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Almost seven years ago to the day, on the NRL grand final weekend, a bizarre set of events unfolded.An injured woman knocked on the door of a stranger, saying she was escaping from two men, and that she needed help.The 19-year-old air force cadet who answered the door let the woman in and called emergency services before the men forced their way into the home.The slightly built teenager armed himself with a knife, and the end result? The two men were killed.It seems like a case of self-defence, but a new podcast called 'Alva Beach: Death at the Door' - from 60 Minutes reporter Adam Hegarty - says there are still holes in the story that need to be answered.And just a warning, listeners may find the contents of this episode distressing.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For decades, families in Australia and overseas, have been accused of one of the worst crimes imaginable – child abuse. Diagnosing Murder is an investigative podcast about parents who've had their children taken away, sat in the dock and even done time in prison. All for something they insist they didn't do – shake their baby. Can we trust the science behind shaken baby syndrome? Or are innocent people being locked up for a crime they never committed? Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/diagnosing-murder/id1843555473Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3LqYqSCZHW4vtA0yhiaJKB?si=f8c56f4b638b4a24Listen on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrLulycax358g-04ndbBaBg3ED4Dnyv0S&si=CVXIqoUI6AJ6DD5xSubscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The prime minister has just returned from 10 days of high-wire diplomacy, initially at the United Nations in New York before swinging through London and stopping by Abu Dhabi on his way home. He’s claimed some credit for helping push along a potential peace plan for Gaza, spruiked Australia’s social media ban on the global stage, and drummed up interest in Australia’s green transition and critical minerals reserve. Foreign affairs correspondent Matthew Knott was on the PM’s plane and, with Jacqueline Maley away this week, he joins chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the weekend, Denmark reported unidentified drones had appeared above its major military bases. It was the country’s third drone alarm in a week and one of five European nations in a month to experience incursions - from either drones suspected of Russian origin or from the Russian Air Force itself. So why is Russia violating Europe’s skies, seemingly with impunity? Political and international editor Peter Hartcher says it’s all part of a "hybrid war", and one that Australia is no stranger to. And, Hartcher argues, the West has been blind to these attacks.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know how annoying it can be to cancel a subscription, whether to a streaming service or gym membership, but when do ‘'subscription traps’', as they’re known, legally cross a line?Consumer advocates, businesses and legislators are puzzling over the question as the government formulates new laws on unfair trading practices. Today, national consumer affairs reporter Elias Visontay on what a ban on subscription traps may actually look like.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Researchers say they have, for the first time, dramatically slowed the progression of a cruel and devastating neuron condition called Huntington’s disease.For sufferers, this potentially means getting years of their life back or the lessening of symptoms of a condition that robs them of physical movement and kills their brain cells.Today, Professor Julie Stout from Monash University’s Turner Institute of Brain and Mental Health, on why this clinical trial, which involved a small number of patients in London, has the medical world so excited.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There was a time when people who believed that the government can control the weather, or that Wi-Fi causes cancer might have been social pariahs. Now, they sit in the higher echelons of power in the United States.So, why are conspiracy theories flourishing now?Today, British journalists Ian Dunt and Dorian Lynskey, authors of Conspiracy Theory: The Story of An Idea, on the history and psychological pull of conspiracy theories. And the destruction they can cause, when they move from the fringe to the mainstream.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we are bringing you a special international episode of the pod. The prime minister has spent the week in New York addressing the United Nations, recognising Palestinian statehood and chasing Donald Trump around Manhattan trying to get a meeting. We talk about all these capers with host Jacqueline Maley and our chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal, who are joined by foreign affairs and national security correspondent Matthew Knott from New York.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How to make sense of the last two weeks?Because it isn’t just that Russia has stepped up its global aggression by invading the airspace of various European countries with drones, fighter jets and a surveillance plane.It’s also the tirade US President Donald Trump let rip yesterday to 150 world leaders at the United Nations – a blistering one, even for him. And his silence after King Charles rolled out the red carpet for him in the UK.Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher helps us connect the dots, which he says amount to “the early days of a transformation of the planet”.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For many people who watched the coverage of Charlie Kirk’s memorial, it was the sounds that struck them the most.The triumphant 60,000 conservatives who erupted with yelps and claps after messages of forgiveness… and hate.Today, North America correspondent Michael Koziol, who attended the memorial, on what Donald Trump and members of his administration said in the Arizona arena, and what it might mean for their agenda, going forward. And what life on the ground in the US, after Kirk’s assassination and this highly charged memorial, feels like, right now.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Optus is in the firing line once again over an outage that left customers unable to call Triple Zero for 13 hours. In that time, four people died – including an eight-week-old baby. Authorities later said they don’t believe the baby’s death is linked to the outage. Today, technology editor David Swan on whether the telcos can be trusted to run Triple Zero.