# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c5yqygxe41pt

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Venezuela latest: Trump says US has ‘captured’ President Maduro in strikes on country - latest

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The US attorney general says Maduro will face “American justice on American soil”; meanwhile, Venezuela condemns the “extremely serious military aggression”.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/national/evil-dangerous-word-imams-dont-want-aussies-using/news-story/72dc47170dee73090c90681b4471d070

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/15/bondi-beach-shooting-states-agree-tougher-gun-laws-after-worst-terror-attack-in-australian-history

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Gun owners face limits on the number of firearms they can hold and licences would only be issued to Australian citizens under tougher new controls to be considered nationwide after the Bondi beach massacre.

State leaders agreed to strengthen gun laws across the country after Anthony Albanese convened a urgent meeting of national cabinet on Monday afternoon following the worst terrorist attack in Australian history.

The attack at the Chanukah by the Sea celebration on Sunday night was Australia's deadliest mass shooting since Port Arthur in 1996, which prompted the Howard government to introduce some of the strictest gun control laws in the world.

"The Howard government's gun laws have made an enormous difference in Australia and a proud moment of reform, quite rightly, achieved across the Parliament with bipartisan support. If we need to toughen these up, if there's anything we can do, I'm certainly up for it," the prime minister said ahead of the meeting.

National cabinet also pledged to "eradicate anti-semitism, hate, violence and terrorism", as the prime minister faced pressure from the federal opposition, Jewish leaders and his own anti-semitism envoy, Jillian Segal, to do more to stamp out acts of anti-Jewish hate.

At least 15 people, including a 10-year-old girl, were killed and more than 40 wounded after a father and son, Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24, allegedly opened fire on the Hanukah celebration.

The older man was shot by police and died at the scene, while the 24-year-old suffered critical injuries and was taken to hospital under police guard.

The alleged gunmen are suspected of carrying out the terrorist attack using weapons that were registered to the father. The father owned six weapons, four of which were seized at the scene in Bondi.

The home affairs minister, Tony Burke, confirmed the father was not an Australian citizen, having arrived in Australia on a student visa in 1998 before transferring to a partner visa in 2001. He has travelled overseas three times since on a resident return visa.

Under new gun laws to be developed by police ministers and attorneys general across the country, only Australian citizens would be able to hold a gun licence.

There would be limits on the number of firearms an individual could own and new restrictions on "open-ended" licensing and the types of guns that are legal, including modifications.

The premiers and chief ministers agreed to fast-track work to establish the national firearms register, which is not due to start until 2028.

It emerged on Monday that Naveed Akram - who is an Australian citizen - came under the attention of the Australia Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio) for six months in 2019 because of people he was allegedly associating with.

The assessment found there was "no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence," Albanese told a press conference.

Earlier, the New South Wales police commissioner, Mal Lanyon, would not comment on ABC reports that Naveed was identified in a 2019 counter-terror investigation involving an Islamic State cell, nor on reports claiming a manifesto or black Islamic State flag were found in the car driven to the scene by the alleged attackers.

The former treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who is Jewish, said there had been "failures across the board" from intelligence agencies.

"What were the warnings that were missed," he told ABC's Afternoon Briefing.

The prime minister, the opposition leader, Sussan Ley, and the governor general, Sam Mostyn, were among the dignitaries to visit Bondi on Monday, laying flowers at a makeshift memorial as thousands gathered to mourn the victims.

Albanese said the mass shooting was an "act of pure evil, an act of terror", promising to dedicate "every single resource required" to eradicate antisemitism in Australia.

Ley claimed "antisemitism in Australia has been left to fester" under Labor, urging the prime minister to implement the recommendations from Segal's plan to combat anti-Jewish hate.

The envoy's recommendations, which were released in July, called for tougher legislation on antisemitic conduct and protest activity, tougher screening of visa applications, terminating funding to universities and arts institutions failing to take action against antisemitism, and a plan to "monitor media organisations ... to avoid accepting false or distorted narratives".

The government has yet to formally respond to Segal's recommendations, as well as separate recommendations from its envoy against Islamophobia, Aftab Malik.

Segal said Albanese and the NSW premier, Chris Minns, were right to condemn antisemitism, but demanded more action.

"Calling it out is not enough. We need a whole series of actions that involve the public sector and government ministers, in education in schools, universities, on social media and among community leaders, community activities. It has got to be a whole society approach," she told Guardian Australia.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Bondi beach shooting: states agree on tougher gun laws after worst terror attack in Australian history

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Gun owners would face limits on the number of weapons they can own and only Australian citizens would be able to hold a licence, prime minister says

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: Lay's using social media just like Starbucks did

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: Lay's using social media just like Starbucks did

# data[].attributes.body
https://people.com/lays-announces-do-us-a-flavor-competition-winner-11755292

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
We Have a Winner! Lay’s Announces ‘Do Us a Flavor’ Chip Competition Winner: Bacon Grilled Cheese

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Lay’s has finally announced the winner of its Do Us A Flavor contest! The lucky winner who submitted the Bacon Grilled Cheese flavored potato chips to the fan competition has taken home the $1 million prize.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/china-suspends-japanese-film-releases-diplomatic-crisis-deepens-2025-11-18/

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: Trump gets deepfaked ... by the BBC

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: Trump gets deepfaked ... by the BBC

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLmSrqMKycw and https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-10/bbc-bosses-resign-over-trump-documentary-edit-criticism/105990372

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Watch the Trump edit that BBC bosses resigned over

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/experts-demand-apology-for-covid-vaccine-mandates-to-restore-public-health-trust/news-story/2aea6aae418aa5770fbc23d1a16d0d8f

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 1: what are the reputations of the major players here?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 1: what are the reputations of the major players here?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/10/9/trump-announces-gaza-ceasefire-deal-what-we-know-and-whats-next

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Trump announces Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal: What we know and what’s next

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This is the first phase of a 20-point plan announced by Trump last week.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6 class recording - This week in PR

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6 class recording - This week in PR

# data[].attributes.body
This recording is in the Week 6 lecture tab (due to file size issues).

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: this is how social media SHOULD work

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: this is how social media SHOULD work

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/23/22244673/parkinsons-tiktok-crowdsourced-pill-bottle

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Jimmy Choi's TikTok page is filled with the typical videos of a high-level athlete: clips of himself doing one-armed pushups, climbing ropes, holding planks with weights on his back. If you look closely, though, you'll notice that even before he begins his feats of strength and endurance, his hands are shaking. Choi has Parkinson's disease, a central nervous system disorder that causes tremors, and he often posts about what it's like to live with the disease.

"People see the stuff that I post and they're things that most average people can't do," Choi says. "I often show the other side of things, things that I struggle with on a daily basis." He makes air quotes as he talks about the things "normal" people do easily - tying shoes, buttoning shirts, picking up pills - that he has trouble with.

One of his daily struggles comes in the shape of the pills he takes to manage his tremors. They're very tiny, making them difficult to grasp with trembling hands. In late December, he posted a video showing his struggle to grab a pill from a container. That video set off a domino effect, inspiring designers, engineers, and hobbyists across TikTok to craft a better pill bottle for people with tremors or other motor disorders.

The video made its way to the For You page of Brian Alldridge, a videographer whose page had, until then, mostly consisted of Snapple facts. Though he had no prior product design experience, Choi's problem struck him so much that he almost immediately set out to fix it. He started sketching designs for a 3D-printable bottle that would remove the need to dig for an individual pill.

Alldridge has graphic design experience, but he had never tried making a 3D-printable object before. So he started learning Fusion 360 3D modeling software, and a few days after seeing Choi's video, Alldridge posted a TikTok with a design for a more accessible pill bottle. The design features a rotating base that isolates a single pill, which can then be dispensed through a chute to a small opening at the top.

Because he doesn't have a 3D printer himself, Alldridge put out a call on TikTok seeking someone to try printing his design. That's when things started to snowball in a way neither he nor Choi could have anticipated. Alldridge woke up the next day to find that his video had thousands of views, and an overwhelming number of people wanted to print the bottle. He says he panicked, thinking to himself, "Oh no, this is bad, what if it doesn't work." And it didn't. The base didn't turn, the pieces wouldn't snap together.

But the 3D printmakers of TikTok had already latched on to the idea. One of them, Antony Sanderson, printed a copy and stayed up for hours sanding down the pieces to get the bottle to work. Once it was proven that the design had potential, others joined in to fine-tune it - fixing up the printing problems, adding a quarter turn, and making it spillproof. The design is now up to version 5.0, and while some people are continuing to make tweaks, it's ready for use and distribution.

People sometimes get so swept up in the excitement of making a thing to help disabled people that they forget to actually consult with any. "As disabled people, we are used to frequently being designed for, not designed with," says Poppy Greenfield, an accessibility consultant with Open Style Lab. But the team involved in the making of the bottle have been in contact with Choi throughout the process, sending him each prototype and asking for feedback.

Choi has been excited about the device from the very first version. He's found that it not only cuts down the amount of time it takes him to grab a pill, but also significantly reduces the frustration and anxiety that usually come with it. Stress makes the symptoms of Parkinson's worse, but with this bottle, "the anxiety level goes away," he says. "The time it takes, and your risk of spilling these pills out on the floor in public, it's almost zero."

David Exler, a mechanical engineer, began sending bottles out to other people. He started a fundraising push through TikTok to raise money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation: when someone orders a bottle on Etsy for $5, he sends that money to the foundation. So far, he's reached his initial goal of 50 bottles, and he plans to continue donating as he prints and sends more. He just bought a second 3D printer to keep up with demand, and he's been using part of his stimulus check to fund printing and shipping.

While Exler, Sanderson, and others continue printing the bottles, Alldridge is working on patenting his original design and pursuing mass production. He plans to release the 3D-printable version into the public domain and let nonprofits manufacture their own. Version 5.0, which is Exler's derivation of Alldridge's design, will remain available to anyone who wants to print it. "His creation of that patent doesn't stop me or others from taking this model, making changes, sending it out to people who need it," says Exler.

Alldridge is dismayed at people who have reached out to him with the intention to make money from the design. "The thing that really surprised me and continues to surprise me," he says, "is the audacity of people to try and take something that's been so community-driven and should be made so freely available, to outright show up and be like, 'Hey we can make a lot of money on this.'" For everyone involved in the project, the point is to get bottles into the hands of people whose lives would be improved by it, at as little cost as possible.

Low costs are important for disabled people, who often encounter a " CripTax " on useful products and services that are prohibitively expensive and not covered by insurance. A collaborative process like this one, where anyone with a 3D printer can print and send the bottle to whoever needs it, "has the potential to minimise CripTax and put us on a level playing field," says Greenfield.

Both Greenfield and Choi think the pill bottle project is a prime example of the good that can come out of social media. When it comes to community-driven projects for disabled people, "it can be hard to attract the attention of non-disabled designers," says Greenfield. "I think TikTok does this in an enticing way, creating awareness and encouraging more community involvement through visually seeing the issue."

"We can be our own advocates"

Choi thinks the way videos spread on TikTok is something that's particularly useful for disabled people whose struggles are typically overlooked. "We don't have to wait for the knight on a horse to come save us, we can be our own advocates and we can make a difference on our own," he says. In this case, his self-advocacy led to an idea that was crowdsourced into fruition in only a few days. That speed is exciting for Choi, who is used to hearing about Parkinson's research and product development that take months or years to complete.

There's a story Choi likes to tell about a marathon he ran a few years ago. He stopped at a water station to take his Parkinson's medication. His tremors caused him to drop the pills on the ground. "People are stepping on these pills," he says, "and I'm sitting there staring at five or six crushed pills on the floor and I'm thinking to myself, 'do I want to lick them off the floor?'" He still had miles to go in the marathon, and he seriously considered crouching down to lick the stomped pills. "If I had a device like this back then, that wouldn't have been a problem."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Parkinson's meds are hard to grab, so TikTok users crowdsourced a solution

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Jimmy Choi's TikTok page is filled with the typical videos of a high-level athlete: clips of himself doing one-armed pushups, climbing ropes, holding planks with weights on his back. If you look closely, though, you'll notice that even before he begins his feats of strength and endurance, his hands are shaking.

# data[].attributes.body
This is where you will find news stories that will be a part of our class discussion. They will be practical examples of the theories we will discuss in class.

