The Briefing

Covid cases are rapidly rising on Australia's east coast, leading Queensland to issue an amber alert across the state. There are fears Australia is heading for a Covid crisis in the lead up to Christmas.  Experts are urging us to work from home; there are calls for mask mandates to be re-introduced; and Queensland has issued an amber alert across the state.  In this episode of the Briefing, we talk new strains, new risks and just how worried we need to be this Summer. To answer all these questions we’re joined by Associate Professor Paul Griffin who’s an infectious diseases doctor and microbiologist at Brisbane’s Mater Hospital.    Headlines: - Australian released from Myanmar prison- Three sentenced following MH17 trial- Third missing in floods; Guy Sebastian’s manager sentenced; Twiggy donates to Ukraine; Taylor Swift crashes Ticketmaster- Neighbours is coming back   Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Towns in the Central West of NSW have been inundated by floodwaters this week.  Residents of Forbes were told to leave town with the Lachlan River forecast to hit a new record. There were wild scenes across a number of small towns on Monday: more than 100 people were rescued by helicopter in Eugowra. Molong and Canowindra were also hard hit by flooding, and Wyangla Dam on the Lachlan has been overflowing.    We’re joined by Jamie Jones, deputy mayor of Cabonne Shire Council and Kathy Finn, the manager of Hay’s Shear Outback, the Shearer’s Hall of Fame, to give us a snapshot of the impact of the floods – which in itself is amazing, given the two communities are more than 500kms apart.  In this episode of the Briefing, we bring you the voices of people hammered by flooding in the NSW Central West.  Headlines: - Ukraine war: crisis averted- Trump launches 2024 presidential bid- NSW floods claim another life- Deliveroo leaves Australia- Kevin Spacey charged; Tesla recalls cars; NASA launches Artemis Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A brand new podcast has lifted the lid on every parent’s worst nightmare. Listnr’s new podcast, The Children in the Pictures follows Australian documentary-maker and dad, Akhim Dev, as he uncovers the truth behind a global criminal network of child sexual abuse.   We’re joined by Detective Inspector Jon Rouse, who has been running Taskforce Argos at QLD Police for 25 years. His team infiltrates child sex networks to find 'the children in the pictures' – and hopefully to arrest and convict those responsible.  On today’s Briefing, a sneak peak at this new eight-part series examining how the fastest-growing serious crime in the world has become endemic online, and explores what we can all do to fight it. Headlines: - Two missing in NSW floods- Albanese meets with Xi Jinping - Covid wave to soon be over - Djokovic to play Aus Open - AGL: Cannon-Brookes victorious Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After Elon Musk’s incredible success at Tesla and Paypal, the world wanted to see what he would do when he announced he was buying Twitter. So far, it's been a disaster. From day one, Musk has pivoted from one mistake to another, sacking thousands of people before backtracking and making a complete mess of the verification process.  In today’s Briefing, we take a deep dive on Elon Musk’s twitter chaos, blow by blow with David Swan, the tech editor at The Australian newspaper. Headlines: - Flood crisis worsening in western NSW- Anthony Albanese to meet Xi Jinping - Medibank: Mental health data leaked - Folbigg inquiry examines role of mutant gene- Amazon boss Bezos to give away his fortune Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rebel Wilson has just announced her daughter was born via surrogate. She’s one of a growing number of people having their children this way. In her announcement she thanked the surrogate who “carried Royce and birthed her with such grace and care,” and it got us talking about surrogacy.  In today's Briefing, we speak to lawyer Sarah Jefford, a surrogate herself, about the Australia system which forces the majority of couples who want a surrogate, to go overseas.  Headlines: - US: Democrats hold the senate- Biden speaks to Albo ahead of China talks- Celebrations in Ukraine- Wild weather lashes the south east- Victorian election begins Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NASA is heading back to the moon in the hopes of setting up a colony there.   But this endeavour – called Artemis - has been plagued by delays and the spacecraft remains firmly on the ground.   So, what’s going on? Why hasn’t it launched yet?  Dr Sophie Calabretto talks to Cosmos Magazine journalist Matthew Agius about the Artemis missions, what's gone wrong so far and when we’re likely to a see moon colony become a reality.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brooke Blurton was Australia's first ever Indigenous and bisexual Bachelorette.   There is so more to this impressive young woman than reality TV fame. Brooke is a passionate advocate for mental health, a proud champion of young queer people and people of colour.In her new book Big Love, she reveals a far more complex character than we were permitted to see on screen, and speaks about a childhood that was truly harrowing at times but nonetheless, full of love.   In this conversation Jamila Rizvi and Brooke Blurton dive into the importance of identity and culture, mental health and breaking through intergenerational trauma.    THE WEEKEND LIST LISTEN: Jan Fran ‘I Just Thought, This Is It' - The Jess Rowe Big Talk Show Podcast WATCH: The Great British Bake Off - BINGE LISTEN: Peking Duk Podcast GET: Nala Underwear    Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wil Anderson’s new book is called I am NOT fine, thanks.  It's all about how the pandemic impacted us: we worked from home, or maybe lost our jobs, or began losing friends down rabbit holes.  Wil says it’s time to bring those who drifted into conspiracy theories back into the fold.    In today’s Briefing, Wil Anderson talks us through how the pandemic impacted his career and how he found himself living among vaccine deniers on the NSW north coast, how he deals with the impact of lockdowns, and how it’s OK to say ‘I’m NOT fine, thanks’.  Headlines: - Chris Dawson’s daughter wants to know where her mother’s body is- US inflation down- A new wave of Covid is taking hold- Thousands leave Optus following hack Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all watched in amazement as the world’s super-rich went gangbusters during the pandemic. Some of the increases in wealth were next level. If 2020 and 2021 were dream years, 2022 has been a nightmare for billionaires.  James Thomson writes the Chanticleer column in the Australian Financial Review.  James explains why the pandemic was so profitable for the uber-wealthy, and why 2022 has seen some experience up to 40 percent falls in their net worth.  In today’s Briefing, why 2022 was a bad year for billionaires. Headlines: - Medibank customer information leaked to dark web- Democrats outperform expectations- Russia withdraw from Kherson- Meta lays off 11,000 staff- Eggs thrown at King Charles Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We dive into some mindblowing research scientists have been doing in the field of lucid dreaming. They’ve actually spoken to people in their sleep, even asking them to solve complex mathematical problems, and those people have responded. It’s a bit like the real life version of that movie Inception, where Leonardo DiCaprio entered into other people’s dreams and interacted with them.  We're joined by Ken Paller, professor of psychology and director of the Cognitive Neuroscience Program at Northwestern University.   Scientists think being able to communicate with people while they’re having a lucid dream has incredible potential, like helping people with PTSD overcome trauma as well as allowing elite athletes and performers to practice doing complex skills. Headlines: - US midterm elections underway - Teen admits to blackmailing Optus customers- Secret report into sports rorts revealed- Coles and Woolies plastic recycling program collapses Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.