The Briefing

Monday Headlines: New poll shows Labor on track to lose the election as the Coalition matches Labor’s Medicare boost, today marks the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pope asks for more prayers from hospital and Federal US employees asked to list their accomplishments as Elon Musk threatens to fire them Deep Dive: Have you heard the recent rumours that Peter Dutton might be ‘Peggy Sue’? Creator and sex worker Kayla Jade, who boasts 1.9 million followers on TikTok, has made her fame by talking about her work with her clients – with aliases of course – including a high-profile male client who pays her thousands of dollars to peg him.Dubbed ‘Peggy Sue’, comments underneath videos sharing her stories with him take guesses at who the high-profile client could be – with the front runner gaining most traction being the Opposition leader, Peter Dutton. Enter TikTokker and vocal critic of the Coalition, and its leader, Holly MacAlpine, who seized upon the moment, calling on her audience to flood Dutton’s comment section on socials with the words ‘Peggy Sue’. While rumours and personal attacks swirling ahead of an election are nothing new, there’s a clear shift in where they’re originating from, with creators and commentators leading the charge online. And with this year’s vote the first where Gen Z and millennials will outnumber Boomers at the ballot box, who is influencing young voters and leading the discourse – will make a difference. In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Holly MacAlpine to explore what she thinks of the ‘Peggy Sue’ meme, politics on TikTok, and the influence of people like her. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

23 Feb 26min

Resilience is a journey we’re all on - and it's the cornerstone of one of Australia’s top podcasts, The Imperfects. Hosted by Hugh van Cuylenburg, Josh van Cuylenburg, and Ryan Shelton, the show has become a go-to for authentic conversations about life’s challenges. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, The Imperfects pour themselves a cup of vulnerabilitea and get real about toxic masculinity, making friends as adults and what Americans really think of them. Find tickets to their live show here. Tickets go on sale on Monday 24 February at 11am, local time. Weekend list with Helen Smith TO WATCH: Pose on SBS on Demand TO READ: Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty TO DO: Line Dancing at your local pub or club TO WATCH: Mo on Netflix Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

21 Feb 46min

Are your noise-cancelling headphones doing you serious damage? In ear, over-ear, for work, for working out, for study, for music festivals – removing background or outside noise has started to become an essential part of our listening experience day-to-day. But what if we’re going to all this effort – only to be doing terrible damage to our hearing, our memory and our brains? Wayne Wilson is an associate professor in the school of health and rehabilitation sciences at The University of Queensland. He joins Sacha Barbour Gatt on this episode of The Briefing to explain how it all works. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

21 Feb 14min

Friday Headlines: Luis Rubiales found guilty of sexual assault over soccer player kiss, Peter Dutton wrongly says Labor is fast-tracking citizenship for Gazans to win votes, Meta and Google pull out of sponsoring Sydney’s Mardi Gras among DEI fight in the US, and the chances of an asteroid hitting earth yo-yos. Deep Dive: For decades now, whether you like it or not, we’ve had a desire to keep up with famous people, know their secrets and delight over their scandals. Up until recently, we’ve relied on so-called “sources” to spill the tea to a gossip rag or for paparazzi to capture an outrageous moment. Then came social media and it felt like we were getting a little glimpse behind the curtain into the “real” lives of famous people. But there’s no better source than straight from the horse’s mouth. Enter the TikTok lip reader, and it’s not just celebs in their sights; it’s politicians too. On this episode of The Briefing, we speak to Nina Dellinger, or @ninacelested on TikTok, a lip reader who is sharing what she thinks celebs and pollies are saying, why she creates the content she does, and how she does it. Further listening from the headlines: 'Asteroid hurtling towards Earth? Meet the team tasked with protecting us' is out now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

20 Feb 26min

During last year’s election, Donald Trump joked about becoming a dictator, but “only on day one” of his second term as president. But over the past month, Trump has ignored laws passed by the US Congress, rejected the authority of US courts, forced the deletion of thousands of government websites and destroyed reams of scientific literature and public health data. It’s starting to look less and less like a joke. On this episode of the Briefing, Bension Siebert dives deep into whether Trump is genuinely beginning to turn the US into a dictatorship, and as Trump’s politics gain traction in Australia – most recently through billionaire Clive Palmer’s new political party – we ask what it would mean for this country if the world’s most powerful democracy slid into autocracy. On the other hand, Trump is no Hitler or Stalin – so is calling him a dictator...just a bit over-the-top? US investigative journalist Dave Levinthal and University of Melbourne lecturer in history Dr Sarah Walsh join Bension Siebert to help unpack these questions and more. Listen to The Briefing's episode on Trump's key cabinet picks here. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

20 Feb 19min

Headlines: Trump calls Zelensky a ‘dictator without elections’, ASIO boss says multiple ‘hostile’ nations plotted to murder critics in Australia and Scott Morrison asks for photo album bought at south Sydney Salvos to be returned. Deep Dive: Skibidi Toilet, the wildly popular YouTube web series featuring animated singing human heads emerging from toilets, is making its debut in an art gallery at the Institute of Modern Art (IMA) in Brisbane. Since it burst onto the scene in 2023, the quirky series by Russian content creator Alexey Gerasimov has captivated audiences worldwide, amassing 18 billion views and has gained the attention of film director Michael Bay. In this episode of The Briefing, Helen Smith is joined by Nick Aloisio-Shearer, the Assistant Director and curator of the exhibition at IMA, and Dr Nicholas Karah, the Director of the University of Queensland’s Centre for Digital Cultures and Societies, to explain the phenomenon that is Skibidi Toilet, and why we need to talk about it. You can check out the exhibition until the 30th of March at Brisbane’s Institute of Modern Art. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

19 Feb 29min

When a plane carrying 80 people crash landed, burst into flames and flipped upside down on the tarmac of a Canadian airport yesterday, it was the third plane crash in North America in less than a month. 18 people were taken to hospital but, amazingly, no-one was killed. Although statistically, flying is a very safe way to travel – much safer than driving – these incidents make many of us increasingly nervous about the next time we get on a flight. On this episode of the Briefing, Helen Smith asks President of the Australian Association of Psychologists Sahra O'Doherty for her top tips for keeping calm, especially when your flight hits a patch of turbulence. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

19 Feb 16min

Headlines: The Reserve Bank finally cut interest rates, man charged with online harassment of Antoinette Lattouf and a TikTokker finds an album of unseen photos of Scott Morrison from 1996. Deep Dive: If you’re getting your pills tested at a music festival, who ends up with your data from the results – and what should they do with it? Legal pill and drug testing in Australia has made significant legislative steps in recent years – from calls for it to be trialled by community organisations to being introduced into four jurisdictions across the country, with some being permanent sites. But as we become more familiar with pill testing, are we doing enough with the data we get from it for it to be of major use to the community?In this episode of The Briefing Helen Smith is joined by RMIT drug policy expert, Associate Professor Monica Barratt, who has some ideas for what our policymakers could be doing better. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @listnrnewsroom Instagram: @listnrnewsroom @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @LiSTNRnewsroom Facebook: @LiSTNR NewsroomSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

18 Feb 26min