What will we be talking about? I don't know, those stories haven't been written yet - or even happened.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: getting caught at a Coldplay concert

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: getting caught at a Coldplay concert

# data[].attributes.body
https://thenightly.com.au/culture/pop-culture/astronomer-breaks-silence-on-ceo-andy-byrons-apology-amid-coldplay-concert-cheating-kiss-cam-controversy-c-19395146

and

https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/tours/coldplay-kisscam-couple-twist-laughed-at-the-memes/news-story/bd82af0034ecb670df47bf7367abc5d9

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Fresh twist as Astronomer breaks silence on Coldplay affair

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The company at the centre of a Coldplay ‘kiss cam’ scandal that has caught the world’s attention has broken its silence, debunking a viral statement credited to the CEO.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/qantas-begins-updating-customers-on-their-personal-data-that-was-compromised/news-story/ff0cb5206c8d38be0722b5ea60040530

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site for latest headlines

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Qantas has revealed the number of customers impacted by the mass cyber incident, with millions to be contacted by the airline from today with specifics on what of their personal data was compromised.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: Court case of the mushroom killer kills mushroom sales ... why?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: Court case of the mushroom killer kills mushroom sales ... why?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12546821/Desperate-bid-celebrate-fungi-Melbourne-death-cap-lunch-claimed-three-lives.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How deadly death cap lunch has slowed down mushroom sales in Australia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A mushroom festival will be held at Melbourne next month where producers will attempt to clear up recent public misconceptions about the fungi in the wake of the ill-fated lunch in Leongatha.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 1: how is our class involved in the Middle East conflict?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 1: how is our class involved in the Middle East conflict?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.npr.org/2025/06/17/nx-s1-5436749/israel-iran-airstrikes-nuclear-attack-war

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
4 things to know as the war between Israel and Iran intensifies

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Panic and confusion gripped Iran’s capital, Tehran, as Israel warned civilians to evacuate or face more potential strikes as conflict between the two countries spilled into its fifth day.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.9news.com.au/world/donald-trump-protests-no-kings-rallies-celebrities-attend-across-usa/6d220a0f-a9c2-4bb3-89a3-1adab91c416b

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Famous faces spotted as No Kings protests take place across US

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The mass ‘No Kings’ demonstrations held across the USA to protest US President Donald Trump and his militar…

# data[].attributes.body
Welcome to our class wall! I'll be posting news stories from our class here, so you'll have a one place to find them over our time together.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 12: just one final thing about the Australian election

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 12: just one final thing about the Australian election

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/may/06/huge-swings-to-labor-from-chinese-australian-voters-in-key-seats-show-liberals-failed-to-rebuild-trust-experts-say

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Huge swings to Labor from Chinese Australian voters in key seats show Liberals failed to rebuild trust, experts say

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Community convincingly chooses Labor in Melbourne and Sydney seats, despite opposition efforts to engage after 2022 review

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 12: AI tricking people into changing their mind, and they're not happy. The people that is.

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 12: AI tricking people into changing their mind, and they're not happy. The people that is.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/reddiit-researchers-ai-bots-rcna203597

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Researchers secretly infiltrated a popular Reddit forum with AI bots, causing outrage

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reddit is considering legal action after a group of researchers had AI bots pose as real people without users’ knowledge. The researchers say they will no longer publish their study.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.forbes.com/sites/allbusiness/2024/09/06/8-pr-strategies-for-non-profits-and-other-mission-driven-organizations/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
8 PR Strategies For Non-Profits And Other Mission-Driven Organizations

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Mission-driven businesses often struggle with visibility and engagement. PR is a powerful strategy that is 90% more effective than advertising at influencing consumers.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9903IpCC1CA

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Make this Christmas Incredibublé – Asda Christmas 2023

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 8: Summer done differently campaign

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 8: Summer done differently campaign

# data[].attributes.body
https://tourismnt.com.au/marketing/domestic-marketing/current-campaigns/2023-summer-done-differently-campaign

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Summer done differently | Tourism Northern Territory

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Northern Territory’s summer tourism campaign will inspire Australians to seek a different kind of summer and to book travel between September 2023 and March 2024 with enticing NT summer travel deals.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 7: the issue of mental health in high-level sport

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 7: the issue of mental health in high-level sport

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tz4yvaMbSo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BBC World News - Naomi Osaka refuses press conference interviews

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.9news.com.au/national/federal-budget-2025-tax-cuts-for-every-single-australian-taxpayer-how-much-explained/c555c098-f451-44f1-9865-8c67e732074b

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Every single Australian taxpayer will be handed a tax cut next year under a $17 billion measure included in Treasurer Jim Chalmers' fourth federal budget.

Cost-of-living relief has remained front and centre in the national accounnts and Australians earning any taxable income will soon recieve some "modest" relief.

The federal government is set to deliver two more tax cuts in 2026 and 2027 on top of the stage 3 measures that rolled out in 2024.

It will save the average worker a combined $2548, or $50 per week, by the 2027-28 financial year.

The tax cuts will impact every person earning above $18,200, and the government says it will give Australians up to $268 every year, starting July 1, 2026.

That tax cut will incease to up to $536 in 2027, according to the budget papers.

Combined with Labor's 2023-24 tax cuts, the average Australian will have seen an exta $2548 in their bank accounts.

However, this amount will vary and it depends on how much you earn.

Unlike some tax cuts which are given in a lump sum, this tax relief will be delivered every time you get paid.

You'll start seeing this change in payslips from July 1 next year.

What do the new tax cuts look like?

If you're earning below $18,201 you won't get a cut, because you don't pay tax on your income as it is.

It's important to note the most an average earner on $79,000 will get back in their payslip annually will be $536 by 2027.

The federal government is rolling their stage 3 measures into today's figures and the combined total includes the cuts from July 1 last year.

From July 1 next year, the lowest tax bracket rate of between $18,201 and $45,000 will be reduced from 16 per cent to 15 per cent.

In 2027, this rate will be cut further to 14 per cent.

This means someone earning $40,000 per year will save $1090 in tax across Labor's three tax cuts since 2024.

Around 2.7 million taxpayers will enjoy this series of rate cuts over the next few years.

It marks the lowest tax rate for bottom income earners in 50 years, according to the government.

Around 80 per cent of taxpayers earn above $45,000 and this demographic will also enjoy a small change to their pay packet.

Australians earning between $45,001 and $135,000 will see their annual taxes slashed by between $1340 and $4265.

Those on incomes between $135,001 and $190,000 will have between $4265 and $5065 back in their pocket, while those earning above $190,001 are set to save a capped amount of $5065 per year.

"These additional tax cuts are modest but will make a difference," Chalmers said during his federal budget speech.

"Our $17 billion in tax cuts are the biggest part of the responsible cost-of-living package in this budget. "

According to the budget papers, the average taxpayer earning $79,000 will save around $30,000 in tax under these cuts by the 2035-36 financial year.

Chalmers also announced an increase on the Medicare levy low-income thresholds, which will be raised to 4.7 per cent from July 1 to ensure one million Australians will continue to either pay a reduced rate or remain exempt from the levy.

These changes to personal income tax will cost $17.1 billion over the forward estimates.

The government expects the tax cuts will encourage Australians, especially women, to work more hours and increase total weekly work hours by 1.3 million.

The Albanese government's rejigged stage 3 tax cuts passed parliament last year, with all taxpayers receiving a cut from July 1, 2024.

CONTACT US

Women win critical $793 million health boost

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Every single Aussie taxpayer to get tax cuts under $17b budget plan

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Cost-of-living pain is front and centre in the 2025 budget and Australians earning any taxable income will ...

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: so how does apply to this news story about Kamala Harris?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: so how does apply to this news story about Kamala Harris?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/us-politics/surprise-kamala-harris-detail-in-2028-us-presidential-poll/news-story/415460d0076d3ddc522e852cc8bf337c

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Former US Vice President Kamala Harris is the preferred 2028 option by a wide margin, according to a survey of Democratic voters released on Friday.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: As if this week wasn't bad enough for Tesla already

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: As if this week wasn't bad enough for Tesla already

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/technology/motoring/motoring-news/tesla-fails-roadrunner-test-in-viral-video/news-story/df355c524434b0ef4daabde2be636c5c

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Video exposes Tesla’s embarrassing AI fail

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A viral video experiment has exposed flaws in Tesla’s camera-based “Autopilot” driver assistance system.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: Thailand cracks down on tourism visas

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: Thailand cracks down on tourism visas

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/thailand-plans-to-cut-tourists-visa-free-stays-to-30-days

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Thailand plans to cut tourists’ visa-free stays to 30 days

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Thailand currently allows tourists from 93 countries to stay for up to 60 days. Read more at straitstimes.com.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/money/budgeting/working-until-i-die-aussie-says-what-we-are-all-thinking-amid-cost-of-living-crunch/news-story/b7fc0bce39e4b5b27a09490244539730

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
‘Working until I die’: Aussie says what we are all thinking

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A fed-up Aussie has perfectly verbalised how millions of people in this country are currently feeling as the cost of living crisis continues to put enormous strain on everyday Australians.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: trusting the authorities to warn you about a cyclone

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: trusting the authorities to warn you about a cyclone

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/mar/10/residents-warned-to-head-for-high-ground-as-flood-waters-rise-in-wake-of-ex-tropical-cyclone-alfred

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BoM defends forecasts after claim coastal community not properly warned

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Bureau urged to review its systems after Fraser Coast mayor says Hervey Bay was pelted with 260mm of rain after being told it was not in firing line

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: the impact of technology on privacy

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: the impact of technology on privacy

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/man-secretly-filming-women-on-sydney-streets/news-story/94e5948f491128b09ee11c62ecdc9a3d

and

https://www.meta.com/au/ai-glasses/?srsltid=AfmBOop6LKQLupYmF_1zhnRK379PMYWSHuPKmehJgP-YWa8UaLwf_IKp

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Man secretly filming women for social media

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: Trump and Zelenskyy clash in the White House

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: Trump and Zelenskyy clash in the White House

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cge1qq4jdxdo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Zelensky says White House clash was ‘regrettable’

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Ukrainian leader says his team is ready to negotiate after a diplomatic breakdown last week.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/25/trump-deffends-musk-federal-workers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Donald Trump has stepped in to defend Elon Musk from a mounting backlash in his own administration after some cabinet members told US federal workers to ignore the billionaire entrepreneur's demand that they write an email justifying their work.

The US president was driven to intervene amid the first signs of internal dissension over the disruptive impact of Musk's so-called "department of government efficiency" (Doge), which Trump has authorised to seek mass firings in the federal workforce and reduce supposed waste and corruption.

Newly confirmed cabinet officials, including the FBI director, Kash Patel, and Tulsi Gabbard, the national intelligence director, told underlings not to comply with a weekend order from Musk for all staff to send an email detailing their past week's work by midnight on Monday or face termination.

As other government departments added to the pushback, the office of personnel management (OPM) issued a statement advising employees to respond but removed the sacking threat, while giving agency heads the authority to excuse staff from Musk's demand.

"Agency heads may exclude personnel from this expectation at their discretion and should inform OPM of the categories of the employees excluded and reasons for exclusion," the OPM wrote in a statement. "It is agency leadership's decision as to what actions are taken."

With his wealthiest and most high-profile lieutenant threatened with loss of face and authority, Trump used a meeting with the French president, Emmanuel Macron at the White House on Monday to deliver a vote of confidence.

"What he's doing is saying: 'Are you actually working?' Trump said. "And then, if you don't answer, like, you're sort of semi-fired or you're fired, because a lot of people aren't answering because they don't even exist.

"I thought it was great because we have people that don't show up to work and nobody even knows if they work for the government."

Musk's original post at the weekend had come after Trump had praised Doge's work but urged him to "get more aggressive".

Intelligence-related bodies, including the FBI, CIA and the National Security Agency, argued that employees could risk divulging classified information if they complied.

There was also resistance from other agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon - both run by key Trump loyalists Kristi Noem and Pete Hegseth respectively, and which told employees not to respond. The Department of Justice told its staff that they need not do so "due to the sensitive and confidential nature of the department's work".

The Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) - headed by one of Trump's most contentious nominees, Robert F Kennedy Jr - told workers to be vague if they wished to answer.

"Assume that what you write will be read by malign foreign actors and tailor your response accordingly," staff were told in an email.

A more audacious sign of dissent was on display at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (Hud), where television monitors played what appeared to be AI-generated false images of Trump sucking Musk's toes in a loop, with "long live the real king" written over the footage, according to the Washington Post, citing people working at the department.

skip past newsletter promotion

Sign up to This Week in Trumpland

A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
after newsletter promotion

The episode crystallised an air of rebellion at many government agencies amid a mounting spate of court actions challenging the legality of Doge's actions.

"There's a full revolt going on right now," Doug Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, a centre-right thinktank, told the Washington Post. "Doge's stated objective was to reorganize the agencies to meet their goals, but Cabinet heads want to run their own agencies, and they are objecting to the across-the-board cuts coming from Musk's team."

Despite the backlash, Musk took Trump's comments as a signal to again threaten workers with the sack.

"Subject to the discretion of the President, they will be given another chance. Failure to respond a second time will result in termination," he posted on his own social media platform, Twitter/X, on Monday.

A later post mocked the resistance to his original email. "Absurd that a 5 min email generates this level of concern!" he wrote. "Something is deeply wrong."

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), a union representing about 800,000 of the 2.3 million-strong federal workforce, said Musk's original email was a cynical ploy aimed at intimidating workers into resigning.

"If we took the time to comment on each and every ridiculous thing that Elon Musk tweets out, we'd never get any work done," Brittany Holder, a union spokesperson said. "AFGE will challenge any unlawful discipline, termination or retaliation against our members and federal employees across the country."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Trump defends Musk as backlash to federal workers ultimatum grows

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
President intervenes amid first signs of internal dissension as government departments push back

# data[].attributes.body
https://nypost.com/2025/01/12/us-news/lafds-diversity-chief-sparks-fury-for-defending-dei-by-blaming-the-victim/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As Los Angeles battles its worst fires in history, the fire department's highly paid diversity head is facing an inferno of backlash after a bizarre comment surfaced in which she appears to defend DEI hiring by blaming victims.

In a video defending the department's DEI hiring practices, Deputy Chief Kristine Larson - who heads the Equity and Human Resources Bureau - addressed accusations that female firefighters aren't strong enough to carry a man out of a burning building.

