For more than a week, riots have spread across the United Kingdom, targeting Muslims, and immigrants. And in their wake, the attackers have set buildings and vehicles on fire and left communities in a state of fear.

But how did a stabbing rampage, in a seaside English town, spark what have become the worst riots in the UK in more than a decade?

Today, world editor Nick Ralston, on the real-time violence and terror that have resulted from a devastating misinformation campaign. And how the far right has been exploiting a horrific crime in order to advance its agenda.

Audio credit:

• The Southport stabbings: A week that shook a nation, ITV News
• Southport stabbings: ‘Lies and propaganda’ on social media led to violence, Times Radio

Further reading:

• The obscure Russian-linked ‘news’ website that is fuelling violence on Britain’s streets, Lauren Sheriff, The Telegraph.

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Australia is officially in a baby drought. 

We’ve experienced our biggest drop in annual births since 1975. Back then, it was due to soaring inflation, low growth and the proliferation of the birth control pill.

So what’s happening now? And what does it mean for us, considering - as one French philosopher put it - demography is destiny?

Today, senior reporter Josh Gordon, on which city is having the least babies. And what happened to our most recent baby boom, only a few years ago. 



Archive audio credit:
- ABC's Australian Story Cost of living 1970 with Caroline Jones
- Making ends meet, Thames TV

To read more:
- 'Melbourne in the grip of baby drought as rent becomes 'great contraceptive'', Josh Gordon, The Age

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Australians are buying way less stuff. Households are draining their savings. 

Yet at the same time, we’ve been hearing months of warnings that the Reserve Bank might again hike mortgage rates.

That all changed on Wednesday when a key data set was released. It showed the prices of goods and services were still rising higher than we would like, but not quite as quickly as some feared.

Today, senior economic correspondent Shane Wright joins Paul Sakkal to unpack what the latest data tell us about our economy, and whether mortgage holders might see some relief.

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Commentators have been in a frenzy over JD Vance’s comments about “childless cat ladies” who live “miserable lives” and therefore have less worth, not just as people, but as voters. But to some senior figures in the Republican movement, they’re missing the far greater threat that JD  Vance poses.

Today, international and political editor, Peter Hartcher, about how Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick is helping to turn the one-time conservative Republican party into a counter-revolutionary movement. And, specifically, one that views Democrats not just as a political threat. But a physical one, too.

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So it’s that time of year again, the Olympics, when we all become armchair experts in sports like gymnastics, diving, and the 100-metre sprint.

But who to focus your sights on, when you can’t watch every event? Is it Simone Biles, who will be competing this year, after dropping out of the last summer games, amid enormous personal stress? Or, perhaps Matildas midfielder Katrina Gorry, competing after welcoming her second child only six weeks ago?

Today, in a bonus episode, senior sports reporter Emma Kemp on what excites her about the Olympics, after so many years covering the event. And which Australians to watch out for.

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The cost of energy generation went up over winter.

That doesn’t mean power bills are about to spike however - retail prices are set once a year by a regulator, which means that households aren’t about to see a change in the cost of their electricity any time soon. 

But the increased cost of generating power could have big impacts on the economy, politics and households.

Also, two long-serving Labor ministers are retiring from politics, ahead of the next federal election. Indigenous Affairs Minister Linda Burney, and Skills and Training Minister Brendan O’Conner will leave parliament at the election, and the Prime Minister will use their retirements to reshuffle his cabinet this weekend.

Today, climate and energy correspondent Mike Foley and national affairs editor James Massola on what government’s are doing to fix our energy market and what a reshuffle means for Labor.

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Kamala Harris has yet to officially secure her party’s nomination to vie for the American presidency. But her campaign is well and truly underway.

Visiting her new campaign headquarters the other day, Harris invoked her early career as a prosecutor, and said that she knows how to fight Donald Trump, because she'd so often seen his "type" in the courtroom. By which she meant: predators, fraudsters, and cheaters.

Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher, on whether Harris' plan to sell herself as a huge step forward, socially, might work with voters across the political spectrum. And if the character trait that foiled her presidential campaign in 2020, might now be one of her greatest assets.

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For more than 45 years, John Silvester has been reporting on Australia’s criminal underworld. 

Some notable figures, like Mick Gatto, a key player in the gangland wars that were immortalised in the popular TV series, Underbelly, are now implicated in an investigation that has rocked the highest offices in the country. That of alleged corruption in the CFMEU, one of the most powerful unions in the country. 

Why have so many of our politicians allegedly turned a blind eye to underworld figures running a cartel-like operation in the union?

Today, John Silvester gives us an inside look into the psychology of the underworld figures who have managed to charm and intimidate the rich and the powerful.

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Joe Biden has finally stepped down after weeks of pressure, to contest the U.S presidential election. And he has endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, to run in his place.

But who is she? And what does she stand for?

Today, North America correspondent Farrah Tomazin, on Kamala Harris’ strengths, and weaknesses, as a presidential candidate. And what history tells us might happen next, after a sitting president pulls out of a re-election campaign.

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The Paris Olympics begin this Friday, and France is contending with what security experts have described as the most volatile geopolitical environment in decades.

Among the worries keeping the French government up at night are the looming threats of nuclear conflict with Russia, potential sabotage by foreign agents, the war in the Middle East, widespread protests and terrorism plots.

Meanwhile, blocking cyber attacks on the Games has almost become an Olympic sport in itself. 

Today, crime reporter Marta Pascual Juanola on what security measures are in place, to keep civilians and athletes alike, safe. And whether tension at the games could spill over into a wider European conflict.

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