The world of self care is growing and behind the products and marketing push, are actual experts, who are building big followings as people crave support and direction -- and in some cases sweary entertainment. Enter neuroscience whiz, author and host of hit podcast Do You F*cking Mind, Alexis Fernandez-Preiksa. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, Alexis shares her tips on how to live a bad ass life.   Weekend List: The Morning Show Season 3 on Apple TV She’s on the Money...

Everyone’s talking about Spotify ‘wrapped’, but is Spotify – and streaming in general – killing off the music industry?  Subscribers received a message from the streaming service today telling them who their most-played artist was, alongside other facts about their listening habits over the last year. But how about as a society? With subscriptions and streaming now the norm, how have we changed the music industry over the last decade? In this extra episode of The Briefing, we’re joined by...

Voluntary assisted dying is now legal in Australia, after NSW passed laws earlier this week. There are some differences between states; NSW has a different cooling off period, and allows the patient to choose whether the life-ending drug should be delivered by a medical professional even if they have the ability to self-administer. In this episode of The Briefing Tom Tilley speaks with David Springer who had to take his brother to Switzerland to die about what he thinks of the new laws, and...

Despite our population across the globe exceeding 8 billion, several reports say that the fertility of both men and women has been decreasing since the 1950s. So what's going on? Is this due to changes in our lifestyles, such as our diet, exercise or the later average age at which we start having children? Or could our exposure to toxins, pollutants, microplastics and nanoplastics be to blame?  On this extra episode of The Briefing, we hear from fertility experts Dr Manuela Toledo and...

The stereotypes of OCD are hand washing and checking door locks, but for many people it’s the underlying thoughts that derail their life and steal their happiness. In this episode Penny Moodie, author of The Joy Thief, shares her darkest thoughts with Tom Tilley and explains how exposure therapy actually worked.    Headlines: STC issues apology over on-stage pro-Palestinian display  Calls for the ceasefire in Gaza to be extended   Annual inflation figure has dropped    Follow The...

How can Coles and Woolworths claim to keep prices down while recording record profits?Our two supermarket giants have recorded rising profits, each netting more than $1 billion in 2023. With Australians buckling under cost of living pressure, families struggling to put food on the table, and interest rates climbing, households are at breaking point.  In other words, “Up, up, prices are up” and “Every day high prices”. In this extra episode of The Briefing, our investigations editor Clair...

The government is making a formal apology to the victims of thalidomide today. Thalidomide was a drug given to pregnant women in the 50s and 60s to treat morning sickness, it was then discovered to cause birth defects in unborn children. In this episode of The Briefing Katrina Blowers speaks to thalidomide survivor, Trish Jackson about what the apology means to her and her family.   Headlines: More Israeli hostages and Palestinians released as ceasefire continues Update on Bruce Lehrmann...

The Albanese Government will introduce legislation to the federal parliament tomorrow officially banning Nazi salutes. It follows a decision in June this year to criminalise the public display of, and trade in, Nazi hate symbols. In this extra episode of The Briefing, we're joined by the Federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, as he explains amendments to legislation to be put to the parliament tomorrow will make the Nazi salute a criminal offence under Commonwealth law. See...

Sam Altman was fired from his position as CEO of OpenAI and then four days later was reinstated. Altman is the darling of Silicon Valley, with Open AI now the hottest company in tech today, having released the ChatGPT chatbot and DALL-E image generator. In this episode of The Briefing Tom Tilley speaks with AI scientist Toby Walsh about who Altman is and what this latest saga tells us about what’s going on at the top of the tech world.   Headlines: Gaza truce extended for two...

Today’s Newspoll figures show Anthony Albanese is on the nose with voters. If an election were held this weekend, the ALP would lose six seats and face governing with a minority government. So what’s behind Albo’s decline? Is it just the Voice, the cost of living, immigration and border issues, being out of the country and interest rates? Or is Peter Dutton managing to make the most of key Coalition strengths, national security, economic management and immigration? In this extra episode of...

An Australian start-up called HEO is bringing CCTV into space. The technology HEO uses is world-first and works at phenomenal speeds; doing everything from checking on the health of a satellite to de-escalating world conflicts thanks to its use in counter-espionage. HEO even has contracts with Elon Musk’s SpaceX. In this episode of The Briefing, Tom Tilley finds out from Dr William Crowe, the Sydney-based founder of HEO, what’s going on above our heads.   Headlines: Third hostage-prisoner...

In the near future, experts predict everyone will have a personal AI assistant that'll be able to perform all sorts of tasks for you - potentially even finding and screening people for you to date... Before you've even interacted with them. Earlier this week, The Briefing brought you an episode about how dating apps are using AI at the moment, and how that could change over the next few years. In this bonus episode, you'll hear the full interview between LiSTNR journalist Micaela Savage and...