Her response: "He got himself in the wrong place if I have to carry him out of a fire."

The video went viral on social media after the fire department was caught off guard and ill-prepared when an outbreak of wildfires began to tear through the Pacific Palisades - one of the oldest and wealthiest neighborhoods in the city - last week.

The Palisades Fire, the most devastating in California history, has already incinerated 26,000 acres (40 square miles), including some of the most expensive real estate in the country.

Early cost estimates for all the wildfires in Southern California are $135 billion to $150 billion - which would top the damage from any hurricane to hit the US except Katrina.

Critics argue that the LAFD had been too preoccupied with DEI vanity projects to properly staff and equip its firefighters - projects that Larson was paid $307K to manage in 2023, according to salary database Transparent California.

"Los Angeles Fire Department Assistant Chief Kristine Larson says when people's houses are burning down, they want a firefighter to show up who looks like them. Hot take: People just want someone to show up who will stop their house from burning down," wrote conservative influencer Collin Rugg in an X post containing the infamous video.

Stay up to date with the NYP's coverage of the terrifying LA-area fires

"It sounds like parody. People are dying and losing their homes, right now, because of people like this," commented one user.

Meanwhile, another image has gone viral showing Larson standing next to two other women: Training and Support Bureau Commander Jaime Brown and Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, who is openly lesbian.

These are the only women on the 14-member senior leadership team, but they have become emblematic of the LAFD's diversity push.

"This is the leadership team at the Los Angeles Fire Department," an X account called "Libs of TikTok" wrote alongside the image in a post shared more than 10,000 times.

The wave of DEI hires and diversity projects came after years of alleged harassment and discrimination within the department.

In 2017, six black members of the Fire Prevention Bureau sued the department for discrimination after they allegedly faced racially motivated retaliation for alleging rampant corner-cutting and lax oversight.

In 2021, a group of firefighters and social justice advocates called for the resignation of Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas over "rampant sexism, racism, harassment and abuse" - in the words of one veteran firefighter - especially against women, reported the LA Times.

Crowley was promoted to fire chief the following year - the first woman to hold the top spot.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
LAFD's $300K-per-year diversity chief sparks fury for defending DEI by blaming the victim: 'He got himself in the wrong place'

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In a video defending the department's DEI hiring practices, Deputy Chief Kristine Larson -- who heads the Equity and Human Resources Bureau -- addressed accusations that female firefighters aren't strong enough carry a man out of a burning building.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/karen-bass-2021-tweet-comes-back-haunt-her-la-residents-demand-accountability

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Karen Bass’ 2021 tweet comes back to haunt her as LA residents demand accountability

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is facing criticism for being in Ghana while her city battled wildfires this week. A 2021 social media message attacking Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is now coming back to haunt her.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 11: how should companies approach working from home, and how should they communicate about it with their staff?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 11: how should companies approach working from home, and how should they communicate about it with their staff?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/trends/sounds-like-a-mutiny-big-reason-working-from-home-still-hasnt-been-scrapped-in-australia/news-story/33157d636d078f104356467411f480c8

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
‘Mutiny’: Big reason WFH still hasn’t ended

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There have been growing concerns about what the future holds for working from home as we head into the new year.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 10: this is either poor leadership or poor communication. Pick one.

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 10: this is either poor leadership or poor communication. Pick one.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/banking/cba-boss-says-he-was-unaware-of-3-fee-before-it-was-announced/news-story/ff99950ad56304bab60950678afd957b

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn has claimed he first heard about the bank’s decision to charge customers $3 to access their own money through the media.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 10: what would you recommend Tourism Fiji does this time?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 10: what would you recommend Tourism Fiji does this time?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/terrifying-detail-in-fiji-alcohol-poisoning-at-luxury-warwick-hotel-as-four-aussies-are-rushed-to-hospital/news-story/0f235c8265628da303ead7c1e10f5807

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/other-industries/airtrunk-gives-employees-22m-bonus-ahead-of-acquisition-by-us-private-equity-giant/news-story/95c503a55be443a445c479c3255863c2

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Aussie firm hands out unbelievable bonuses

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
An Australian data company has just given its 330 employees a spectacular $22 million bonus payout as the company celebrates its blockbuster acquisition by a US private equity giant.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/at-work/work-longer-dont-leave-on-time-company-chief-executives-email-to-staff-sparks-fury/news-story/a6a0ae7c907d90efccc6938182a2f544

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 8: Commonwealth Bank just doesn't care about people before Christmas?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 8: Commonwealth Bank just doesn't care about people before Christmas?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/banking/commonwealth-bank-executive-defends-3-fee-for-some-customers-says-cash-handling-is-expensive/news-story/2c0c504cb36b65f813a957f94dbd54ba

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CommBank exec grilled over fee: ‘Pathetic’

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ally Langdon took a CommBank executive to task on Tuesday night over the bank’s controversial decision to charge customers to withdraw their own cash.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.9news.com.au/national/adelaide-shopping-centre-rampage-security-response/d9734916-db36-4f8f-83c2-d09f19729db8

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Naked rampage raises questions over shopping centre security response

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Serious questions are being asked about the security response at Adelaide’s Marion Shopping Centre to a con…

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: one final insight on the US election - and it explains why understanding your target public is so important

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: one final insight on the US election - and it explains why understanding your target public is so important

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GE3bh59ua4I

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Pollster spoke to voters about Harris, here is what they said

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: how did I go with my Democrat predictions?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: how did I go with my Democrat predictions?

# data[].attributes.body
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/10/politics/democrats-election-party-future-voters/index.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Still-stunned Democrats begin to squint toward their future | CNN Politics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Pick one word to describe Republicans and Donald Trump, the focus group moderator asked, and one word to describe Democrats and Kamala Harris.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/defies-rational-explanation-meghans-major-us-election-backtrack-exposed/news-story/8fe1cf37a20b9915cc1919dcf1b54dfa and www.news.com.au

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: How tough are Samsonite's suitcases?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: How tough are Samsonite's suitcases?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/travel-stories/samsonite-launched-a-suitcase-into-space-then-dropped-it-heres-what-happened-next/news-story/e19189ec0bd54e94496c6cc0c22919eb

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Video of what happens to suitcase in space

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Luggage maker Samsonite shot a piece of luggage up 40km in the air to test its durability — and not only did the pricey roller pass its test with flying colours, the whole stunt was caught on video.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: What does the data say about public opinion ahead of next week's US election?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: What does the data say about public opinion ahead of next week's US election?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/latest-us-opinion-polls#uselection

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq7PqcKZ3P0

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 2: does Taylor Swift have an impact on an election?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 2: does Taylor Swift have an impact on an election?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy4d3y0kl4eo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What impact will Taylor Swift really have on the US election?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Swift’s fandom is mobilising for Kamala Harris - but not everyone is convinced.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 2: China on the charm offensive over economy

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 2: China on the charm offensive over economy

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3283119/chinas-regulators-chime-charm-offensive-maintain-market-momentum-growth-stalls?module=top_story&pgtype=homepage

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
China regulators go on charm offensive as economic growth stalls

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
CSRC Chairman Wu Qing solicited feedback from financial specialists and media representatives, according to a readout on the watchdog agency’s website.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 12: How Alexa is pushing Democrat politics

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 12: How Alexa is pushing Democrat politics

# data[].attributes.body
https://x.com/TONYxTWO/status/1830961419925237815?prefetchTimestamp=1725419838990

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.text
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate 

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼

# data[].attributes.wish_content.attachment_props.original_text
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate 

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼 https://t.co/UlDSsGBFJY

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.embed_code
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/UlDSsGBFJY
— TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) September 3, 2024

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props_source.data.text
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate 

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼 https://t.co/UlDSsGBFJY

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate 

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼 https://t.co/UlDSsGBFJY

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
“Alexa, why should I vote for Donald Trump?”

ALEXA: I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate 

UNLESS IT’S KAMALA HARRIS‼️

LISTEN & SHARE 🚨👇🏼

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 10: an example of a toxic workplace

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 10: an example of a toxic workplace

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/at-work/qbcc-whistleblower-reveals-dire-state-of-queenslands-building-regulator/news-story/a67e71fca04c5be0804e15f040dd355e

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 10: Now it's Blake Lively's turn to survive the media onslaught ...

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 10: Now it's Blake Lively's turn to survive the media onslaught ...

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/terrorised-stars-behaviour-stuns-fans/news-story/4d34fff79b162ad3e25f0709bb53e334

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
‘Terrorised’: Another unearthed Lively interview shocks fans

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Blake Lively has been accused of “terrorising” a journalist in yet another wild unearthed interview.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/hollywood/jennifer-lopez-s-trusted-circle-hates-ben-affleck-including-long-time-bestie-they-went-along-anyway-because-101723169754204.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The honeymoon is officially over, at least according to Jennifer Lopez's inner circle. Sources close to the pop icon are alleging that her team has a less-than-stellar opinion of her ex-husband, Ben Affleck. Amid rumours of a troubled marriage and subsequent split, insiders are claiming that Affleck's behaviour has been a major point of contention, with some going as far as to label him a "triple-A a--hole."

An old photograph of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez from when they were engaged. (Instagram)

Benny Medina's disdain for Ben Affleck dates back to first split

According to Page Six, some of Jennifer Lopez's close friends have never been fond of Ben Affleck, dating back to their initial relationship and breakup over two decades ago. Among them is Lopez's long-time manager, Benny Medina. His disdain for Affleck reportedly dates back to the couple's failed engagement in the early 2000s, as a source revealed to the outlet.

Also read: Prince Harry and Meghan 'desperately' want Royal olive branch as new threat surfaces over Duke's...

"The two of them can't stand each other. They don't get along and there's still bad blood," the insider added. Jennifer Lopez and her long-time manager Benny Medina have a relationship that's both professional and deeply trusting. Medina, who played a crucial role in elevating Lopez from a dancer on the 90s sketch show In Living Color to a global superstar, was a key figure in her rise to fame. Despite their close bond, Lopez and Medina went their separate ways in 2003.

And now insiders have disclosed that Affleck was supposedly one of the reason for that split. The Jenny From the Block singer however didn't let go of Medina and rehired him in 2004. This reconciliation came few years after she ended her relationship with Affleck for the first time while also calling off their engagement.

Also read: Taylor Swift's tour terror threat left Travis Kelce 'anxious' as he was ready to risk it all by dropping...

'Nothing to say about' Lopez and Affleck split

Although J.Lo's manager has frequently been seen accompanying the singer throughout the summer, during which she was apart from Affleck, he has remained silent on the potential split. He also refrained from commenting when they rekindled their romance. As insiders believe, "He knows her well and knew she was going to marry him no matter what, so what's the point?"

Now that the wedding is on the brink, sources believe the Gigli co-stars are delaying the divorce to avoid further humiliation after praising their relationship in an Amazon documentary. "She's furious. He has humiliated her. He was the one who initiated getting back together," a source previously told Page Six.

"No one, except [Lopez's] mother, likes Ben Affleck. He's a triple-A a-hole," a second source said.

Lopez's fractured relationship with bestie Leah Remini

Medina wasn't the only one who had doubts about Ben Affleck. The comeback of the Bennifer love also put a strain on Jennifer Lopez's deep friendship with Leah Remini, a confidante she met through ex-husband Marc Anthony. A source previously revealed that Remini urged Lopez to carefully consider the reasons for their initial breakup before diving back into a relationship with Affleck. The Atlas star reportedly didn't even invite Remini to her wedding with the actor.

"Because he is selfish and not fully committed as a partner. J.Lo was so mad she cut off all ties," the source explained. However, reports earlier surfaced how Remini got back in touch with JLO following rumours of her marriage trouble surfaced.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Jennifer Lopez's trusted circle 'hates' Ben Affleck including long time bestie: 'They went along anyway because...'

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Jennifer Lopez's close friends have long-standing dislike for Ben Affleck, including manager Benny Medina, sources claim. | Hollywood

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQGEPEaEWtg

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Secret to Successful Crisis Management in the 21st Century - Melissa Agnes TEDx Talk

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 7: climate change is to blame for Paris Olympics ... apparently

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 7: climate change is to blame for Paris Olympics ... apparently

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/30/climate-crisis-to-blame-for-delay-to-triathlon-say-paris-olympic-organisers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Climate crisis to blame for delay to triathlon, say Paris Olympic organisers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Organisers have blamed the climate crisis for the postponement of the men’s triathlon, saying: ‘We can’t control the weather’

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: how public opinion worked against Joe Biden

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: how public opinion worked against Joe Biden

# data[].attributes.body
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/biden-approval-rating/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Latest polls on President Joe Biden's approval ratings

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: One of the biggest losers of the Trump attempted assassination is ... Jack Black?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: One of the biggest losers of the Trump attempted assassination is ... Jack Black?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/article/2024/jul/16/tenacious-d-newcastle-show-postponed-donald-trump-shooting-assassination-comments-ntwnfb

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The latest show on Tenacious D's Australian tour has been postponed after senator Ralph Babet demanded the pair be deported following an apparent joke about the assassination attempt on Donald Trump.

American comedy rock duo Jack Black and Kyle Gass were due to perform in Newcastle on Tuesday evening, but the show - part of the band's Spicy Meatball Tour - was cancelled without notice on Tuesday afternoon.

