The Briefing

News broke last week that a teenager is about to become the world’s first millennial saint.  Carlo Acutis passed away in 2006, but spent his life spreading his faith, coming to be known as the patron saint of the internet for his work creating websites about Catholicism and its saints.  So, how does the Catholic church decide on who gets to be a saint? What’s the criteria, who tests the miracles and what role could coincidence and other factors play?   Sydney priest, Father Anthony Robbie joins Sacha Barbour Gatt to discuss on this episode of The Briefing.  Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Late last week, China launched a comprehensive two-day military drill around Taiwan, mimicking a full-scale attack. The drills included dozens of fighter jets carrying live missiles, alongside navy vessels stationed at strategic locations around the island. The military operations have been viewed as retaliation to Taiwan's newly elected president, Lai Ching-te, who in his recent inauguration speech reinforced the island's independence from China. So how much has changed in the tensions between Taiwan and China over the last few months? And what does this mean for Australia? In this episode, Bension Siebert unpacks the situation with Dr Roger Lee Huang, an expert in Southeast Asian politics and international relations at Macquarie University. Headlines: Netanyahu describes deadly Rafah strike a “tragic mishap”  Fears death toll in the thousands in PNG landslide Experts to meet in fast-tracked gender-based violence review Fly high Bette; world’s longest serving flight attendant dies   Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s become one of the world’s biggest online shopping marketplaces, churning out more than a million parcels to be flown to customers around the globe every day. Here in Australia, more than 1.2 million of us shop on Temu every month – and it’s our most downloaded app. But how did the Chinese start-up skyrocket to global online megastore - selling everything from clothing and household items - less than two years after launching? Dr Shasha Wang from QUT joins Sacha Barbour Gatt to explain Temu’s unique recipe for success in commerce and its meteoric rise. A Temu spokesperson says: Claims that Temu's competitive pricing is achieved through exploitative labourpractices are unfounded. We urge a closer examination of our approach, whichhinges on removing unnecessary expenses. Our cost-efficiency is due to a directconnection between consumers and manufacturers, cutting out middlemen and theirmarkups. Our model also streamlines the logistics of production and distribution,allowing us to offer lower prices to our customers. Many merchants on Temu are reputable manufacturers with advanced productionfacilities, supplying to well-known US brands and retailers like Amazon, Walmart,and Target. These manufacturers adhere to high industry standards and arerecognised for their quality production. Temu is dedicated to upholding ethical labour practices. Our Third-Party Code ofConduct forbids any form of forced, child, or penal labour and requires adherence toall local labour laws, including those related to wages, working hours, voluntaryemployment, freedom of association, and the right to collective bargaining. Wedemand strict compliance with all regulatory standards and reserve the right tosever ties with any business that breaches our Code of Conduct or the law. As for the concern about forced labour in product compliance, we take this issueseriously. Our standards and practices align with those of major U.S. e-commerceplatforms, such as Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, rendering any allegations completelyungrounded. Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amid a cost of living crisis, who can resist the invitation to “shop like a billionaire” at bargain-basement prices? Online juggernaut Temu is Australia’s most popular free app, offering a vast vortex of low-cost merchandise from fashion and homeware to toys and electronics. But amid the thrilling rush of retail therapy lie some serious questions: Where does this stuff come from? What are conditions like for those at the bottom of the supply chain? And what about the environment? On this episode of The Briefing Sacha talks to Sarah Rogan, senior labour rights campaigner at Oxfam. A Temu spokesperson says: Claims that Temu's competitive pricing is achieved through exploitative labourpractices are unfounded. We urge a closer examination of our approach, whichhinges on removing unnecessary expenses. Our cost-efficiency is due to a directconnection between consumers and manufacturers, cutting out middlemen and theirmarkups. Our model also streamlines the logistics of production and distribution,allowing us to offer lower prices to our customers. Many merchants on Temu are reputable manufacturers with advanced productionfacilities, supplying to well-known US brands and retailers like Amazon, Walmart,and Target. These manufacturers adhere to high industry standards and arerecognised for their quality production. Temu