The Fifth Estate

How does a person navigate the change from activist outsider to influential insider? How do you balance idealism and pragmatism under pressure?

Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Samantha Power has had to navigate these questions first-hand. From a troubled childhood in Dublin to a career as a war correspondent then academic, she landed at the heart of American politics in 2005 – when her critiques of US foreign policy drew the attention of Barack Obama. She joined his team, eventually becoming a senior human rights adviser.

After an early misstep (she branded Hillary Clinton ‘a monster’, and lost her job over the incident), Power served in the White House’s National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights. In 2013, she was appointed to the coveted position of US Ambassador to the United Nations.

As she reveals in her newest book, The Education of an Idealist, the intensity of her work was matched by personal struggle – trying to start a family, then raising young children; dealing with anxiety attacks and her own painful childhood. Power has been celebrated for her skill and influence, and has proudly worn the title of activist. She has also drawn sharp criticism from some quarters, particularly in her advocacy for ‘humanitarian intervention’, and her arguments for US action or inaction in Libya, Syria and Yemen.

In conversation with Sally Warhaft, Samantha Power discusses the complexity of decision-making, the tensions between activism and power, and the reconciliation of past and future.

Sally Warhaft and Samantha Power

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this Fifth Estate discussion, we're joined by two prominent historians for a conversation about their careers, and how they have each navigated the changing tropes and traditions of Australian history writing. What role do contemporary historians play in shaping the way all Australians remember – and reckon with – the past?

From left to right: Sally Warhaft, Clare Wright and Geoffrey Blainey

Geoffrey Blainey is the author of more than 40 books, including The Rush That Never Ended, The Story of Australia’s People, and, perhaps most famously, The Tyranny of Distance, which has been in print since 1966. Clare Wright is an eminent academic and broadcaster and the Stella Prize-winning author of The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka and You Daughters of Freedom. Both writers have brought their research to large and enthralled readerships.

How does writing about the past shape the possibilities of the future? Blainey and Wright join Sally Warhaft to discuss their approaches to writing Australian history: warts, beauty spots and blind spots.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

American-born journalist Megan K. Stack is an acclaimed author and war correspondent. She was Moscow bureau chief for the L.A. Times when she made the decision to work from home and look after her newborn child. As her growing family followed her husband’s work through China and India, Stack’s new life forced her to understand the economy of women’s work, and the inequalities that make it possible to exploit ‘poor women, brown women, migrant women’.

Megan Stack (left) and Sally Warhaft (right)

Stack’s memoir, Women’s Work: A Reckoning with Work and Home, undertakes a forthright and relentless examination of domestic labour, and the complexities of working parenthood – for herself and for the babysitters, cooks and cleaners which made her continuing career possible. She asks: ‘Why was it that, whatever you desired, you could find a poor woman to sell it?’

In conversation with Sally Warhaft at Bendigo Writers Festival, Megan K. Stack discusses the ethics, unexpected emotional shifts and negotiations of the household as a workplace.

Presented in partnership with Bendigo Writers Festival.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mia Love

Mia Love was once a rising star of the Republican Party. She was the first black female Republican elected to congress, running and winning in Utah's 97% white 4th District in 2015. During her time in office, Love was appointed to the House Financial Services Committee, which oversees the Treasury and the Federal Reserve.

But Love chose not to embrace President Donald Trump during her mid-term election campaign last year, and drew his ire. Since losing her re-election bid (by just one percentage point) Love has become an outspoken critic of the President. 'My district was home to many strong supporters of President Trump,' Love has written. '... They love his economic record, his peace-through-strength foreign policy, his "America First" stance on trade, and his choices for judicial appointments. They don't love racism.'

Love has been critical of Republicans' 'transactional' approach to working with black Americans and minorities. But are Democrats doing any better? And how does Love think the 2020 presidential elections will play out?

'I’m not going away,' Mia Love said in her scathing concession speech. 'But now, I am unleashed, I am untethered and I am unshackled.' She shares her unique and candid perspective with host Sally Warhaft.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft and Tim Costello

For decades, Tim Costello has been among Australia’s most outspoken voices on issues of social justice and global inequality. Through his work as a minister, as a lawyer and as the mayor of St Kilda council, he’s tackled pressing social issues – from gambling and homelessness to gun control.