Concert promoter Frontier Touring said on social media that it regretted "to advise that Tenacious D's concert tonight at Newcastle Entertainment Centre has been postponed".

"Ticket holders are asked to hold onto their tickets until further information is available", the company said in a social media post. It said no further comment would be made.

Local media reported Black was shopping in Newcastle on Tuesday.

Donald Trump makes first public appearance since assassination attempt - video

Babet, a United Australia party senator, demanded the federal government deport the band after Gass appeared to joke about Donald Trump's attempted assassination at a Sydney concert on Sunday.

Video from the event showed Gass being presented with a birthday cake and told to "make a wish" as he blew out the candles. Gass then appeared to say "don't miss Trump next time" - just hours after the shooting at Trump's rally in Pennsylvania that left the former president injured.

"I call on the prime minister Anthony Albanese to join me in denouncing Tenacious D, Jack Black and band member Kyle Gass, and I call on the immigration minister Andrew Giles to revoke their visas and deport them immediately," Babet said on Tuesday.

"Anything less than a deportation is an endorsement of the shooting and the attempted assassination of Donald J Trump," he said.

He added that allowing the band to remain in Australia was "unthinkable".

While conservative and pro-Trump accounts online were heavily critical of Gass's comment, Tenacious D did receive some support from others.

skip past newsletter promotion
Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
after newsletter promotion

Numerous people posted in response to the videos circulating that the comment was a "joke".

One X user wrote, "Classic Kyle. Long live the D," in response to Babet's statement; another supporter commented, "Are we really living in a world where a comedian can get deported for telling a joke? The Tenacious D / Kyle Gass situation is absolutely ridiculous. You don't like their jokes, then don't go to their shows. Simple."

Black has publicly criticised Trump previously, and recently appeared at a celebrity fundraiser for Joe Biden.

Tenacious D was due to appear in Melbourne and Adelaide before travelling to New Zealand next week.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tenacious D's Newcastle show postponed after comment about Trump assassination attempt

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Australian senator Ralph Babet demands the duo, Hollywood star Jack Black and musician Kyle Gass, be deported over the latter's comment

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3270696/chinas-third-plenum-xi-jinping-tells-party-show-unwavering-faith-reform-plan?module=top_story&pgtype=homepage

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
On Tuesday the country released weaker-than-expected growth figures for the year's first half, prompting some investment banks, including Goldman Sachs, to cut their annual growth forecast for the world's second-largest economy.

As Xi prepared to deliver a work report behind closed doors, the party's leading theoretical journal Qiushi published a rallying cry by the Chinese leader on Tuesday under the headline "Maintaining Self-Confidence and Self-Reliance".

It called on party members to show unwavering faith and commitment to the development path China has charted for itself and warned there is no "ready-made solution" or "foreign instruction manual" it can follow.

The journal also published excerpts from his previous speeches, including a passage that said: "China's economy did not collapse in the past because of the 'China collapse theory', and it will not stop growing because of rhetoric claiming China has plateaued. China's development prospects are bright, and we have belief and confidence."

This, together with articles published in other official outlets, including one by state news agency Xinhua that hailed him as a "thoroughbred reformer", suggests that there will not be any significant directional shift.

Instead, Beijing is likely to stick to its development strategy focusing on technology, advanced manufacturing and other sectors considered critical to the nation's overall strength.

While this may differ from the typical Western understanding of "reform" - which implies market liberalisation - it is consistent with Xi's vision, which is about improving the party's governance and delivering China's "great rejuvenation".

Hailing Xi as a "statesman, thinker and strategist", Xinhua said he has "always shouldered the heavy responsibilities of reform" and "personally reviewed and revised all major plans".

It also described him as "another outstanding reformer in the country after Deng Xiaoping" and noted that the two paramount leaders "each faced strikingly different historical circumstances".

Deng had to build up a poverty-stricken China from scratch while Xi had taken over when the country was already the second biggest economy in the world, but many of the advantages that had helped it develop rapidly - such as cheap labour - were already starting to diminish.

"Instead of resting on the laurels of his predecessors, Xi was committed to carrying on reform, even though he knew how hard it would be," Xinhua said, adding that he had played a role in all China's major reforms throughout his career.

Another Xinhua article said Xi had chaired 72 meetings since coming to power in 2013 and been in direct charge of all reform programmes since then.

Xie Maosong, a senior researcher at the National Institute of Strategic Studies at Tsinghua University, said the official messaging clearly signalled that Xi would not be deflected from his chosen path and will institutionalise his brand of reform to ensure it becomes "a major political legacy".

Deng Yuwen, a former deputy editor of Study Times, the Central Party School's official newspaper, cautioned that the party must keep an eye on public sentiment as discontent about the weakening economy grows.

"The public wants more upwards mobility, fairer job opportunities and basic things such as food safety. The party must demonstrate that they can deliver these goals."

d safety. The party must demonstrate that they can deliver these goals."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Xi tells party to show 'unwavering faith' in China's reform plans

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Official messaging suggests there will be no major changes in the country's economic strategy despite growing challenges

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 5: How should Joe Biden approach the Trump shooting?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 5: How should Joe Biden approach the Trump shooting?

# data[].attributes.body
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/07/14/politics/joe-biden-trump-campaign/index.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Priscilla Alvarez, Jeff Zeleny, Kayla Tausche

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Biden and his campaign grapple with a delicate national moment | CNN Politics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
President Joe Biden and his campaign are facing an abrupt pivot point: After spending the last two weeks trying to salvage the president's reelection bid, they are now grappling with a delicate national moment following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: Keisha Brewer, Strategic Communications

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: Keisha Brewer, Strategic Communications

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGeHS4jO0X0

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
It's Not Manipulation, It's Strategic Communication | Keisha Brewer | TEDxGeorgetown

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c51yelv4e72o

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The National Samsung Electronics Union started a three-day strike this week

A union representing workers at South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics has called on its roughly 30,000 members to go on strike indefinitely, as part of its campaign for better pay and benefits.

The announcement came on the last day of a three-day general strike being held by the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU).

The union said it had made the decision after management showed no intention of holding talks over its demands.

Samsung did not immediately reply to the BBC's request for comment.

"The company has no intention to engage in a dialogue even after the first general strike, thus we declare a second general strike starting from July 10th, lasting indefinitely," a statement on the union's website said.

The NSEU, which represents nearly a quarter of Samsung Electronics' workers in South Korea, said its actions had disrupted production. However, Samsung has disputed this claim.

Samsung Electronics is the world's largest maker of memory chips, smartphones and televisions.

After the NSEU announcement, the company's shares were trading flat to a little lower on the Korea Stock Exchange.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Samsung Electronics union goes on indefinite strike

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A union for almost a quarter of the firm's South Korean workers called the walkout over better pay and benefits.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: Public opinion and the US election

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: Public opinion and the US election

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/one-three-democrats-think-biden-should-quit-race-reutersipsos-poll-finds-2024-07-02/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
WASHINGTON, July 2 (Reuters) - One in three Democrats think U.S. President Joe Biden should end his reelection bid following last week's debate against Republican Donald Trump, but no prominent elected Democrat does any better than Biden in a hypothetical matchup against Trump, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that closed on Tuesday.

But the two-day poll found that both Trump, 78, and Biden, 81, maintain the support of 40% of registered voters, suggesting that Biden has not lost ground since the debate. Election Day is Nov. 5.

Among the names of top Democrats put before respondents, only Michelle Obama, wife of former Democratic President Barack Obama, outperformed Biden and led Trump 50% to 39% in a hypothetical matchup. Michelle Obama, author of the best-selling 2018 memoir "Becoming," has said repeatedly she does not intend to run for president.

Some 32% of Democrats in the poll said Biden should give up his reelection bid following a debate in which he stammered throughout and failed to energetically challenge Trump's attacks, which included numerous false claims.

Trump faces his own political liabilities, though the criminal cases related to his attempts to overturn his 2020 defeat have ground to a halt. In a close matchup, neither candidate can afford to lose the support of a sizable chunk of his political base.

Democratic voters have long harbored doubts about Biden's bid. In a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in January, while the party's nomination contest was still under way, 49% of Democrats said he should not run again in 2024.

Biden has vowed to stay in the race. But should he exit, the Democrats whose names emerge as possible replacements perform only as well or worse than Biden against Trump in hypothetical matchups, according to the poll.

Vice President Kamala Harris, for example, trailed Trump by one percentage point, 42% to 43%, a difference that was well within the poll's 3.5 percentage point margin of error, making Harris' showing statistically just as strong as Biden's.

Harris has stepped out of Biden's shadow in recent months, becoming a key voice in the administration for abortion rights. The Reuters/Ipsos poll found 81% of Democrats voters viewed Harris favorably, compared to 78% who viewed Biden the same way.

Biden, however, at 81 years old, was seen as too old to work in government by 59% of Democrats, a reading similar to the results in a January poll.

California Governor Gavin Newsom, a rising star in the Democratic Party who many observers expect could seek the presidency in a future election, performed marginally worse, trailing Trump 39% to 42%.

None of the elected Democrats tested in head-to-head matchups against Trump have formally declared their candidacies.

The poll, which was conducted online, surveyed 1,070 U.S. adults nationwide.

Sign up here.

Reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Scott Malone and Howard Goller

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Exclusive: One in three Democrats think Biden should quit the race, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
One in three Democrats think U.S. President Joe Biden should end his reelection bid following last week's debate against Republican Donald Trump, but no prominent elected Democrat does any better than Biden in a hypothetical matchup against Trump, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that closed on Tuesday.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/who-won-first-trump-biden-presidential-debate-rcna159343

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Brendan Buck, NBC News and MSNBC political analyst

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Opinion | Donald Trump may not have “won” the presidential debate. But Biden certainly lost.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Debates have been shown to have very little impact on election outcomes, but this one may test that trend.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 2: Why does it matter who Jennifer Lopez flies with?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 2: Why does it matter who Jennifer Lopez flies with?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/celebrity-photos/jennifer-lopez-spotted-flying-economy-on-budget-airline/news-story/c17229f367607eecf3ad56640aba88f2

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Jennifer Lopez left travellers stunned after being spotted flying economy in Europe at the weekend.

The US singer and actress, 54, is worth $600 million but opted for a standard ticket on a KLM flight from Naples to Paris, where she travelled for Fashion Week.

The superstar had been enjoying a solo trip in Italy and was seen looking radiant on-board a yacht off the coast of Positano.

Her Euro jaunt follows intense rumours her marriage to Ben Affleck is in tatters as well as the cancellation of her This is Me tour.

Lopez was looking unusually understated for the short flight, wearing shades and a cream jumper.

She was accompanied by her security detail, while a bodyguard took an aisle seat.

The diva looked much more radiant in the French capital when she attended the Dior show Tuesday in a beige dress and black leather gloves.

Overall, it's been a glum few months for Lopez, who has been plagued by rumours of marital woe.

Just two years on from her and Affleck's wedding, insiders are saying "there is no way this is going to work".

The couple have been seen on several occasions exchanging tense words and slamming car doors in public rows - with the actor looking utterly miserable in all but a few pap photos since tying the knot.

Earlier, in May, a source close to Ben told Page Six: "If there was a way to divorce on grounds of temporary insanity, he would.

"He feels like the last two years was just a fever dream and he's come to his senses now and understands there is just no way this is going to work."

While the couple was yet to publicly address the state of their marriage, Lopez was forced to shut down reporters who questioned her on divorce rumours during a promo tour for her new sci-fi film, Atlas.

The On the Floor singer was also forced to cancel her This Is Me Tour amid rampant speculation that she and Affleck had finally called it quits.

Addressing fans via her On the JLo newsletter, she wrote: "I am completely heartsick and devastated about letting you down."

"Please know that I wouldn't do this if I didn't feel that it was absolutely necessary.

"I promise I will make it up to you and we will all be together again. I love you all so much. Until next time ..."

But while the LA-based singer and actress claimed she was "taking time off to be with her children, family and close friends", the comeback tour was hit with reports of low ticket sales.

As reported by Forbes, if Lopez was to embark on the tour, the singer would be performing to "predominantly empty rooms in some cities''.

The tour was originally intended to support her latest album - however, compared to her previous mega-hits, the tracks saw barely any interest, selling a mere 14,000 copies in the US in its debut week.
This story originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hugely famous star spotted flying economy on budget airline

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Jennifer Lopez left travellers stunned after being spotted flying economy in Europe at the weekend.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 1: would you buy an Electrical Vehicle now?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 1: would you buy an Electrical Vehicle now?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/technology/motoring/on-the-road/potential-risks-concerns-as-chinese-evs-flood-australia/news-story/5c8f1fb18d8550a62a3137328468a456

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Australia's electric vehicle market is surging again as a new rival to Tesla takes off, but the boom has sparked fresh warnings for motorists.

Chinese giant BYD, which overtook Tesla as the world's number one EV maker in January, just posted a new record for monthly sales in Australia even as Elon Musk's company is forced to slash prices.

With more affordable options than Tesla; the BYD Atto 3 ranges from $34,444 to $44,999, versus the now discounted $54,900 starting price for the base Tesla Model 3, which still costs up to $80,900 for the Performance variant, BYD has quickly emerged as a popular alternative for eco-conscious Aussies on a budget.

BYD sold more than 1900 cars in May, well above its previous record of 1622.

Overall monthly sales of battery EVs saw a slight increase, accounting for 8.1 per cent of new cars sold, up from 7.7 per cent in May 2023, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).