is dedicated to upholding ethical labour practices. Our Third-Party Code ofConduct forbids any form of forced, child, or penal labour and requires adherence toall local labour laws, including those related to wages, working hours, voluntaryemployment, freedom of association, and the right to collective bargaining. Wedemand strict compliance with all regulatory standards and reserve the right tosever ties with any business that breaches our Code of Conduct or the law. As for the concern about forced labour in product compliance, we take this issueseriously. Our standards and practices align with those of major U.S. e-commerceplatforms, such as Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, rendering any allegations completelyungrounded. Headlines: More than 600 feared dead in PNG landslides WA Premier describes murder of mother and daughter as ‘chilling’ Hamas launches rockets at Tel Aviv for the first time in months Donald Trump booed at Libertarian convention    Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Abbie Chatfield is an Australian media personality, television host, radio presenter and podcaster. She is best known for her appearances in reality television as both a contestant and host, she is also the host of Listnr podcast “its a lot.” In this episode of The Weekend Briefing Abbie tells Antoinette about the crime of bad change room lights, oversharing, unexpected fans and why she could never go on Farmer Wants a Wife. WEEKEND LIST TO WATCH OR NOT TO WATCH - Bridgerton TO DO - Check you credit cards statements TO DO - Theatre shows and cheap tickets in your city Send us your Weekend Briefing suggestions on Instagram at @thebriefingpodcast!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earlier this week, Sean “Diddy” Combs admitted to physically assaulting his former girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, back in 2016, after brutal footage of the attack started circulating online. After his fall from grace as one of the most successful and best-selling rap artists, will Diddy be cancelled? Or will we continue to hear his music online and on-air? Tim Burrowes is the founder of the media and marketing news website, Unmade. In this episode, he speaks with Sacha Barbour Gatt, unpacking when and why companies boycott artists with serious allegations and convictions, and the effectiveness of cancel culture.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s been a huge increase of Functional neurological disorder or FND in teenage girls since the pandemic and the rise of TikTok. FND occurs when there’s miscommunication between the body and brain and can often look a lot like tourettes, where people suffer from impulsive tics. Sacha Barbour Gatt is joined by Dr Amanda Maxwell, a clinical psychologist specialising in tics, to unpack why we are seeing a spike in the number of cases of FND. Headlines: Details of serious injuries suffered by Singapore Airlines passengers revealed Chinese military conducts drills around Taiwan  Cassie Ventura, Diddy’s ex, speaks out Australia’s biggest ever lotto winner nabs $150 million   Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

AstraZeneca has withdrawn their Covid 19 vaccination after admitting it can cause rare blood clots.   This month marks 50 years since the global rollout of the world’s first major vaccination program – with new research showing vaccines have saved over 154 million lives.   Professor Margie Danchin is a paediatrician at the The Royal Children's Hospital and joins Sacha Barbour Gatt to explain the benefits and the side effects of vaccines.   Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi and the foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahain have both died during a helicopter crash earlier this week. What do these untimely deaths mean for the power structure in Iran, and to relations in the middle east? And why are some people happy to see the end of President Ebrahim Raisi’s leadership. In this episode, Antoinette Lattouf speaks with Middle East politics expert Professor Shahram Akbarzadeh to better understand the situation, and what we can expect to happen next. Headlines: Rishi Sunak announces snap UK general election Norway, Ireland and Spain to recognise Palestinian state Australian passengers on Singapore Airlines flight hit by turbulence start arriving home Mattel to make Mary Fowler Barbie   Follow The Briefing:Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAUSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Discourse around a portrait of Australia’s richest person has hit a fever pitch this week, after she made a private plea to have it removed from an exhibition.  The painting of Gina Rinehart, by artist Vincent Namatjira, is hanging in Canberra’s National Gallery of Australia, and it’s sparked a debate about how we look at and consider art.  Someone who can empathise with Rinehart in this instance is The Briefing’s Antoinette Lattouf who in this episode explains the relationship between art, society and our own vanity. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.