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Once upon a time, the dangers of eating too much fast food were at the front of our minds thanks to documentaries like Super Size Me. But that was more than 20 years ago. Since then, the topic may have fallen off the front pages, but fast food chains have been on the march, opening up across Australia. Today, regional editor Benjamin Preiss and senior health reporter Henrietta Cook on the growing movement to halt the growth of the "golden arches" in regional areas.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government announced its 2035 emissions reduction target this week, committing Australia to climate action despite a retreat from the United States. Meanwhile, the Coalition looked a lot like it was about to take up arms in the climate wars - again. Chief political commentator James Massola joins host Jacqueline Maley.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A flurry of numbers relating to climate change have been tossed around all week. But what do they mean? Today, environment and climate reporter Bianca Hall and climate and energy correspondent Mike Foley on what impact the government’s climate emissions target for 2035 will have on all of us.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three years ago, mainstream newspapers in the West had a bit of fun ridiculing so-called nepo-babies, and the unfair advantage enjoyed by the children of the rich and the powerful, like Gwyneth Paltrow's daughter, Apple, or Lenny Kravitz’s daughter, Zoe.But in Nepal, nepobabies are no joking matter.They have just, in part, sparked the most widespread social unrest that the nation has seen in recent years. Last week, this left the prime minister toppled, and the wife of one former prime minister in critical condition.Today, Griffith University International Relations Professor Renee Jeffery, on the Gen Z-led violence that has erupted in Katmandu, and what triggered tens of thousands of protesters to take to the streets.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s charisma has led to her meteoric rise, and also, to her recent relegation to the back bench.Lambasted for her position on various issues including the Stolen Generation, the Black Lives Matter movement, and more recently, immigration, the Indigenous senator is celebrated by some of the most powerful conservatives in the country, and has become the most followed Coalition MP on social media.Today, investigative reporter Patrick Begley and federal political reporter Natassia Chrysanthos track plain-speaking Price’s journey from children’s entertainer to political celebrity.You can read their story here: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/she-s-making-big-trouble-why-jacinta-price-is-losing-favour-in-her-family-s-hometown-20250912-p5muia.htmlSubscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

US President Donald Trump is a fascist, running an authoritarian regime. We hear this allegation a lot, now. But is he? Really? Fascism expert Jason Stanley says he moved with his family to Canada so that he could leave behind, and protest against, the political climate in the United States. Today, Stanley, a University of Toronto philosophy professor, and author of Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, argues that American exceptionalism has blinded many Americans from thinking fascism could ever take root in their country. And he discusses if fascism could flourish here in Australia. Jason Stanley appears in Curious at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 28 September and in Melbourne on Thursday 2 October, presented by The Wheeler Centre.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Controversial Liberal senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price was sacked from the Coalition frontbench this week. Price left Opposition Leader Sussan Ley with little choice, after she refused to apologise for comments she made about the Indian community, and then refused to publicly affirm her faith in Ley’s leadership. Chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal and federal political correspondent Natassia Chrysanthos discuss the inside story of the sacking with host Jacqueline Maley, and they also check in on the climate debate, before a key climate policy measure to be decided next week.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When we think of countries trying to show the world their power and influence, we might think of muscular shows of force, like China’s army parading its newest nuclear weapons, missiles and lasers in a military parade in Beijing, last week. But then there was our government scrambling to out-deliver China with a tit-for-tat over, of all things, cars, for a tiny but crucial Pacific nation. Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher on why the region Australia long thought was least important is now the region that matters the most.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than a year ago, the CFMEU – one of Australia’s most powerful unions – was placed into administration, after an investigation by our mastheads, and 60 Minutes, revealed that it was infiltrated by bikie gang members and criminals who were guilty of corruption and cronyism. But now, some of the very union officials who have been tasked by the government to stamp out the corruption have themselves been threatened - via arson attacks, vandalism and threats. As one union leader puts it: “I was gobsmacked. I feel like I'm in an episode of the Sopranos. It’s bizarre". Today, investigative reporter Nick McKenzie on the ongoing allegations of corruption, and the bravery of one man who is steadfast in his goal of purging the union of it, even as he admits he now does so while looking over his shoulder.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So now we know: Erin Patterson will be 82 before she gets the chance to get out of jail; if she gets out at all.This will make her one of Victoria’s longest-serving female inmates.But the revelations from Patterson’s sentencing hearing, in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Monday morning, leaned less to the historic, and more to the primal.Today, crime and justice reporter Erin Pearson, on the people impacted by Patterson’s premeditated and pitiless cruelty, and what the judge made of them. And the unexpected moments of mercy and forgiveness that Patterson was, nevertheless, offered by one of them.