EV sales in Australia have grown from about 1900 per month in 2022 to 8000 per month this year.

Tesla is still the most popular EV in Australia, making up more than half of sales last year, but BYD is quickly closing in - in large part thanks to generous subsidies from the Chinese government driving its prices down.

"We're certainly seeing increased activity across our business, our websites are recording really strong inquiry, as are our dealers," David Smitherman, chief executive of Australian BYD importer EVDirect, told News Corp Australia earlier this month.

"I think it's certainly getting very competitive out there, that's for sure, with a lot more product being offered."

But the flood of Chinese-made EVs; more than 80 per cent of EVs sold in Australia, including Tesla, are manufactured in China, has raised concerns among some experts.

Those range from issues around safety, servicing delays and data privacy, to the broader geopolitical implications.

"If you rely on one geographic concentrated area for big major products like EVs, that is always very risky in terms of supply chains, in terms of the production capabilities," Marina Zhang from the Australia China Research Institute told the ABC this week.

"Any supply chains are subject to external shocks, let's not forget about Covid in 2020, the whole world was struggling with breakdowns of supply chains for some essential suppliers, so that is always a danger."

Canberra resident Dr Awadhesh Prasad, who purchased a BYD after doing months of research and concluding Tesla was "overly priced", told the broadcaster those concerns were realised when an early issue with the car took a month to fix.

"(My wife's) concerns were related to the brand reputation of BYD because, compared to Tesla, BYD has been in the market only a couple of years," Dr Prasad said.

"And the other reason was that if something goes wrong with the car, it will not be very easy to fix quickly and unfortunately that concern came largely true."

BYD's early rollout in Australia was also marred by several compliance breaches, but the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) has since awarded each of its available models a five-star safety rating.

While the popularity of Chinese EVs will come as welcome news to the Albanese government seeking to boost uptake to meet its climate change targets, other countries less friendly to China are rapidly putting up barriers to what they view as more of an economic weapon than a genuine export.

This week the European Union warned it would slap tariffs of up to 38 per cent on Chinese EV imports after an anti-subsidy probe, while the US last month said it would tariff the cars at 100 per cent, accusing China of "flooding global markets with artificially low-priced exports".

Faced with an imploding domestic real estate bubble, the Chinese Communist Party has sought to revive its ailing economy by doubling down on exports such as EVs, machinery and consumer electronics, propped up by cheap, state-directed loans.

"Beijing is seeking to engineer an economic turnaround by ploughing money into factories, especially for semiconductors, aerospace, cars and renewable-energy equipment, and selling the resulting surplus abroad," The Wall Street Journal reported in March.

"Unlike in the early 2000s, however, the Western world now sees China as its chief economic rival and geopolitical adversary."

Strategic Analysis Australia founder and director Michael Shoebridge previously told news.com.au it was clear "China is capturing new global markets and it is owning the supply chains for those markets".

"Dual circulation is Xi Jinping's signature economic strategy and it is to do two things - make China less dependent on other economies, and make other economies more dependent on China," he said. "That is the lens to view this through."

Mr Shoebridge said EVs were the most obvious example.

"With the current policy settings across the world from Europe to Australia, BYD's dominance looks assured because they will use their huge excess capacity and protected market position to crush all other rivals by pricing them out," he said.

"Deflation in China and low growth makes their prices more compelling and means they must export to stay in business."

Mr Shoebridge said Australia "has this real problem that we're stuck pretending that the pre-pandemic, globalised economy still exists and that it's just about us producing stuff at a compelling price and getting it bought" - but the rest of the world had begun returning to "nationalistic" policies in the face of China's "deeply mercantilist" behaviour.

"The pandemic started to break globalisation and geo-strategic competition has further fragmented it, (but) our core policy settings (haven't changed)," he said.

Moreover, the cars themselves may pose a security risk, some experts have claimed.

Last year, the hawkish Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) think tank sounded a warning about China's rapid rise in the Australian EV market.

"As cars have become more technologically advanced, they have turned into what are essentially rolling computers," wrote former editor of ASPI's The Strategist Jack Norton.

"Modern cars are swathed in cameras and sensors and increasingly connected to the internet for 'over the air' tasks like updating software. They collect data ranging from location and routes driven to phone contacts and calls made by drivers. Such data could be used to put together a comprehensive picture of a person's activities, and, if a car's owner drives to work at a secure facility, for example, potentially pose a risk to national security."

Norton warned this "data-heavy trend is only accelerating with the rapid uptake of EVs and development of self- and assisted-driving technology".

"As with any internet-connected devices, cars should come under scrutiny for the security of their systems - and arguably more strict examination since there are literally lives at stake when it comes to the fallibility of self-driving technology," he said.

"Reports that 'tracking devices' containing SIM cards were found in sealed components in UK government vehicles have highlighted concerns about the prevalence of Chinese-made parts in the wider automotive industry ... China is already a leader in many of the technologies that will be vital to the future of transportation, including electric batteries and the analytics and artificial intelligence required to process the huge amounts of data vehicles collect and, in time, integrate them into so-called smart cities."

He urged consumers to "be aware of the potential risks to themselves, their families and their data, and consider whether a vehicle that's made in China, regardless of the manufacturer, is something they are willing to lay down their hard-earned cash for".

But Swinburne University professor of future urban mobility Hussein Dia said China's dominance of the Australian EV market was a "good thing for consumers and the planet", despite continuing concerns over quality and overseas reliance.

"This is a result of a targeted strategy that built on their strength in advanced battery technologies over the past two decades and their partnerships with leading car manufacturers since 2017," Prof Dia said in a statement.

"Cheaper EVs are good news for consumers in Australia, particularly in the small to medium car market segment where the available EV choices are still limited. Providing these options to consumers means improving our chances to achieve the mandated emissions reductions targets, and consumers also benefit as result of reduced running costs because EVs are cheaper to run."

Meanwhile, Wednesday's announcement by the EU of fresh tariffs on Chinese EVs risks provoking a bitter trade war.

Brussels angered Beijing by launching the investigation last year in a bid to defend European manufacturers in the face of a surge of cheaper Chinese imports.

The Chinese Commerce Ministry slammed the decision as "naked protectionist behaviour", in an angry statement after the announcement.

There is also dissent within the EU with Germany, a major trade partner to China, saying the tariffs would harm German companies.

The European Commission has proposed a provisional hike of tariffs on Chinese manufacturers - 17.4 per cent for market leader BYD, 20 per cent for Geely and 38.1 per cent for SAIC.

The EU said the amount depended on the level of state subsidies received by the firms.

Electric car producers in China that co-operated with the EU will face a tariff of 21 per cent, while those that did not co-operate would be subject to a 38.1 per cent duty.

This would be on top of the current import duty of 10 per cent. The commission pointed to "unfair subsidisation" in China, which it said "is causing a threat of economic injury" to EU electric car makers.

A Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson said the EU's decision risked "creating and escalating trade friction".

"China will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard its legitimate rights and interests," Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian warned.

To halt the extra tariffs being levied, Beijing and Brussels must resolve the subsidies issue.

"The Commission went out of its way to show there is space for negotiation," said Francesca Ghiretti, a fellow on economic security at Washington-based think tank CSIS.

But Ms Ghiretti told AFP it was not exactly clear what China could offer "that would actually mitigate the existing concerns".

The tariffs will apply provisionally from July 4 and then definitively from November unless there is a qualified majority of EU states - 15 countries representing at least 65 per cent of the bloc's population - voting against the move.

Chinese media ramped up threats that Beijing could target EU exports, including pork and dairy products, ahead of Wednesday's decision.

In January, China launched an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from EU, in a move seen as targeting France, which pushed for the commission's probe.

A group representing French cognac producers said it was "deeply concerned" about possible Chinese retaliation.

Despite the fears, Ms Ghiretti said "an escalatory trade war" between the EU and China was not "surely on the table" and could be avoided.

China is the world's biggest car exporter and Europe is a critical market for it.

EU imports of EVs from China mushroomed from around 57,000 in 2020 to around 437,000 in 2023, the US-based Peterson Institute for International Economics said.

Germany's Kiel Institute for the World Economy said a 20 per cent tariff would mean 125,000 fewer Chinese electric cars to the EU, worth almost $US4 billion ($6 billion).
frank.chung@news.com.au - with AFP

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
federal chamber of automotive industries

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'Potential risks': Concerns as Chinese EVs flood Australia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Australia's electric vehicle market is surging again as a new rival to Tesla takes off, but the boom has sparked fresh warnings for motorists.

# data[].attributes.body
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/06/investing/warren-buffett-compares-ai-nuclear-weapons/index.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Warren Buffett compares AI to nuclear weapons in stark warning | CNN Business

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Warren Buffett is worried about artificial intelligence.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 10: why did Emirates CEO apologise?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 10: why did Emirates CEO apologise?

# data[].attributes.body
https://khaleejtimes.com/uae/uae-floods-emirates-ceo-issues-open-letter-apologises-as-nearly-400-flights-cancelled-after-record

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
UAE floods: Emirates CEO apologises in open letter as nearly 400 flights cancelled after record rains

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
He acknowledged the 'unacceptable' wait times for passengers and outlined the airline's efforts to restore ops, which he called 'far from perfect'

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 7: Woolworths doing it right this time

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 7: Woolworths doing it right this time

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/woolworths-responds-to-pauline-hansons-accusations-over-stocking-of-anzac-day-commemorative-tins/news-story/92d04438600a19f61837026198c81b4e

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Woolworths has responded to furious criticism levelled by One Nation senator Pauline Hanson over the stocking of RSL Australia's limited-edition Anzac biscuit tins.

The tins feature designs commemorating different wars and conflicts and are collectable items, with a portion of the profits supporting the RSL to aid veterans and their families.

Senator Hanson compared the situation to the Australia Day debacle where the supermarket came under fire for not selling items used to celebrate the controversial date.

"I haven't shopped at Woolworths ever since they announced they wouldn't be supporting Australia Day," Senator Hanson wrote online.

"Now that I have learned Woolworths has also refused to stock the RSL's special Anzac biscuit tins, It reinforces my original decision.

"If Woolworths isn't interested in celebrating Australia and doing everything it can to support our veterans through organisations like the RSL, then I'm proud to continue to boycott Woolworths and I hope others will join me in taking their business elsewhere."

However, Woolworths has told news.com.au that the supermarket giant was selling multiple items for Anzac appeals and has raised almost $13 million for the cause over the past decade.

The supermarket giant confirmed that while it will not be stocking the limited-edition tins this year, they will be selling Anzac Appeal badges and supporting veterans and the RSL.

"We are the only supermarket to be selling the badges," Woolworths said in a statement.

"We sell Bakers Finest Anzac biscuits in our stores all year round, this product is endorsed by the RSL and generates revenue for the RSL to support veterans and their families.

"We've been proud partners of the RSL for the past 10 years, supporting the ANZAC Appeal in April and the Poppy Appeal in November.

Almost $13 million has been raised at Woolworths in the past 10 years for those appeals."

A spokesperson from RSL Victoria said they continue to have a "valued partnership" with the supermarket.

"The RSL and Woolworths have an ongoing and valued partnership, providing ongoing support to veterans and their families across Australia.

"Over the last ten years, Woolworths has raised more than $13 million during both our ANZAC and Poppy Appeals by making badges available for purchase in stores, providing direct and crucial support to the veteran community nationwide.

"This support continues in 2024, with Woolworths once again stocking ANZAC and Poppy Appeal badges for purchase.

But the issue over the absence of the specific commemorative tins has still attracted criticism.

World War II veteran Jack Bartlett said he was "horrified" upon hearing the news.

"I collect those tins and value them greatly because of my association. I'm very, very sorry to hear that Woolworths won't do it (sell them)," Mr Bartlett told 2GB's Ben Fordham.

"It's such a small thing for such a big shopping conglomerate to do. I don't think it's very, very much to ask them to continue what they've done for some time.

In January 1942 I, along with thousands of young men, took up arms to defend this country with one thought in mind: to live our way of life.

"We fought and won and I think that it is only common courtesy to ask the leaders of our industry to support us in our hour of need."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hanson explodes at Woollies over Anzac Day

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Woolworths has responded to furious criticism levelled by One Nation senator Pauline Hanson over the stocking of RSL Australia's limited-edition Anzac biscuit tins.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: So now we know about Kate's whereabouts, and why celebrities are apologising

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: So now we know about Kate's whereabouts, and why celebrities are apologising

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/blake-lively-owen-jones-apology-kate-middleton-b2517972.html

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/prince-william-kate-middletons-latest-move-backfires-amid-global-frenzy/news-story/2bccbe553f4aba7e19a640b3faac43c9

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'Panic at the Palace': Baffling new Kate act backfires

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Prince William and Kate Middleton's team has been warned the current situation will "end badly" following a series of bizarre moves and increasing public frenzy.

# data[].attributes.body
https://time.com/6837732/kate-middleton-health-tmz-photo/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Kate Middleton has been spotted for the first time since she underwent a "planned abdominal surgery " two months ago.

On Monday, TMZ published images of the 42-year-old Princess of Wales in a car with her mother near Windsor Castle. The images follow weeks of unrelenting online speculation, and even conspiracy theories, about her health and whereabouts. The royal was last seen with Prince William and their children during Christmas festivities in Norfolk, England, but there have been no appearances or images of her since.

