If You're Listening

A healthcare professional is arrested by Chinese armed police, suspected of being set up by hackers. A data leak exposes Chinese cyber espionage operations, revealing the use of deception and psychological manipulation. The podcast explores the industrialization of hacking in China, including surveillance practices and data extraction for government purposes.

The podcast explores Donald Trump's financial troubles, including a $463.9 million fine for lying to banks. It delves into his legal battles, fundraising challenges for his presidential campaign, and his ambitious golf empire despite mounting financial woes.

Explore how Ayatollah Khomeini changed Middle Eastern history with his radical ideas, leading Iran to isolation but leaving a lasting impact. Learn about the chaotic funeral frenzy and the clash of tradition with modernization in 1960s Iran. Discover Khomeini's rise, exile, and establishment of a theocracy, blending religion with politics. Uncover the unforeseen effects of the Iran-Iraq War and Khomeini's complex legacy on the region.

Exploring how the Shah's cancer led to Iran's rift with the US, the podcast delves into the Shah's autocratic rule and modernization efforts, the repressive regime, the impact on Iran-US relations, the revolution and hostage crisis that strained relations further. It all started with a tiny lump in the spleen of one man.

Houthi rebels are attacking Israeli ships in the Red Sea, prompting the US Navy to intervene. The podcast explores the consequences for global trade and the historical significance of the Red Sea. It also discusses the measures taken by the US and UK to defend trade routes, as well as the complexities of the Houthi movement in Yemen.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has a new problem. As well as fighting Russia, he also has to fight Israel and Hamas for the world's attention.The shift in attention to Gaza has already meant Ukraine has lost crucial support.The question is — can Zelenskyy get the world to care about Ukraine again? And if not, what will that mean for the war?Subscribe to If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fSMBo3xGBQ

Discover the intriguing world of China's panda diplomacy, where pandas serve as diplomatic tools and symbols of friendship. Explore the challenges of panda reproduction in captivity and how China's shift from aggressive to more diplomatic strategies signals a potential return to peaceful relations with the West.

Guest Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, discusses the potential risks of AI, OpenAI's mission to develop AI while ensuring safety, unconventional approaches of AI, concerns and controversy surrounding the firing of the CEO, and the need for government intervention.

China is using cash to try and shore up support in the Pacific.In Honiara, the Solomon Islands capital, they just built most of the venues in the Pacific Games precinct.And China is not alone. Like a geopolitical version of The Bachelor, China, Taiwan, Australia and the United States are all trying desperately to win Honiara's heart.This tussle has caused panic in Taipei and Canberra, anger in Beijing and Washington, and actual violence in the Solomons.It's hard to think of a more perfect example of trouble in paradise.Subscribe to If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzF_o11VvuQ

As international sanctions have cut into North Korea's ability to import and export things, they've become desperate for cash.They've been running crazy schemes to get it — smuggling, stealing, lying, cheating, swashbuckling — but that's nothing compared to what they make from stealing cryptocurrency.In fact, most of their foreign currency now comes from stolen crypto.So, can anything be done to stop the world's first nuclear-armed crypto bro, Kim Jong-un?Subscribe to If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Catch up on our series about the Israel-Gaza conflict on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7eK8MO7c0Q