Genesis Owusu is an award winning musician and artist, taking home 3 ARIA's just a couple of weeks ago including album of the year. Moving from Ghana to Canberra when he was 2 years old, since then he has become a trailblazer in the Aussie music landscape. In this chat with Tom Tilley, Genesis reveals how grew up with a confidence and sense of self that most of us spend years trying to cultivate. Weekend list: Tom’s pasta recipe Helen’s gratitude journal from Kmart Robbie Williams Doco...

What was once an American tradition has now come to signal the start of the busy festive season in Australia: the Black Friday sales, which are now underway and will last right through to Monday night. According to research by Roy Morgan, Aussies are tipped to spend a whopping $6.36 billion dollars over the next four days, with more than half of us on the hunt for cheaper Christmas gifts. While shops won't have to try that hard to get us in the doors this weekend and in the lead-up to...

Have you ever been asked to send a resume via TikTok? Hilton Hotels Australasia has announced they will be accepting TikTok CVs in a bid to stay relevant with Gen Z. It’s also in a bid to combat resumes created with the help of ChatGPT. In this episode of The Briefing Katrina Blowers speaks with Dee Madigan about whether a TikTok resume will become the norm or if it’s just a flash in the pan. Headlines: Hostages to be released as Gaza ceasefire begins   12 people arrive in Australia...

Did you know most of the dating apps Australians swipe through every day are using artificial intelligence?  From safety features to enhancing match compatibility, it looks like AI is here to stay- and it could help you find the love of your life. But how will AI’s role in the dating space change in the (near) future?  On today’s extra episode of The Briefing, we hear from psychologist, neuroscientist and the Director of the Future Minds Lab at UNSW, Professor Joel Pearson about what to...

The war in Gaza has seen tens of thousands of graphic images and videos proliferate across the internet. Overconsumption of this type of media can lead to secondary Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In this episode of The Briefing, Antoinette Lattouf speaks with Associate Professior Arash Javanbakht from Wayne State University about how to care about what’s happening without sacrificing our mental health.   Headlines: Temporary ceasefire in Gaza Bruce Lehrmann takes to the witness...

Melbourne is in the grip of a crime war over the illicit tobacco market.  Cheap imported tobacco, known as ‘chop chop’ is flooding the market and crime gangs want a slice of the action.  Police say the battle for market share is behind a string of firebomb attacks on tobacco shops across the city.  In this extra episode of the Briefing, we're joined by Alexandra Bryant from our LiSTNR newsroom in Melbourne to take a look at who’s behind the attacks, their motivation and who is making all the...

One in six Australian men have reported sexual feelings towards children in the world's largest ever child sexual abuse perpetration prevalence study. Researchers at UNSW and Jesuit Social Services have studied almost 2,000 men and have shed unprecedented light on sexually abusive behaviours. In this episode of The Briefing, Katrina Blowers speaks with Professor Michael Salter about what we can learn from his study.   Headlines: Penny Wong responds to China Navy diver incident Journalists...

The cost of living is an issue affecting Australians right across the board, whether you're young or old, renting or buying, working or unemployed.  Yet while we all feel the sting of forking out for a GP and rising petrol prices, new data shows Aussies under 40 are being hit the hardest by interest rate rises and rental pressures while Baby Boomers are living it up. According to Commbank iQ’s Cost of Living Insights Report, released today, Aussies in their 20s are cutting back on everything...

Melissa Caddick is the infamous financial adviser who orchestrated a multi-million dollar investment scam, and then disappeared in 2020. In the latest instalment of the Caddick saga, her husband Anthony Koletti has decided to walk away from ownership claims on a number of luxury items that were in Caddick’s possession. In this episode of The Briefing Tom Tilley speaks with investigative journalist Kate McClymont about this latest twist in the tale. Headlines: Optus CEO resigns OpenAI staff...

Since the 1970s, young Aussies have marked the end of their schooling career by descending on beaches across the country for a week of drinking, partying and hooking up – an annual event known as schoolies or leavers. After making headlines for all the wrong reasons, police and organisers started clamping down on celebrations, especially on the Gold Coast. This year’s official event has gone so far as to ban booze altogether. But even with the changes, and with Gen Z drinking less than any...

The Federal Government has announced it will ban the importation of vapes and cut permitted nicotine levels under reforms set to be phased in from January next year. With a new survey of 2,500 young people aged 14-25 finding that 50% had vaped, with 1 in 6 vaping daily, it seems the reforms can't come soon enough.  Tom Tilley is joined by Joy, a 19-year-old who started vaping at 16 to share her story, alongside medical psychologist Professor Claire Wakefield.   Headlines: Ceasefire could...

Speak now or forever hold your peace! Australian feminist writer, broadcaster and public speaker Clementine Ford makes the case against marriage. In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf Clementine breaks down the patriarchal structures of marriage in a western society and how it never favoured women. Weekend list: Choc dipped dried mangos from Aldi Article Erewhon's Secrets by The Cut Antoinette version of a poke bowl Stand up comedy shows Send us your Weekend List suggestions on Instagram...