Read More: U.K. Army Removes Claim Kate Middleton Will Attend Event Amid Ongoing Speculation

Meanwhile, the Princess of Wales's uncle Gary Goldsmith became a contestant on the British reality TV show Big Brother on Monday evening, and said his niece is in a "nice house somewhere" recuperating from surgery.

Kensington Palace issued a statement in January announcing that Kate had undergone abdominal surgery in January and would recover-out of the spotlight-until after Easter. The statement added that it was her desire to maintain "as much normality for her children as possible" and to keep her medical information private.

But social media users and royal observers began sharing all kinds of conspiracy theories about Kate's extended absence in the meantime. Kate was discharged on Jan. 29, after two weeks in hospital, with Kensington Palace announcing that she was "making good progress" and recuperating at their family home in Windsor.

Read More: Kate Middleton and the History of Royal Secrecy on Health Issues

Prince William had paused his royal engagements while Kate was recovering but he returned to duties on Feb. 7 for an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle. Earlier this week, there was much discussion about the Army posting on its website that Kate was due to take part in the royal family's annual Trooping the Colour parade on June 8. However, as of Wednesday morning, any mention of Kate appearing at the event has been removed from the Army's post.

Speculation over the Princess of Wales's health and whereabouts comes at a sensitive time for the royal family, after Buckingham Palace disclosed last month that King Charles had been diagnosed with a form of cancer.

No major British outlets have published the TMZ images so far. "There are pap picture of the Princess of Wales. We are not running them out of respect for her privacy whilst she recovers from her operation in the timescale we were given for it," wrote Chris Ship, ITV's royal editor, in a post on X. "As far as I know, no other UK broadcaster or newspaper has published the photos either."

The royal family has a long history of secrecy about medical information, but the Princess and Prince of Wales have previously been candid about medical matters, including pregnancy and mental health.

"That's why William and Kate's reticence about what's going on with them is odd," royal historian Clare McHugh previously told TIME.

More From TIME

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Paparazzi Photo of Kate Middleton Hasn't Put People at Ease

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
After weeks of social media speculation, she has been spotted in public for the first time since undergoing abdominal surgery.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: so, in light of last week's video, do you believe this news?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: so, in light of last week's video, do you believe this news?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-68461545

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ukraine war: Russia says it intercepts 38 Ukrainian drones attacking Crimea

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reports say a fuel depot was hit during the attack on the town of Feodosiya on the occupied peninsula.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 2: Woolworths slashes prices ... but why?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 2: Woolworths slashes prices ... but why?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/eat/woolworths-announces-price-drops-on-more-than-400-items-including-meat/news-story/b33f62c8e5b121d6a1d0c667419a8f54

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Woolies slashes price on more than 400 items

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
It’s no secret that shoppers have been fed up with the rising cost of living – particularly with groceries – in Australia, but now Woolworths has vowed to drop the price on hundreds of products.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 1: Now how do you feel about whether Woolworths cares about the price of your groceries?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 1: Now how do you feel about whether Woolworths cares about the price of your groceries?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-19/woolworths-ceo-banducci-walks-out-of-price-gouging-interview/103482724

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci's heated interview on pricing practices

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Trusted and independent source of local, national and world news. In-depth analysis, business, sport, weather and more.

# data[].attributes.body
https://lo.unisa.edu.au/pluginfile.php/3873588/mod_resource/content/2/The%20Reference%20List%20-%20APA%207th%20edition%20-%20Quick%20guide_2022-%20Copy.pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Has your lecturer provided links to a preferred APA 7 style guide on your course site? If so, it is recommended you refer to the guide(s) provided by your lecturer. If not, you may find the following resources useful to help with formatting your in-text citations and reference list entries.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 12: do you want to watch this movie?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 12: do you want to watch this movie?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/movies/viewers-refuse-to-finish-bradley-cooper-film-turned-off-after-an-hour/news-story/43b39ad67980d942ca628e4cd9263320

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Fans are begging Bradley Cooper to raise his pitch.

Maestro viewers slammed the actor-director's performance in the musical biopic on social media, complaining that they couldn't understand the film's dialogue to Cooper's "incessant mumbling".

"The mumbling maestro," one fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "So dull and so hard to hear the convos when he and his wife are talking over each other and his deep mumble Ugh. Turned off after an hour."

"Just watched 'Maestro' on Netflix. Mixed feelings but wish the diction had been more clear - much mumbling," a second person wrote.

"Trouble is cast and director live with and are familiar with the script but we only get one shot at comprehension. Good performances from Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan."

"Either I am going deaf or Maestro was a whole lot of mumbling," a third user quipped.

A fourth user fumed that the film was filled with "incessant mumbling, poor dialogue" and it was "unwatchable".

The Netflix film, which was released in December, tells the story of legendary West Side Story composer Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) and his relationship with Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan).

Cooper, 49, has already weathered much criticism over the Oscar-contending film.

Prior to its release, the Hangover star was slammed for wearing a prosthetic nose which many people called a prime example of "Jewface."

"If Bradley Cooper is able to play the Elephant Man without any prosthetics, he should be able to play a Jewish man without any need for prosthetics - especially a 'Jewish' nose," Jewish actress Tracy-Ann Oberman, 57, told Page Six.

"If he needs to wear a prosthetic nose, then that is, to me and many others, the equivalent of Black-Face or Yellow-Face," Oberman added.

Several other social media user also voiced their concerns in a crescendo of posts.

"Just looked up a picture of the real Leonard Bernstein ... the big antisemitic prosthetic nose on Bradley Cooper was definitely not necessary," one angry user posted on X (formerly Twitter).

"Bradley Cooper still isn't Jewish and he's wearing a prosthetic nose that doesn't even look like Bernstein's nose and just like some stereotype," tweeted another incensed person. "He's using this bulls**t to win an Oscar."

The film's makeup artist Kazu Hiro later issued an apology.

"I wasn't expecting it to happen," Hiro, 54, told press at the Venice Film Festival of the accusations of antisemitism per Deadline. "I feel sorry if I hurt some people's feelings. I wanted to portray Lenny as real as possible."

"He's photogenic and a great person, we wanted to respect and love that look," continued the two-time Oscar winner. "We did several different tests. That was our [only] intention."

Hiro later reiterated his statement to The Post saying he was sorry if he hurt anyone's feelings.

Despite the scandal, Bernstein's children - who attended the film's premiere Saturday - stated their support for Cooper's portrayal of their father, who died in 1990.

"We were touched to the core to witness the depth of his commitment, his loving embrace of our father's music, and the sheer open-hearted joy he brought to his exploration," Jamie, Alexander and Nina Bernstein said in a statement shared on social media.

"It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts. It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we're perfectly fine with that."

Bernstein's kids said they believed their father "would have been fine with it as well".

Maestro, which is nominated for several Golden Globes, is available to stream on Netflix.
This article was originally published by the New York Post and reproduced with permission

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Viewers refuse to finish Bradley Cooper film: 'Turned off after an hour'

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Fans are begging Bradley Cooper to raise his pitch.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 11: Flush your ex - why did this work?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 11: Flush your ex - why did this work?

# data[].attributes.body
https://flushyourex.whogivesacrap.org/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Want to turn your ex's empty promises into something that's actually useful this Valentine's Day? Mail us whatever cursed paper correspondence is taking up psychic space in your sock drawer - love letters, postcards, notes folded into paper planes - and we'll deliver it directly to our production facilities, where it'll be transformed into our 100% recycled, eco-friendly TP.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 11: the impact of a PR move in the Superbowl

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 11: the impact of a PR move in the Superbowl

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2n5cpUbj-U

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Rihanna Applies Fenty Mid-Super Bowl Performance!

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 11: using social media in politics to avoid the media

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 11: using social media in politics to avoid the media

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxKI9zKhDNE

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Housing hell: How we got here and how we get out.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 9: what is the reputational damage here?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 9: what is the reputational damage here?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/king-charles-and-prince-william-plan-highlevel-discussions-amid-race-row/news-story/249f1b5216159ace97106f672ef710e5

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
King Charles and Prince William are preparing to hold high-level talks as they deal with the fallout of two royals being identified in the race scandal which has engulfed the monarchy over the past two years.

According to the UK Telegraph, their two households will meet for a significant discussion this week over the accusations of racism, which originally stemmed from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview but have exploded again in recent days.

During the explosive appearance, Meghan claimed that while she was pregnant with her first child, there had been "concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born" within her husband's family.

The names of the two senior royals allegedly named in a letter between Meghan and the King were published in "error" in a Dutch translation of Omid Scobie's new book, Endgame, last week, sparking an uproar.

The Telegraph reports that aides will gather in the coming days to discuss their next move, with "all options" - including legal avenues - on the table.

"Discussions are being had, and we'll continue those discussions this week, but not in a crisis talks manner," a source close to the palace told the publication.

"Conversations will be had and decisions made with care and time and professionalism rather than rushed over a weekend."

It comes after Charles, William and Kate all appeared to adopt a "business as usual" attitude in recent days, continuing with their official duties as the controversy grew around them.

Meanwhile, pressure is building on Harry and Meghan to publicly respond to the allegations in Mr Scobie's book, with sources close to the Sussexes insisting that she "never intended" for those involved in the race conversations to be "publicly identified".

The translator of the Dutch version of has now insisted that she was handed a manuscript that included the names of the royals involved in the race row.

Saskia Peeters spoke out after Mr Scobie publicly blamed a translation error, and refuted his claim.

"The names of the royals were there in black and white. I did not add them," she told MailOnline.

"I just did what I was paid to do and that was translate the book from English into Dutch."

Despite her insistence, Mr. Scobie told Newsnight it was not for him to apologise for the drama.

"The buck doesn't stop with me because there are irresponsible people in this country who've broken the law and repeated names that should never have been repeated, should never have been named," he said.

"The book I edited and signed off on did not have names in it."

The publisher of Endgame, Xander Uitgevers, was left scrambling to pull thousands of copies of the Dutch edition from shelves on Tuesday as the "error" was revealed by local media.

"An error occurred in the Dutch translation and is currently being rectified," the publisher's managing director, Anke Roelen, said in a statement.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'All options': King Charles, Prince William call urgent meeting

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
King Charles and Prince William are preparing to hold high-level talks as they deal with the fallout of two royals being identified in the race scandal which has engulfed the monarchy over the past two years.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 8: Dove campaign - the selfie talk you have to have

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 8: Dove campaign - the selfie talk you have to have

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Reverse Selfie: Social Media's Impact on Girls' Self-Esteem | Dove

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
TREVOR LONG: ... this is the biggest telco outage in Australian history.

- Sky News Australia, 8 November, 2023

STEPHANIE FERRIER: ... we're still waiting to hear back from Optus.

- News Breakfast, ABC, 8 November, 2023

REECE D'ALESSANDRO: ... we are still waiting for a response from Optus ...

- Today, Nine Network, 8 November, 2023

KARL STEFANOVIC: No significant word from Optus at this point ...

- Today, Nine Network, 8 November, 2023

Hello, I'm Paul Barry, welcome to Media Watch.

And to a PR masterclass in what not to do, with Optus still making headlines as it tries to recover from last week's disaster, which left ten million customers and 400,000 businesses offline, sparked a government inquiry, and saw it mauled by the media with front pages like these:

DROPTUS

- Daily Telegraph, 9 November, 2023

FLOPTUS

- Herald Sun, 9 November, 2023

No OPTUS

- The West Australian, 9 November, 2023

Which is exactly what customers woke up to last Wednesday, with no mobile, internet or landline services.

The blackout hitting half the country and perfectly timed for breakfast TV:

GEORGIE CHUMBLEY: Reports are coming in from here in Brisbane, on the Gold Coast, as well as in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Hobart, Perth as well as parts of regional New South Wales.

- Sunrise, Seven Network, 8 November, 2023

And in Melbourne, it was even worse:

Half an hour after that, with the country still in a black hole, Natalie Barr was telling Sunrise viewers:

NATALIE BARR: You're not imagining things, it's affecting 10 million users, that's from coast-to-coast. We have reached out to Optus this morning, they are still yet to get back to us.

- Sunrise, Seven Network, 8 November, 2023

And that was the company's first PR mistake: not fronting up to the media to quickly explain what was going on.

Because it left reporters to hit the road in search of angry customers:

MAN: What happened?

LARA VELLA: I don't know, good question.

MAN: I'm asking you, you guys. Media, you guys should know what's going on.

LARA VELLA: We don't know yet.

- Nine News (Sydney), 8 November, 2023

And that was PR mistake number two, with Optus allowing the story to take on a life of its own.

With one crisis manager telling Mumbrella:

But they could watch TV, where telco experts were being asked to speculate about the root cause:

RACHAEL FALK: ... obviously it's something pretty major because it's taken out the whole country ...

It's gone on now for seven hours though that is ...

TOM CONNELL: Seven and counting. And they don't know what it is or how long it will take to fix ...

RACHAEL FALK: The face of Optus really needs to be out right now.

- NewsDay, Sky News Australia, 8 November, 2023

That face being Kelly Bayer Rosmarin.

But it wasn't until almost seven hours into the crisis that the Optus boss did her first media interview - via WhatsApp - to say:

KELLY BAYER ROSMARIN: ... and we're really, really sorry that this outage has occurred ...

