The Briefing

An investigation into Australia’s cocaine binge, Behind the White Line, traces the trail of white powder, from narco to nostrils. The series goes inside a $1 billion shipment, exposing a police turf war between the United States' DEA, the AFP and WA cops over an audacious sting to outwit a Mexican cartel.

With exclusive interviews of high-ranking detectives, undercover operatives, DEA agents and coke users, Behind the White Line, examines the human cost of the world’s glamour drug hosted by investigative journalist Richard Baker.

Available from 21 May on LiSTNR's Secrets We Keep, on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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For years, Colin Fassnidge was sold to Australian audiences as the gruff Irish answer to Gordon Ramsay, but off camera he’s far more thoughtful, self-aware and surprisingly soft-hearted than his TV persona suggests.

After becoming a household name on My Kitchen Rules, Colin continued to travel through food and delivering TV gold, but behind the fiery one-liners and shows, he’s now opening up about therapy, burnout and the pressure of constantly performing.

In this chat with Sacha Barbour Gatt, Colin opens up about the realities of making television, why a recent filming trip to Mongolia pushed him to his limits, his friendship with Pete Evans and what food still means to him after decades in the industry. 

Check out Vivid Fire Kitchen - May 22 to June 13

Weekend list with Helen Smith

• Listener Bree TO READ: Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
• TO TRY: L'Oreal Paris Elvive Bond Repair shampoo and conditioner 
• TO EAT: Get a slow cooker!
  
• TO WATCH: Ladies of London season 4 on Hayu

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Headlines: 

• Neo-Nazis are now a prohibited hate group
• Hantavirus cruise passengers land in Perth
• Ten remain in hospital after Queensland bus crash kills one
• New poll has One Nation beating Labor
• Day Two of Trump’s China visit is underway
• Delta Goodrem is through to the Eurovision grand final 

Deep Dive: 

Housing tax reforms were at the centre of Labor’s Budget, but the big question is: will they help? Is Labor right that investment incentives are the problem, or is the Coalition right to blame migrants... or are both parties missing the biggest issues with Australia's housing market?

In this episode of The Briefing, Natarsha Belling is joined by housing expert Dr Michael Fotheringham, Managing Director of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute.

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Friday Headlines:

• Angus Taylor has laid out his budget reply
• Xi says US and China ‘should be partners, not rivals’ despite earlier warning on Taiwan
• Leadership challenge imminent on UK PM Sir Keir Starmer 
• NSW wins Women’s State of Origin
• Sam Kerr to leave Chelsea
• Delta hits the Eurovision stage

Deep Dive: Australia is currently deep in what some experts are calling a ‘running revolution’.  

It feels like everyone and their dog are tracking their workouts on Strava, getting kitted out in the best gear and signing up for their local half-marathon.  

Should you be too? In this episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt is joined by Emeritus Professor Mark Hargreaves, an expert in physiology, to discuss. 

Further listening from headlines:
China’s quiet role in the Iran war

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Headlines: 

• Trump boasts of high-powered delegation to China
• Aussie hantavirus passengers to begin their journey home
• Labor has a new senator, as Tammy Tyrell switches sides
• Budget reactions see major Aussie banks lose value 

Deep Dive: 

Coles misled its customers over false discounts, a Federal Court ruled today. The supermarket raised prices only to slightly drop them, and then presented the new, higher, prices as “Down Down” discounts. Coles shoppers were misled over hundreds of common supermarket items, the judge found. 

In this episode of The Briefing, Natarsha Belling is joined by Joel Gibson, consumer expert, to talk about what penalties Coles could face and whether we’ll ever be able to trust supermarkets again.

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Thursday Headlines: 

• Coalition to stop non-citizens from accessing welfare 
• Trump arrives in Beijing for talks with Xi Jinping
• Aircraft secured to bring Aussies home from hantavirus outbreak
• US Court overturns Alex Murdaugh's murder convictions and orders new trial
• Evidence of dentistry found in Neanderthals

Deep Dive: This week, in the shadow of the budget, the federal government dropped its long-awaited response to gambling harm.  

It’s left critics not only underwhelmed with the response, but also angry at the decision to try to bury it under headlines focusing on the 2026 budget.  

In this episode of The Briefing, Independent MP Kate Chaney joins Sacha Barbour Gatt to dissect the government’s response and what needs to happen next to address gambling harm in this country. 

Further listening from the headlines:
Budget reactions, from love to hate
China’s quiet role in the Iran war

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Headlines: 

• Politicians react, and budget battle lines are drawn
• Iran still has missiles, according to US intelligence
• FBI director grilled over his drinking
• Inquest begins into taser death of 95yo Clare Nowland
• Scrapped: plans for Gold Coast Trump tower

Deep Dive: 

On the day after the Federal Budget we get a preview of a year’s worth of political messaging. The Coalition are calling the tax reforms an assault on aspiration, while the Greens have said the budget helps big corporations and cuts off disabled Australians. Barnaby Joyce thinks you might be better off buying a boat than investing. 

In this episode of The Briefing, Natarsha Belling is joined by Tim Lester, Politics and National Security correspondent for Channel 7. 

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Jim Chalmers has handed down his fifth federal budget overnight, revealing a $45 billion improvement to the bottom line. 

But amidst the numbers and policies, what are the things you should know about? 

In this episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt and Chris Spyrou take you through the biggest announcements, from changes to negative gearing to a little tax time sweetener. 

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Headlines: 

• Soldier Lachlan Muddle dies in parachuting accident
• Another hantavirus infection, as Aussies wait in Netherlands
• Chalmers gives a final pre-budget preview
• UK is heading towards a leadership spill
• Canvas hack resolves with hackers supposedly deleting data
• ... and Wordle is becoming a TV game show 

Deep Dive: 

Australia is a data centre destination: investors and developers love our stable infrastructure and the submarine internet cables that connect us to the rest of the world. That means that we have a lot of data centres, and more on the way. 

So: what exactly is a data centre? Who owns them? Who uses them? And where are they being built? In this episode of The Briefing, Natarsha Belling is joined by Dr Bronwyn Cumbo from the University of Technology Sydney. 

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Tuesday Headlines: 

• Aussies on hantavirus cruise ship board flight back home
• Pauline Hanson says she’ll ‘never ever’ give Coalition a preference deal again
• Police find body believed to be Lake Cargelligo triple murderer
• Alleged white house dinner shooter pleads not guilty
• Trump says Iran ceasefire on 'life support'
• Dua Lipa sues Samsung

Deep Dive: Australia is on the brink of a major shift in ADHD care, with GPs across the country now able, or soon to be able, to diagnose the condition for the first time.

But questions remain about whether the system is ready to do it well. 

Prescription rates have surged elevenfold in 20 years, access has long been unequal across regions, and each state is rolling out its own rules with little consistency in training requirements or funding. 

In this episode of The Briefing, Helen Smith is joined by Leanne Maskell - author, ADHD and autism advocate, founder of ADHD Works, and adviser to Australian state governments on this rollout- to explain what getting this right actually looks like in practice, and what's at stake if it goes wrong.

Further listening from the headlines: 
Our chat with Pauline Hanson

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