The Briefing

Wednesday Headlines: 

• RBA lifts rates again, sparks fears of a looming recession
• Hanson-Young and Faruqi to make another tilt at the Greens leadership
• Home Affairs orders AI safety review of government systems
• Lindsay Clancy's lawyer questions whether she killed her children
• Socceroos go down to Brazil

Deep Dive: The Reserve Bank has delivered another blow to struggling households by lifting the official cash rate to a 15-year high of 4.6% in its ongoing bid to tame sticky inflation.   

With growing frustration over the central bank's strategy, critics are questioning whether mortgage holders should continue bearing the brunt and if government spending is playing a bigger role than politicians care to admit.  

In this episode of The Briefing, Economic Director at Compare the Market, David Koch, joins Sacha Barbour Gatt to explain the other tools that could be used and explain why households shouldn't be shouldering the burden of stubborn inflation. 

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Tuesday Headlines: 

• Larissa Waters announces shock leadership announcement
• Jim Chalmers facing increasing scrutiny as record-breaking hike looms
• Five terror suspects to be released on bail in the UK
• Nvidia launches new tool to keep AI agents from going rogue 
• Madge beats Tay in VMAs showdown

Deep Dive: STI cases are climbing across the country, and condom use appears to be falling, despite government funding to fight sexually transmitted and blood-borne diseases.   

Cases of gonorrhea and syphilis are of the most concern, increasing by about 50 per cent in the last decade.   

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Dr Stephanie Williams, the Assistant Director General of the Communicable Disease Branch at the Australian Centre for Disease Control to discuss what is being done to curb the rise in STIs, and whether it's time for more drastic action.   

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Monday Headlines: 

• Open AI pauses training of models as AI agent incidents widens
• Pauline Hanson now preferred PM in QLD as Chalmers unveils major budget boost
• UK police arrest five men on suspicion of terror offences near air base used by US forces
• Bird flu public education campaign launches
• Massive weekend of Australian sport wraps up

Deep Dive: Australians will no longer be hit with surcharge fees from this Thursday, October 1, after the Reserve Bank brought in reforms that will get rid of the extra charges for Visa, Mastercard, and EFTPOS payments.   

It means no more surprises at the checkout, but small businesses are warning it will force them to absorb more costs or jack up their prices.  

While some banks are pulling back on rewards programs typically funded by interchange fees, which are being lowered at the same time the surcharge is being axed.  

In this episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt is joined by money saving expert Joel Gibson to explain the changes and how they will affect consumers, businesses and banks. 

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Welcome back to Our Take!

It's the time of week that we loosen our ties (except we famously don't wear ties), kick off our shoes (figuratively because WHS rules) and talk the week that was in news and pop culture. 

This episode starts with The Debrief, and we take on the launch of Trump TV and the US President banning certain media outlets from White House press events. 

Then we crack open The Inbox to hear YOUR thoughts on the biggest stories of the week, with drug reform, Albo and Trump's selfie and the NRL dumping Tones and I dominating our comment sections and DMs. 

Then it's time for the Weekend Quiz and this weekend we have our very first listener joining us to test their knowledge – listener Nat, who also got some very impressive (not really) merch. Questions below, make sure you listen to get the answers! 

As always, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories we've covered, or ones you'd like us to cover! Hit us up on Instagram @thebriefingpodcast and don't forget you can comment on eps if you listen on Spotify. 

The Weekend Quiz:  

1.  Albo’s in the US this week, and while there he has launched a campaign for Australia to get a seat on WHAT? 
2. In the AFL, who won this year’s Brownlow medal, on Monday night?
3. Donald Trump wants to change the name of AI, what has he suggested it be called instead? 
4. A new report this week found that half of Aussies in their 20s are still doing what? 
5. We lost an Aussie rock icon this week. Who was it?

The Weekend List:  

• To Listen: Potterhead (Listener Pepper)  

• To make: Porridge (listener Helen, link here)  

• To watch: The Golden Spurtle on Netflix

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Friday Headlines: 

• Trump welcomes Xi to White House for AI talks
• Albanese disappointed in OpenAI after Medicare breach
• White House lifts press ban after judge order
• Two children die in NSW following separate tragedies
• Rate hike almost certain next week despite jobs data
• Lachie Neale wins appeal as Lions and Freo take unchanged sides into tomorrow's AFL Grand Final

Deep Dive: Kylie Minogue headlines the AFL grand final this weekend.   

A week later, the NRL will kick off its decider without a star act. The league says it would rather put the money into junior footy than pay a performer $90,000 a minute. Its broadcaster reportedly isn't happy, all the while plenty of fans are shrugging.  

So are these pre-game spectacles worth the millions, or just a tradition nobody has thought to question?  

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Dr Hunter Fujak, senior lecturer in sport management at Deakin University. They unpack who these shows are really for, how they’ve changed over time and why the NRL’s move could completely change the game moving forward. 