- Mornings with Sarah Macdonald, ABC Radio Sydney, 8 November, 2023

After which, her job was to reassure the country that all was sorted:

SARAH MACDONALD: Do they know what happened though?

KELLY BAYER ROSMARIN: Um, who's they?

SARAH MACDONALD: The team that you've got working on it.

KELLY BAYER ROSMARIN: No, our team is still pursuing every possible avenue.

- Mornings with Sarah Macdonald, ABC Radio Sydney, 8 November, 2023

As business columnist Elizabeth Knight wrote in the Nine papers:

That is a reference to the federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland who was fronting the media mid morning to fill the void:

The company's response to that was to do a second radio interview with Sydney's 2GB but the Optus boss was not scoring any home runs:

DEBORAH KNIGHT: Why were you missing in action this morning?

KELLY BAYER ROSMARIN: Actually we've had messages out from the beginning, we've had messages on our website.

DEBORAH KNIGHT: Yeah, but people have got no internet so they can't access the information.

- Afternoons with Deborah Knight, 2GB, 8 November, 2023

And to make matters worse, if that was possible, the Daily Mail had scored this sneaky scoop:

Bad optics indeed.

But the Optus boss denies her handling of the crisis was, quote, a 'clown show', telling the Financial Review that no media 'soundbite' could explain the technical reasons for the phone outage.

But amid a crisis of this magnitude, the pressure on CEO's to front the media is intense and unforgiving.

And ultimately the Optus boss was forced to do that, sitting down, 12 hours after the crisis began, to face the cameras for the 6PM bulletins.

Which of course were full of stories about small businesses being crippled:

To which Rosmarin replied:

KELLY BAYER ROSMARIN: I'm disappointed that a barber couldn't do haircuts today. That seems like one of the few things you can do without connectivity.

- Nine News (Sydney), 8 November, 2023

Yes, in the effort to clean up the mess the Optus CEO only made matters worse by bagging out one of her customers, which was PR mistake number three.

With news.com.au contacting Jake the barber and getting this response:

JAKE AZAR: If she could do her job, I can definitely do my job and I don't appreciate getting bagged out to someone who can't do their own job.

- news.com.au, 10 November, 2023

And with the Singaporean owners of Optus in Sydney last week to watch the PR disaster unfold we'll see if the Optus chief manages to keep that job.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
How the national Optus outage turned into a PR disaster for the company and its CEO.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.9news.com.au/national/optus-ceo-resignation-kelly-bayer-rosmarin-quits-network-outage-what-next/bbb4c0ec-067c-4cfb-ace5-130dff92da84

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
W﻿hen Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin was asked on Friday whether a report that she was considering standing down following this month's massive network failure and last year's data breach, there were three long seconds of silence.

﻿But if the embattled telco thinks the change of leadership will solve its ills, it's in for a shock almost as rude as waking up with no phone service.

"You'd be kidding yourself if you thought that that was the end of the problem," Swinburne University corporate governance expert Helen Bird told 9news.com.au.

"Because what the Senate hearing revealed and what was very clear was that apart from the poor handling of the fallout of the outage, apart from the fact that customers didn't know what was going on, the second and frankly more troubling issue was that they didn't really have any effective management of this potential disaster.

"They had not tested, planned for, or considered in any really deep way the possibility of a national outage of the kind that occurred...

"There are really big questions for this company about its risk management systems, how robust they are.

"And I think, in turn, a question mark over the way in which the company is run, not just in terms of the CEO but higher than that."

Bird isn't the only one who thinks the CEO reset won't pick the Optus brand out of the doldrums.

"The CEO leaving, that's not the answer," Jules Hall, CEO of The Hallway advertising agency, told 9news.com.au.

"But that is the first step on the road to recovery. The business has to address the issues that led to the resignation."

Hall said there was no silver bullet for the telco, which will now have to painstakingly regain the Australian public's trust.

"That's not about saying things, it's about doing things," he said.

"And it starts with making sure they've played the war games to scenario plan for outages so triple zero calls can get through it.

"Make sure that you've got the security systems in place so there aren't major data breaches...

"Most brands don't need to talk about those levels of detail because it's assumed - we assume Telstra has done all that stuff, we assume Vodafone's done all that stuff.

"When you get called out and you get exposed by not having that in place, then you've got to take a couple of steps backwards, and you've got to demonstrate you are doing those things to build that trust back."

As for Bayer Rosmarin's replacement, there are benefits to bringing in someone external or ﻿promoting from within.

"I can make the case for both," Hall said.

"But I think there is there is there is a good argument for bringing in fresh eyes, fresh thinking at this point in time.

"I'm sure there's some amazing contenders internally and it may be they're actually better qualified because they know the ins and outs of how everything gets done or doesn't get done.﻿

"That'd be the counter-argument."

But while the next CEO is important for Optus to get right, Bird said the telco's internal systems are what need more attention.

"Certainly you can tell from the Senate hearing how important that role is," she said.

"But these roles wouldn't be needed quite so much if you had proper systems in place, so you better manage crises, so you weren't hauled before the Senate to explain yourself.

"You can replace your CEO and that's absolutely fine, but you would be shortchanging yourself if you thought that was enough."

Call for government to act﻿

As a private rather than publicly listed company, Optus hasn't had to worry about shareholder backlash for the data breach/network failure double-whammy, although it is naturally concerned about retaining disgruntled customers.

But it ﻿has no legal obligation to disclose crucial governance measures - such as risk management policies - despite the crucial role it plays in public life.

That role was made painfully apparent when more than 200 triple zero calls failed, and other healthcare services were disrupted, during the outage﻿, and should be the spark for the federal government to act, according to Bird.

"The government, through its appropriate regulator, should insist on there being proper governance as part of the requirements of holding the (communications carrier) licence," she said.

"It's extraordinary to me that what is absolutely essential for banking - they have to report to APRA - what is essential for, say, the ASX - they have to report to the Reserve Bank and ASIC - seems not to be required of a company providing a critical service."

CONTACT US

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Optus' 'more troubling' issue won't end with CEO's exit, experts say

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin has resigned, but iIf the embattled telco thinks the change of leadership wi...

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: Optus losing customers - this was yesterday

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: Optus losing customers - this was yesterday

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/technology/gadgets/mobile-phones/optus-customers-defect-to-telstra-after-outage/news-story/3bf47c35cf2511cebe195862de7c38e4

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Telstra has gained new customers following the 14-hour Optus outage last week, the nation's biggest telco has confirmed.

But the exact number of disgruntled customers defecting from Optus this time around was yet to be determined.

Speaking at the annual investor day, Telstra chief executive Vicki Brady said it was a similar experience to last year's Optus hack.

"Post last week's outage, yes, we've seen some increase in acquisition of customers," she said.

"There's been some speculation about how large that could be, and I would just go back to the cyber breach last year ... we saw elevated acquisition levels for around a six-week period.

"But at the end of the day, there wasn't a significant shift in share in the market."

The outage affected about 10 million Optus customers - including hospitals and businesses -and came after the company suffered the worst cyber breach in Australian history last year.

The nationwide outage was blamed on changes to "routing information" following a software upgrade.

"At around 4.05am Wednesday morning, the Optus network received changes to routing information from an international peering network following a routine software upgrade," Optus said in a statement on Monday.

"There routing information changes propagated through multiple layers in our network and exceeded preset safety levels on key routers which could not handle these."

It resulted in routers disconnecting from the Optus IP Core network to protect themselves, so they had to be physically reconnected or rebooted, which required "the dispatch of people across a number of sites in Australia".

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Telstra has gained new customers following the 14-hour Optus outage last week, the nation's biggest telco has confirmed.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 6: do you remember what I told you about how poor Optus' communication was? This happened the next day.

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 6: do you remember what I told you about how poor Optus' communication was? This happened the next day.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
In a crisis, Optus appears to be ignoring Communications 101

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Optus has let the story run away from it and failed to show contrition, for the second time in a little over a year.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: the fallout from the Voice vote, and why it's important to know your audience

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: the fallout from the Voice vote, and why it's important to know your audience

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12661877/Waleed-Aly-Steve-Price-clash-Voice-letter.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Waleed Aly and Steve Price clash over letter slamming No voters

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Steve Price and Waleed Aly have butted heads over an open letter from Voice Yes vote campaigners that accused those who voted No of committing ‘a shameful act’.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 2: Introducing the Voice in South Australia, despite the state voting 'no'

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 2: Introducing the Voice in South Australia, despite the state voting 'no'

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/state-that-will-introduce-the-voice-despite-referendum-fail/news-story/a48aab2b26f4510e317b1f21c1feb8b0

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Australians may have resoundingly rejected the Voice proposal but South Australia is pressing ahead with the reform despite the result.

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas has already legislated a state-based implementation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart - Voice, Treaty and Truth.

But the resounding vote against the proposal - including in South Australia - has sparked calls to repeal the legislation.

" South Australians have voted clearly against a Voice to Parliament and it's now up to Peter Malinauskas to explain where to from here," SA Opposition Leader David Speirs said.

The SA Voice will not have any powers to veto legislation or stop Parliament undertaking its duties and functions.

But it can engage with the South Australian Government, including Cabinet, Cabinet Ministers, and Chief Executives of government departments.

And it will meet with the SA Cabinet at least twice per year.

So advanced is the introduction of the Voice in South Australia that the inaugural First Nations Voice election will be held on Saturday 16 March 2024.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in South Australia will be able to vote for their Local First Nations Voice representative.

Eligible voters will be able to nominate as a candidate for the Local Voice between 22 January 2024 and 12 February 2024.

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas told Sunday Mail on Saturday night that the work would continue.

"The Prime Minister honoured his commitment to put a constitutionally enshrined First Nations Voice to a vote in a referendum. Our democracy has now decided against that model - but the work at a federal level to close the gap on Indigenous disadvantage must continue."
Treaty in Victoria
Meanwhile, Victoria is pressing ahead to become the first state to commence a treaty process with Aboriginal peoples.

No formal treaty has ever been signed between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the British or Australian governments.

However, Victoria was arguably home to the first attempted treaty between First Nations people and European settlers when grazier John Batman sailed across the Bass Strait to engage with Wurundjeri, Bunurong and Wathaurung peoples near the Yarra River in 1835.

The document, which he claimed was signed by tribal elders and amounted to a 'treaty' ceded him over 200,000 hectares of land in exchange for blankets, knives, flour, and scissors.

The treaty was later annulled by proclamation of the government of the day.

Nearly 200 years later, the Victorian Government passed the Treaty Act, Australia's first ever Treaty law.

The Treaty Act sets out a road map towards Treaty negotiations and outlines protocols to give practical application to the guiding principles set out in the Advancing the Treaty Process with Aboriginal Victorians Act 2018.

The First Peoples' Assembly has paid tribute to outgoing Victorian premier Daniel Andrews for introducing the reforms.

The Assembly wrote on LinkedIn that "History will remember Dan Andrews for his many achievements".

"Our mob will always remember and appreciate the willingness of his government to embark with us on the shared journey to Treaty in Victoria,'' it said

"Victoria has led the nation in pursuing Voice, Treaty and Truth and we recognise the significant role Daniel Andrews has played in that," Fellow assembly Co-Chair, Wamba Wamba, Yorta Yorta, Dhudhuroa and Dja Dja Wurrung woman, Ngarra Murray said.

"Daniel Andrews knows that we always get better outcomes when Aboriginal people have the ability to make the decisions that affect Aboriginal people."

Read related topics: Adelaide

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
State that will introduce the Voice anyway

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Australians may have resoundingly rejected the Voice proposal but South Australia is pressing ahead with the reform despite the result.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/leading-pollster-declares-theres-no-chance-the-voice-referendum-will-succeed/news-story/48bda100975dd7323455bf771da76534

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Leading pollster declares there’s ‘no chance’ the Voice referendum will succeed

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A leading pollster has declared there is “no chance” the referendum on a Voice to Parliament will succeed and said in some states the polling is so bad that campaigners should give up now.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A "significant number" of Israeli civilians and soldiers are being held hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military says.

Some are alive and some are presumed dead, military spokesman Lt Col Jonathan Conricus said.

Children, women, the elderly and the disabled were among those taken, he added.

"These are numbers that were up until now unimaginable," he said. "This will shape the future of this war."

According to Hamas, the number of Israelis captured was "several times greater" than dozens, and they had been taken to locations throughout the Gaza Strip.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hamas was responsible for their wellbeing and Israel would "settle the score with anyone who harms them".

There are numerous videos circulating online purporting to show Israelis in the hands of Hamas fighters.

One video, that has been verified by the BBC, shows a truck being driven through crowds on the Gaza Strip, purportedly carrying Israeli hostages.

Another video which has been geo-located to the Gaza Strip, shows a barefooted woman being dragged from the back of a truck with bloodied hands tied behind her back.

Couple taken at outdoor rave

Some hostages are said to have been taken from an outdoor party in Kibbutz Re'im, a suburb in the city of Ofakim in Israel's south - not far from Gaza.

Witnesses told Israeli media that attackers on motorcycles began firing at attendees, many of whom are still missing.

Videos posted on social media, which have not been verified by the BBC, appear to show one woman who attended the party being kidnapped and held on a motorcycle by two men.

She was identified by her partner's brother Moshe Or as an Israeli woman called Noa Argamani.

Mr Or had reported her missing, before seeing her and his brother in the videos, both held by several militants.