He’s perhaps best known to most Australians, though, for his 15-year tenure as CEO of World Vision – a job which took him to conflict and disaster zones across the world, including to Darfur and to several countries affected by the Boxing Day Tsunami.

In his new memoir, A Lot with a Little, Costello reflects on his life and varied career. He reflects, too, on how his experiences have shaped his views on questions of equality, liberty, faith and community. With Sally Warhaft, he discusses the book, his ongoing work and the confronting and complex work of tackling global inequality.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft and Jess Hill

The recent book by Jess Hill, See What You Made Me Do, calls for a drastic and urgent rethink in the way we conceive of family violence in Australia. Rigorously researched, and packed with interviews and case studies, it's a once-in-a-generation book that asks us to look beyond received wisdom to confront the complexities of family violence squarely.

Hill asks: What are we really doing about family violence? Why, in so many cases, are our justice and enforcement systems making things worse for women and children? Why have we settled for modest gains and vague long-term targets? What causes perpetrators to be violent and what can we do to stop it right now?

With host Sally Warhaft, the Walkley-winning investigative journalist discusses her four-year undertaking of research and writing for See What You Made Me Do.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft and Michael Fullilove

What is Australia’s place in the world? How are we getting along with our neighbours? And how is our international outlook changing?

For this conversation, Sally Warhaft is joined by executive director of the Lowy Institute, Michael Fullilove. The pair discuss the foreign policy challenges Australia is facing now and into the future. Can we find ways to work better with our neighbours, especially Indonesia? How can we best navigate the increasing tension between China and the United States? How will the volatility of the Trump presidency and Brexit affect Australia in the years ahead? And what will Marise Payne bring to the role of Foreign Minister in a world of disruption and uncertainty?

Join us for a wide-ranging spotlight on foreign affairs, encompassing trade, alliances, cybersecurity and powerful and populous neighbours.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft and Niki Savva

When Julia Gillard overthrew Kevin Rudd in 2010 it was as if the Canberra sky fell in. In the years since, we’ve seen Rudd the Second punished by the electorate and Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull each dispatched by their own party. This year, something changed. Scott Morrison and the Coalition government were re-elected as if the leadership coup against Turnbull never occurred.

Niki Savva is a veteran of Australian journalism and Liberal Party circles – and she was among the many people who were shocked by the May 18 result. At the time of the election, Savva was working on a book called Highway to Hell, documenting the infighting that led to Turnbull's downfall and an expected defeat for the coalition in the polls. The election result occasioned an extra chapter and a new title for the project. The finished book, called Plots and Prayers: Malcolm Turnbull’s Demise and Scott Morrison’s Ascension tells the inside story of conflict and vengeance within the Liberal Party and the extraordinary rise of our new Prime Minister.

With Sally Warhaft, Savva discusses Canberra savagery and political miracles.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft, Ranjana Srivastava and Gustav Nossal

There's much to celebrate in the history of Australian medicine and medical care – from the famous breakthrough in penicillin to the development of the Gardasil vaccine. Our Medicare model is the envy of many countries.

But have we become complacent? What are the pre-existing and emerging gaps in our system? And how might we adapt our healthcare and research models in line with changes in demography and technology?

In this Fifth Estate discussion, Gustav Nossal and Ranjana Srivastava join Sally Warhaft for a long, hard look at Australian healthcare today. Where do we need to direct our investment? Join us for a conversation about who’s getting adequate care, who’s missing out and what we can learn from care and research models overseas.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally Warhaft and Paul Kelly

A month on from the federal election, once the dust has settled, we take an in-depth look at the events of 18 May and discuss what we might expect from the new Morrison government.

With a mandate, and likely a revamped front bench, can Scott Morrison unite a fractured country and leave a lasting legacy? What are the policy goals of the Liberals in their third term in government and how will they handle the cynicism that has infected much of the electorate? What kinds of new alliances might we see forming in the Left of politics over the next few years?

Host Sally Warhaft and veteran journalist Paul Kelly also discuss how the inaccuracy of the 2019 pre-election forecasts might affect our political culture. With predictions proving surprisingly inaccurate, is there reason to hope our elected representatives may now break free from the tyranny of fortnightly news polls? What might that mean for Labor?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.