Media union calls for urgent reform after charges against Oakes dropped
Laws allowing journalism to be criminalised need urgent reform, the union for journalists said after charges against ABC reporter Dan Oakes were dropped on October 15. Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance federal president Marcus Strom said while it was “good…
The US is taking on Google in a huge antitrust case. It could change the face of online search
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google for unlawful monopolisation. The department says Google’s conduct harms competition and consumers, and reduces the ability of new innovative companies to develop and compete. It’s the most…
NSW wants to change rules on suspending and expelling students. How does it compare to other states?
The disability royal commission heard from experts last week on the disproportionate number of students with a disability who have been suspended or expelled from school for “problem behaviour”. The commission’s public hearings come at the same time the NSW…
My Dying Uncle Talks Life, Death, and Australia’s First Year of Legal Euthanasia
Australia has a complex relationship with euthanasia, or voluntary assisted dying (VAD) as it’s now often called. The states of New South Wales, Tasmania and South Australia have all debated VAD bills and rejected them. But the mood is beginning…
Hotel Bitcoin ATMs on the Rise With Addition of Swiss Hotel Dolder Grand
Digital Yuan Giveaway: China’s Shenzhen City Hands Out 10 Million Yuan in Central Bank Digital Currency A major Chinese city is giving away 10 million yuan in the country’s central bank digital currency this weekend. Recipients can use their digital…
Government Launches New Track & Trace App, To Find Out What Happened To COVIDSafe App
The Federal Government has announced plans for a new $80 million track and trace app to discover the whereabouts of the COVIDSafe App, which hasn’t been seen since April.…
How Biden — or Trump — could win 270 electoral votes
The question of whether President Donald Trump will be reelected isn’t really up to the whole country. Joe Biden currently has a pretty big lead in national polls. But due to the magic of the Electoral College system, the margins…
How America could lose its allies
More than 70 years ago the United States redesigned what an alliance could be used for. For centuries, countries allied with each other in order to fight and win specific wars. But after the devastation of World War II and…
Beheading in France could bolster president’s claim that Islam is in ‘crisis’ – but so is French secularism
A French high school teacher who had shown caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad to his class was beheaded on Oct. 16 by an 18-year-old Muslim refugee in what France’s President Emmanuel Macron characterized as an “Islamist terrorist attack.” The killing…
Trump has changed America by making everything about politics, and politics all about himself
On October 14, Donald Trump held a rally attended by several thousand in Iowa, despite White House guidelines that gatherings in the state should be limited to 25. Trump visited Iowa numerous times in 2016, a political outsider promising he…
Despite more than 30 major inquiries, governments still haven’t fixed aged care. Why are they getting away with it?
This article is part of our series on aged care. You can read the other articles in the series here. Australia’s aged care sector has been the subject of more than 30 major inquiries and reviews since 1997. It is…
Why more housing stimulus will be needed to sustain recovery
In response to the COVID-19 recession, federal, state and territory governments quickly provided support to the housing industry for two reasons. First, to safeguard jobs and, second, because investment in the housing and construction industries has a high economic multiplier…
Mathias Cormann wants to lead the OECD. The choice it makes will be pivotal
My old OECD boss Secretary General (SG) Angel Gurria’s third term is coming to an end and the race is on to replace him. Australia’s departing finance minister Mathias Cormann will face off against likely candidates from France, Japan, Mexico,…
We vibrated earthworms to learn about safely connecting human brains to computers
This year, my colleague Andrey Pototsky and I were awarded the Ig Nobel Prize in Physics for our experimental work involving vibrating living earthworms. The Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded each year to recognise scientific research that’s not only thought-provoking,…
Europeans Living in UK Could Soon Fall Foul of the ‘Hostile Environment’
Hundreds of thousands of EU citizens could face becoming undocumented and fall foul of hostile environment policies as Britain leaves the EU, with many failing to apply for a re-settlement scheme that some don’t even know exists. The Home Office’s…
Danish Submarine Killer Escaped from Prison By Taking a Psychologist Hostage
A police marksman and his dog observes convicted killer Peter Madsen threatening police with detonating a bomb while attempting to break out of jail in Albertslund, Denmark. Photo: NILS MEILVANG/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images Peter Madsen, the Danish inventor who brutally…
Restoring seagrasses can bring coastal bays back to life
A century ago Virginia’s coastal lagoons were a natural paradise. Fishing boats bobbed on the waves as geese flocked overhead. Beneath the surface, miles of seagrass gently swayed in the surf, making the seabed look like a vast underwater prairie.…
Junior MasterChef Australia: Phenix And Salvo Leave In Double Elimination Episode
‘Junior MasterChef Australia’ farewelled another two contestants on Tuesday night during its second elimination episode. Phenix and Salvo bid goodbye to the cooking show after an initial doughnut challenge followed by another round that involved cooking their dream dish. It’s…
Melburnians will soon be able to have 2 visitors per day. It’s far riskier than an exclusive bubble
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced on Sunday a further easing of coronavirus restrictions, as Victoria’s 14-day average of new daily cases continues to trend downwards. Among the changes, Melburnians were told that from November 2 they can have two visitors…
Another building-site death adds to demands for industrial manslaughter laws
The death of 23-year-old apprentice Jonnie Hartshorn on a Perth university building site is the 23rd workplace fatality among construction workers in Australia in 2020. Hartshorn was killed on October 13 after falling 20 metres when the glass canopy of…