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Year 9 debaters in South Australia were given a topic for the third round of their debating competition a few months ago. The topic was whether the ''tradwife'' movement, a lifestyle in which women embrace traditional gender archetypes, was good for women. While it was deemed offensive by some, senior writer Jacqueline Maley today outlines why such a debate is worthwhile, and whether the movement is a "frilly version of fascism" or a way to reclaim motherhood. For more, read Maley's article, 'Year 9s were asked if women should stay in the kitchen. People were outraged. I wasn’t'.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Political debate was dominated this week by the topic of immigration after anti-immigration rallies in major cities last weekend.Politicians from both major parties tried to strike a balance between listening to people’s legitimate concerns while condemning the extremist fringe of the anti-immigration movement.Chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal and federal political correspondent Natassia Chrysanthos join host Jacqueline Maley.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Almost immediately after Russian opposition leader Alexi Navalny was murdered by the Kremlin last year, in an arctic penal colony, Russian president Vladimir Putin turned his eyes to Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya. She knows that nowhere is safe for her; not even flying to Australia, as she did this week. She was once a victim of poisoning. And a Russian court has issued an arrest warrant for her, on charges of extremism. Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher joins me to discuss how Yulia Navalnaya is combatting Vladimir Putin and fighting for a “normal” Russia, even as Putin is being welcomed into open arms by an increasing number of democratic leaders.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The whispering forests and deep valleys of Victoria’s high country have long provided refuge for those on the run. Think of Ned Kelly and his gang, who roamed the north east Victorian ranges, before finally being captured by police in a shootout at the Glenrowan Inn. And, conspiracy theorist Dezi Freeman, who has been on the run for the last week in this area, after allegedly killing two policemen and injuring a third. Today, associate editor and special writer Tony Wright, who spent the last few days in this area, on how this region has helped some of Australia’s most mythic outlaws.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Violent clashes, police with pepper spray and chants of “Heil Australia”. These were the scenes we saw over the weekend, as thousands of Australians marched in anti-immigration rallies, which have been endorsed by neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups. Why did this violence erupt now? And what does it mean that two prominent politicians attended the rallies?Today, senior writer Michael Bachelard and Maria O’Sullivan, Associate Professor at Deakin Law School, on whether our laws are up to the challenge of protecting all Australians from vilification.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Venture to a pro-Palestinian rally at one of Australia’s capital cities, and you’ll invariably hear calls to “end the genocide” in Gaza.And in the international court of justice, South Africa has accused Israel of committing genocide as well. It’s a claim Israel strenuously denies. So what is a genocide? And what evidence is needed to prove that one is happening? Today, we bring you a special episode with Geoffrey Robertson, KC, a former United Nations war crimes judge and now a human rights barrister and author, who tells us why this case will become the definitive decision on genocide.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Canberra turned into a John le Carre novel, with the stunning revelation from the head of ASIO Mike Burgess, that the state of Iran directed at least two attacks on Australia’s Jewish community, on Australian soil. As a consequence, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expelled the Iranian Ambassador from the country. Joining Jacqueline Maley to discuss these dramatic developments, is chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal, and national security correspondent Matthew Knott.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we record this episode, the Victorian High Country is the scene of an intense hunt for a man accused of shooting and killing two police officers, and injuring a third. The man Victoria Police say they are searching for is Desmond Christopher Filby, aka Dezi Freeman, a radicalised conspiracy theorist, and self-described “sovereign citizen”, who espoused hatred for police. But what is a sovereign citizen, and how widespread is the movement in Australia? We bring you this episode earlier than usual, with associate professor Dr Joshua Roose, who was an expert witness in a similar, notorious shooting in Queensland, on whether the sovereign citizen movement has been underestimatedSubscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many will remember a spate of frightening attacks against Jewish communities in both Sydney and Melbourne last year, including firebombings, vandalism and a van full of explosives. We now know, according to the country’s top spy agency ASIO, that the Iranian government directed at least two of these attacks. The government has responded swiftly, expelling the Iranian ambassador to Australia and closing its embassy in Tehran. We bring you this episode early today, with Middle East and security analyst Rodger Shanahan, on what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called ‘extraordinary and dangerous acts of aggression’ on our soil.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’re in your 20s or 30s, or have someone in your life who’s in that age bracket, you know that the struggle to buy a home is real. So, what to make of the federal government's announcement that it will launch its newly expanded scheme to help first home buyers purchase a property earlier than expected? Today, senior economics correspondent Shane Wright, on whether this will help fix our housing crisis. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