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Thursday Headlines:

• Iran accuses US and Israel of terrorism as Albanese pledges $60million to Ukraine
• Gus Lamont's parents make emotional plea as $1m reward offered
• Half of Aussies in their 20s still living with their parents as housing and financial stresses bite
• Swans players return to the club for the first time 
• Angry Anderson dies aged 79 

Deep Dive: In the past week, four more women and children have been added to the national domestic violence death toll in Australia, which is currently sitting at 72. 

They were lost in suspected murders across NSW, including a shocking case involving three children in the Blue Mountains, with their mother now accused of murder and two counts of attempted murder. 

As these horrific cases continue to hit the news, it can feel like progress has stalled or completely halted. 

In this episode of The Briefing, Sacha Barbour Gatt is joined by the NSW Women's Safety Commissioner, Dr Hannah Tonkin to discuss the ongoing fight to end domestic violence in our communities, and whether we're getting closer to that goal. 

Additional resources: 

1800 RESPECT: https://1800respect.org.au/ or call 1800 737 732 

Full Stop Australia: https://fullstop.org.au/  

eSafety Commissioner: https://www.esafety.gov.au/ 

 

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Wednesday Headlines: 

• Donald Trump addresses UN General Assembly on Iran, AI and domestic record
• NSW mother charged after fatally stabbing her son
• Beau Lamarre-Condon claims self defence in double murder case
• Coroner says Hayden Panettiere died from accidental overdose
• Brisbane Lions dealt major blow ahead of grand final
• NRL finals to go ahead without pre-match entertainment 

Deep Dive: A patch of sea between Yemen and Saudi Arabia has become the Middle East's newest flashpoint. Iran-backed Houthi rebels have swept down Yemen's coast and now sit within reach of a shipping lane the whole world leans on.  

Saudi Arabia is bombing back.  

Missiles, drones, and tens of thousands of people have been forced to run.  

So how did a rebel group end up with its hand on a valve of the global economy, and how much worse could this get? 

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Jessica Genauer, Associate Professor in International Relations at UNSW, to explain who the Houthis really are, why the US is staying on the sidelines and what it all means for the price you pay at the bowser. 

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Tuesday Headlines: 

• Albanese signs AI warning alongside world leaders
• Trial of accused killer of Sydney couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies gets underway
• Calls for Telstra to be stripped of Triple Zero responsibilities 
• Fox News among outlets refusing to cover Trump after CNN banned from White House
• Nick Daicoss wins Brownlow in record-breaking vote

Deep Dive: Migration has long been of the most fiercely debated issues in Australian politics. But it's reached a fever pitch in recent years following an explosion in migrants coming to Australia in the wake of the pandemic.  

What has followed has been a debate around what that number should be, driven by competing demands across the economy, housing, the labour market, and our shared values.   

As the major political parties roll out their platforms ahead of the next election, we're cutting through the noise to dive into what they're promising, what real-world impact these policies will have, and find out if anyone is actually getting the balance right.  

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Monday Headlines: 

• Australia launches UN seat campaign while Albanese in the US
• Child and three women dead after horror weekend of domestic violence in NSW
• Coalition unveils cheaper fuel plan
• Vic police working to ban AFL fans who threw bottles at umpires
• Ed Sheeran takes to the stage alone in first show since Macklemore axing

Deep Dive: Australia is one of the world's biggest consumers of illicit drugs, and the numbers are still climbing. The country's top cop, AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett, says the way forward is to talk about it louder - to convince Aussies that their weekend habit is bankrolling the gangs behind a wave of violence. But one of the nation's leading drug policy researchers doubts that will help.  

If decades of cracking down on supply hasn't dented demand, what actually works and why does so little funding go towards it?  

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Professor Alison Ritter, director of the Drug Policy Modelling Program at UNSW, to discuss. 

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Oh, we are SO back - with our looser, lights off Our Take!

This weekend, Chris and Sach debrief the Sydney Sweeney drama, as the actress's latest ad - for a sports-prediction market she happens to have an equity stake in - kicks off online. 

Then we crack open the inbox for your takes on Macklemore being dropped from Ed Sheeran's tour plus the Aussie HYROXer who shat herself in Beijing.  

Taking on the Weekend Quiz this week is Isobel from marketing, who (to our surprise) smashed it out of the park. 
 
Also, our insta got HACKED and Chris finally addresses how he’s been targeted by the manosphere. 

It’s a lot.  

Enjoy.  

The Weekend Quiz:  

1. The week got off to a rough start when an Australian athlete did what? 
2. Pauline Hanson apologised for two things this week. What were they?
3. AI company Anthropic signed a $32 billion deal to build its first data centre in Australia. Which state?
4. Two STIs have climbed more than 50% in Australia over the past decade - name one.
5. An icon returned to the stage in Paris this week. Who? 

The Weekend List:  

• Listener Julie: go on an adventurous picnic! 
• Sach: Watch season 3 of The Traitors AU on Paramount+  

Follow The Briefing: 
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