at a music festival, who ends up with your data from the results – and what should they do with it? 

Legal pill and drug testing in Australia has made significant legislative steps in recent years – from calls for it to be trialled by community organisations to being introduced into four jurisdictions across the country, with some being permanent sites.  

But as we become more familiar with pill testing, are we doing enough with the data we get from it for it to be of major use to the community?

In this episode of The Briefing Helen Smith is joined by RMIT drug policy expert, Associate Professor Monica Barratt, who has some ideas for what our policymakers could be doing better.

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Gerald Ridsdale, known as Australia’s most notorious paedophile priest, has died in prison, aged 90.

Ridsdale was convicted eight separate times over the sexual abuse of 70 known victim survivors – with the most recent sentencing being in 2023. The impact of his abuse – on victim survivors, on the reputation of the church, and on Australian society – cannot be understated.

Lucie Morris Marr is a Walkley-awarding winner investigative journalist, author and broadcaster – who's book Fallen: The inside story of the secret trial and conviction of Cardinal George Pell went into great detail on the abuse surrounding Ridsdale and his relationship to Pell. She joins Helen Smith on this episode of The Briefing to outline what those impacted by his violence are feeling on the day of his death.

You can find Lucie's newest book, Processed, here.

If anything in this episode has caused you distress, you can get help. Some numbers you can call include:
1800 Respect National Helpline: 1800 737 732
Men's Referral Service: 1300 766 491
Lifeline (24-hour crisis line): 131 114 
Victims of Crime Helpline: 1800 819 817
Full Stop Australia: 1800 385 578 

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Stem cell treatments are being offered around the globe as an almost ‘miracle’ intervention promising to help patients avoid major surgeries and treat untreatable conditions.

While commercialised and able to be accessed internationally, the bulk of stem cell related therapies in Australia remain ‘experimental,’ with only a limited amount of uses approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and the National Health and Medical Research Council. So what exactly are stem cells, why are Australians traveling overseas to get them and is it time for a regulatory rethink?

In Part Two of this two-part deep dive of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Professor Megan Munsie, an expert in stem cell ethics and policy at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, and Professor James St John, Head of the Clem Jones Centre for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research, to break down the future of stem cell treatments in Australia.

Listen to Part One here.

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Tuesday Headlines: Big day for borrowers as the RBA meets to consider rate cut, new video emerges of Australian soldier Oscar Jenkins captured fighting for Ukraine, and Donald Trump has been personally invited to NRL Vegas round.

Deep Dive: Imagine being told you needed to undergo major surgery to repair a torn ACL or dodgy hip? You know what you're likely in for – a few months of pain, some rehab and medical bill after medical bill.  
 
But what if you could avoid all of that with just a few injections? The only catch: you have to travel overseas, and the treatment is considered experimental in Australia. 

That’s the decision one of our listeners made when she opted against surgery—choosing instead to fly to Thailand for stem cell therapy. In part one of this two-part deep dive of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou chats with Marie Cassaniti about her experience, why she took the risk, and whether she believes it was worth it. 
 
Part Two is in your feed now - or you can listen here.

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The highly anticipated third season of cult TV show The White Lotus has dropped today and as much as we’ll be picking apart the storylines and theme, we’ll also be obsessing over the location. 

Koh Samui takes centre stage as arguably the main character, just like Maui and Taormina did in the seasons that came before. But what will locals think of its new-found fame among cashed-up tourists? 

In today’s deep dive, Sacha Barbour Gatt and Australian Traveller’s Quentin Long talk about the “White Lotus effect”; what happens to a location when an insanely popular show makes it look so damn good. 

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Monday Headlines: Australia building half as many homes compared to 30 years ago, Ukraine not part of fresh peace talks between US and Russia, and millions to be impacted by Sydney train chaos.

Deep Dive: Have the Greens lost their momentum right before a federal election?

In 2022, the party had their best federal election result ever, picking up 12 Senate seats and four in the House of Representatives. The result three years ago was dubbed a “green slide” - with the party, along with the Teal independents, enjoying a surge in support from the Australian public tired of major parties.

Fast forward to the recent by-election result in the Melbourne seat of Prahran, which saw the Greens lose it to the Liberals after holding the seat for over a decade, and things are not looking for certain. Recent polling has also given the party their worst result in nine months, suggesting leader Adam Bandt is failing to cut through with voters.

Are we about to see a big Green loss as Australians head to the polls later this year? Or can the party recapture the attention of Australian voters? Leader of the Greens, Adam Bandt, joins Sacha Barbour Gatt this episode of The Briefing to explain what the party is selling to voters, and how he'll negotiate a possible minority government.  

Further listening from the headlines: 
Are unions holding Australians to ransom with Wilhelmina Stracke is out now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Kishwar Chowdhury never imagined she’d find herself on national TV, but MasterChef took her to new heights giving her the platform to showcase Bengali cuisine to the world.

The proud Bangladeshi-Aussie went from cooking in her kitchen to becoming a celebrity chef traveling around South Asia and beyond.

In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Kishwar shares how cooking helped her navigate grief and reveals why her dream cookbook collaboration is with Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart.

Weekend list with Helen Smith

• TO WATCH: Bump season 5 on Stan
• TO MAYBE WATCH: Apple Cider Vinegar on Netflix
• TO DO: Musical productions at your local school
• TO TRY: Pill box for your vitamins

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Did you know there’s a body responsible for monitoring asteroids, and planning what to do should they set a collision course with Earth?

The International Asteroid Warning Network is a UN-backed agency that has recently swung into action with the discovery of Asteroid 2024 YR4, which has 2.2% chance of hitting our planet in 2032.

So, who are the people tasked with protecting us from city-destroying space rocks and what happens when the threat goes from unlikely, to likely? In today’s episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt takes you behind the scenes of the IAWN with former manager Dr Tim Spahr.

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