AI chat bots are fast becoming a part of everyday life with more than half of all Australians using them regularly, although just over a third of those users say they trust them. Today, explainer reporter Jackson Graham explores how artificial intelligence learns, how often hallucinations - or wrong information - occurs and whether AI can be trusted.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week was an exciting one in Canberra, especially if you’re the kind of person who digs the philosophy of tax and transfer. We are talking, of course, about the economic roundtable, hosted by Treasurer Jim Chalmers. Meanwhile Health Minister Mark Butler began the necessary but painful process of reining in the enormous growth of the NDIS. Chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal, and senior economics correspondent Shane Wright join Jacqueline Maley to discuss. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since Russia launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine three and a half years ago, both sides have suffered catastrophic losses. More than one million Russian soldiers killed or injured. And on the Ukrainian side? Nearly 400,000. Both sides seem to agree on nothing except for one thing: whoever has the support of American president Donald Trump has the best chance at stopping this war on their terms. Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher, on whose side Trump is on now, after two crucial meetings held - separately - with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, over the last week.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was billed as a “vibrant gathering of readers, writers, and creative thinkers” who would spark “ideas, conversation, and inspiration”. So what happened last weekend to turn the Bendigo Writers Festival from an idyllic ideas-fest into an event that exemplified “an authoritarian abuse of power”, as the festival’s founder put it? Today, senior culture writer Kerrie O’Brien on the slow-moving car crash of a cultural event that left dozens of writers stunned, and appalled.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It may have once boasted one of the most heartwarming advertisement ever to grace our TV screens reminding us that Qantas meant coming home, but in the last few years, the airline has weathered multiple scandals, and allegations of ripping customers off. And then came Monday morning, when the national airline was slapped with a whopping $90 million dollar fine for unfairly sacking staff. We bring you this episode on Monday night, a little early, with aviation reporter Chris Zappone.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For more than a decade of dazzling media coverage, Dr Munjed Al Muderis was lauded as a miracle worker to some of the most vulnerable people in our community, helping people to walk again, against all odds, after losing their limbs in accidents and warzones. This all came crashing down, after a months-long investigation by reporter Charlotte Grieve, who exposed allegations of treatment gone horribly wrong with patients left disfigured, depressed and in excruciating pain, with horrific medical complications. Today, investigative reporter Charlotte Grieve, on a recent - and landmark - court case that backfired on the surgeon, and why, even after the damning Federal Court judgment, Dr Al Muderis is still practicing.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week the Albanese government announced it would recognise Palestine as a state, a huge foreign policy shift that was greeted with approval by many and criticism by others. Plus, the Reserve Bank assumes a fall in productivity right before the government's productivity summit, and is there tension between the PM and Treasurer?Joining Jacqueline Maley to discuss is chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two former Israeli prime ministers and now, the chief of staff of the Israeli defence force, have objected to Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial Gaza takeover plan, in the face of growing objections from the west, including Australia, to the starvation and death of Palestinians. But, as international editor Peter Hartcher pointedly argues, Netanyahu doesn’t care. Nor does he care about the Israeli hostages still in Gaza. If he did, he would not prolong the war. So, what will it take?Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was a scene straight out of the Donald Trump playbook: a rambling press conference where he spoke about oceanfront property in Ukraine, his upcoming meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Russia – though he’s actually meeting him in Alaska. And then, as if on cue, his claim that, Washington DC has been “overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals”.Today, North America correspondent Michael Koziol, on Trump’s historic move to take over the police force in the nation’s capital, and send in the national guard. Michael explains what this all means, whether it’s legal, and his view from the streets of Washington DC.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has announced that Australia will recognise Palestinian statehood at the United Nations, next month. After being told, over the weekend, of Australia’s imminent announcement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted Australia - and the other countries that have recently flagged their intention to soon recognise Palestinian statehood - as being “shameful”. Today, foreign affairs and national security correspondent Matthew Knott, on what impact this announcement could have on the lives of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. And whether it might further embolden Benjamin Netanyahu, to move even further away from agreeing to a cease fire in Gaza. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you've bought a house lately - or tried to - then you'd know the price advertised for properties in the big cities are, more often than not, way below what they sell for. But we've never really had a handle on how widespread underquoting is. Until now. In a new investigation that analysed tens of thousands of property sales in Sydney and Melbourne, our mastheads have uncovered an extraodinary level of misinformation and deception faced by property buyers. In today's episode, reporters Aisha Dow and Lucy Macken take us through the results of this investigation and how dodgy price estimates are an open secret in Australia's property market. To read all the stories in the 'Bidding Blind' series, go to: https://www.theage.com.au/national/bidding-blind-melbourne-20250724-p5mhkc.htmlSubscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.