"I saw Noa in the video scared and frightened, I can't imagine what's going through her mind at all - screaming in panic on a motorcycle," he said in an interview with Israeli broadcaster Channel 12.

A later video - also not verified by the BBC - appears to show her sipping water in a room in Gaza.

Outside the Gaza Strip, Israeli military forces have reportedly freed Israeli civilians who were being held hostage in two locations in the south.

In Kibbutz Be'eri, hostages who were being held in a dining room were rescued after 18 hours, Israel's TV channels reported.

Israeli media reports suggested that up to 50 people had been held there.

Speaking to Reuters news agency, a woman identified as Ella said she had been barricaded in a bomb shelter for hours in the town.

"We can hear a lot of gunfire, we were told that terrorists are in the dining hall, we can hear a lot of shooting," she said.

"I've lost contact with my family. I know my father has been kidnapped... no one is telling us what's going on. I don't know if my mother is alive."

A video verified by the BBC shows militants in Be'eri leading barefooted people along a street. It is unclear if they were the same hostages as those held in the dining hall.

More on Israel-Gaza attacks

Meanwhile, in Kibbutz Urim, a suburb in the city of Ofakim, two Israelis were rescued after being taken hostage by Hamas militants in a house for hours on Saturday, according to Israel's public broadcaster Kan.

Gunmen had entered the city and opened fire on residents as they fled to bomb shelters after rocket alarms were set off in the city, Israeli media reported.

The two residents had stayed in their apartment, where four militants then took them hostage. The militants were later killed by Israeli forces.

Three Israeli soldiers were injured during the rescue, Kan said.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What we know about Israeli hostages taken by Hamas

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A "significant number" of Israelis are being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military says.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/qantas-breaks-silence-after-accc-suit-filed-over-cancelled-flight-sales/news-story/700f0703749ed387848c203246c542a1

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Qantas's reputation has "been hit hard on several fronts", but the national carrier has vowed to repair it.

In a statement on Monday, Qantas pledged to regain Australia's trust after a nightmare week plagued by the consumer watchdog's allegations that the airline had sold tickets for "ghost flights", a grilling by senators over competitors' flights, backlash over bonuses, and a blowout in Covid refunds.

The Australian Consumer and Consumption Commission launched action in the Federal Court on Thursday, alleging the national carrier had "engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct" by selling sale tickets for more than 8000 already-cancelled flights between May and July last year.

The ACCC is seeking to penalise the airline up to $250m.

In a statement on Monday, a Qantas spokesperson said the airline was aware that the ACCC allegations especially had "caused significant concern among our customers".

"The ACCC's allegations come at a time when Qantas' reputation has already been hit hard on several fronts," the spokesperson said.

"We want the community to know that we hear and understand their disappointment.

"We know it will take time to repair. And we are absolutely determined to do that."

The spokesperson said the period of time that the consumer watchdog's claims relate to - mid-2022- was "one of well-publicised upheaval and uncertainty across the aviation industry".

"Our longstanding practice is that when a flight is cancelled, customers are offered an alternative flight as close as possible to their original departure time, or a refund," the spokesperson said.

Earlier last week, a parliamentary hearing on Monday revealed Qantas owed $100 million more in Covid flight refunds than was previously thought - forcing the airline to back down on its December 2023 expiry plans.

It was also revealed Qantas had voiced its concern to the government about Qatar Airways' pitch to double its flights to Australia's east coast - a move that was welcomed by industry but eventually blocked by Labor.

Qantas' bad week was topped off on Friday it was revealed chief executive Alan Joyce was granted $10.8 million in shares for bonuses deferred during the pandemic - all the while Qantas maintained it had no obligation to pay back the $2.7bn in government payments it received during Covid-19.

Mr Joyce is stepping down as CEO in November, but after arguably one of the worst weeks' in the airlines history, there are calls for him to leave his post earlier.

Read related topics: Qantas

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
sky news business reporter ross greenwood

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Qantas breaks silence after nightmare week

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Qantas's reputation has "been hit hard on several fronts", but the national carrier has vowed to repair it.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/everybody-get-it-biden-announces-new-covid-vaccine-that-works-against-new-variant-on-the-way/news-story/2d912d0adbfd041ece5ed7f7a1bbe39c and https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-business-health-government-and-politics-coronavirus-pandemic-46a270ce0f681caa7e4143e2ae9a0211

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A new Covid vaccine "that works" against the latest variant is on the way and "everybody" in the US will likely be asked to take it, President Joe Biden says.

Covid cases and hospitalisations have been on the rise again across the US in recent weeks, prompting the return of mask mandates in some businesses and universities.

New vaccines targeting the dominant "XBB.1.5" Omicron strain - nicknamed the "Kraken" - developed by Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax are expected to be available from next month after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) outside experts hold a meeting on September 12.

Speaking to reporters while holidaying in Lake Tahoe on Friday, Mr Biden was asked about the uptick in Covid cases and the new variant.

"As a matter of fact, I signed off this morning on a proposal we have to present to the Congress a request for additional funding for a new vaccine that is necessary - that works," the President said.

"And tentatively - not decided finally yet - tentatively, it is recommended that ... it will likely be recommended that everybody get it no matter whether they've gotten it before or not."

Healthcare providers and pharmacies such as CVS will offer the new boosters from next month, even as demand for Covid vaccines fades sharply amid waning concern about the virus and scepticism about the merits of the shots.

"Public health officials, if they want to see a majority of adults get these annual vaccines, they're going to have to make the case to the American public that Covid isn't over and it still poses a risk to them," Ashley Kirzinger from the Kaiser Family Foundation told Reuters earlier this month.

XBB.1.5 drove a fresh wave of infections earlier this year and is particularly prevalent in the northeast US, but a number of other variants are already causing concern even before the updated booster shots roll out.

Earlier this month the CDC said it was tracking a new, highly mutated version of XBB.1.5 called "BA.2.86", unofficially nicknamed "Pirola" on social media.

BA.2.86 has 36 mutations from XBB.1.5 - a similar number of mutations Omicron initially displayed in 2021 compared to the original strain of the virus.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified BA.2.86 as a "variant under monitoring" due to the large number of mutations it carries, and it's unclear whether the updated vaccines targeting XBB.1.5 will be effective against the strain.

Other variants currently spreading in the US include "EG.5", or "Eris", and "FL.1.5.1", also unofficially dubbed "Fornax". EG.5 and FL.1.5.1 share a mutation known as F456L, which appears to help the virus escape protection from vaccination or infection with previous versions.

"But neither variant seems to cause more severe disease than earlier Omicron strains which were themselves less virulent than the pre-Omicron variants," Dr Joel Zinberg wrote for the NY Post last week.

Dr Zinberg, director of the Public Health and American Well-Being Initiative at the Paragon Health Institute policy research group, also argued that while BA.2.86 was "worrisome" due to the high number of mutations and "may prove to be highly transmissible, there is nothing yet to suggest it will cause more severe illness".

"The fact is, nearly everyone has some degree of immunity to Covid-19 that will protect them against severe disease and mortality," he said.

"Blood bank data showed that as of September 2022, about 96 per cent of people 16 and older [in the US] have immunity resulting from vaccination (26 per cent), infections (23 per cent), or both (48 per cent). The numbers should be higher a year later."

Dr Zinberg said should cases rise dramatically, those most at risk such as the elderly or immunocompromised "will need to exercise caution, just as they should during any annual flu season".

"But the time for widespread Covid-19 mandates is over," he said.

Vaccine makers, which posted record profits from the initial rollout, have tempered expectations for the latest round of boosters. Pfizer and Moderna's vaccine sales topped $US56 billion ($87 billion) globally last year, with that figure expected to fall to around $US20 billion ($31 billion) this year.

In the US, more than 240 million people, or 73 per cent of the population, received at least one shot after the vaccine first became available in 2021. That figure dropped to fewer than 50 million by second half of 2022.

In Australia, nearly 19.7 million adults and more than 2.5 million children aged five to 17 have received a Covid vaccine - roughly 85 per cent of the population, according to the latest Health Department figures.

But just 3.5 million people - 13 per cent - have had a booster within the last six months as suggested by the Australian government, leaving some 16.7 million "out of date" with their injections.

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) currently says all adults over 18 should "consider" a booster if their last dose or Covid infection was more than six months ago.

"Multiple new Omicron subvariants have emerged since the BA.4/5 wave in Australia during July and August 2022, displaying increased immune-escape properties (e.g. BQ.1 and XBB)," ATAGI's most recent advice from February 2023 states.

"These have co-circulated without any specific subvariant establishing clear dominance. Numerous immunological studies report reduced neutralisation of new Omicron subvariants by both vaccine-induced and naturally derived antibodies."

In the week to August 22, 5344 Covid cases were reported across Australia, an average of 763 per day - far below the most recent peak in the lead-up to Christmas of 16,000.
frank.chung@news.com.au
Read related topics: Joe Biden

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
centers for disease control and prevention

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
australian technical advisory group on immunisation

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'Everybody' asked to take new Covid vaccine

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A new Covid vaccine "that works" against the latest variant is on the way and "everybody" in the US will likely be asked to take it, President Joe Biden says.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-66506132

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
One user said: "Covering your mouth and closing your eyes, can that really solve problems? With flexible employment, slow employment, and independent employment, working for just one hour means you're not unemployed. Don't take the statistics from the Bureau of Statistics seriously."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
China suspends youth unemployment data after record high

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The country's central bank also unexpectedly cut key interest rates as it tries to boost the economy.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/aug/14/what-is-the-indigenous-voice-to-parliament-australia-what-does-it-mean-explained-referendum-campaign

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Albanese government has proposed to enshrine in the constitution an Indigenous voice to parliament, which would be voted on in a referendum.

Here's what we know so far.

What has happened already?

The referendum bill has passed, triggering the official campaign on what the government says is a simple referendum question for us all to vote on and the final wording of the constitutional amendment has been decided.

The question:

A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

Do you approve this proposed alteration?

The proposed alteration to the constitution:

Chapter IX Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples 129 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice

In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia:

1: There shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice;

2: The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples;

3: The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.

The vote is likely to occur between October and December 2023.

The referendum requires a majority of votes in a majority of states to succeed. If the vote is successful, parliament will then design the Voice via legislation.

The government has reformed the Referendum Machinery Act, bringing the process into line with the electoral laws governing federal elections. The reforms will include donation disclosure rules, and public funding for campaigns to mitigate misinformation around the referendum process.

The official "yes" and "no" pamphlets have been published online by the Australian electoral commission, triggering fierce debate about their contents.

The pamphlets contain arguments for the "yes" and "no" cases written by politicians who voted for or against the bill in parliament.

It's important to note the pamphlets are not fact-checked by an independent source or external authority. They have been published by the AEC, but it has no role to play in verifying their content.

Guardian Australia has fact checked and annotated both pamphlets, here:

The Australian electoral commission has set up a website to help voters understand the constitution and the referendum. The AEC will track campaign funding and is running a disinformation register.

What is the voice to parliament and how would it work?

The voice would advise the Australian parliament and government on matters relating to the social, spiritual and economic wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Parliament and government would be obliged to consult it on matters that overwhelmingly relate to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, such as native title, employment, housing, the community development program, the NDIS or heritage protection.

The voice would be able to table formal advice in parliament, and a parliamentary committee would consider that advice.

Conservative critics have raised fears the voice could spur court challenges, but a majority of leading constitutional lawyers have all either spoken strongly in favour of the voice or rebuffed concerns about the legal effect of its representations.

The minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, said the voice is a way for Aboriginal and Islander people to directly advise all levels of government about laws and policies that affect their lives. "It's about drawing a line on the poor outcomes from the long legacy of failed programs and broken policies, and listening to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people," she said.

"Things like incarceration and child removal. Housing, health and educational outcomes. This voice is about making sure that what happens in the federal parliament is going to be a positive step forward both in terms of us as a nation, but also the life outcomes for First Nations people in Australia."

skip past newsletter promotion
Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
after newsletter promotion

How would the voice be structured?

The referendum working group advising the government says the design of the voice will be guided by the following principles:

It will provide independent advice to parliament and government.

It will be chosen by First Nations people based on the wishes of local communities.

It will be representative of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

It will be empowering, community-led, inclusive, respectful, culturally informed and gender balanced. It will also include youth.

It will be accountable and transparent.

The voice will work alongside existing organisations and traditional structures.

The Calma-Langton co-design report recommended the national voice have 24 members, with gender balance structurally guaranteed.

The base model proposes two members from each state, the Northern Territory, ACT and Torres Strait. A further five members would represent remote areas due to their unique needs - one member each from the Northern Territory, Western Australia, Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales. An additional member would represent the significant population of Torres Strait Islanders living on the mainland.

Members would serve four-year terms, with half the membership determined every two years. There would be a limit of two consecutive terms for each member.

Two co-chairs of a different gender to one another would be selected by the members of the voice every two years.

The Calma-Langton model proposed a national voice with two permanent advisory groups - one on youth and one on disability - and a small ethics council to advise on probity and governance.

How would local and regional voices feed in?

The co-design report proposed 35 regions, broken down by state and territory. Communities and governments in each state and territory would jointly determine these.

Local and regional voices would provide advice to all levels of government to influence policy and programs, and advise the non-government sector and business.

The report outlines their roles, how they would be constituted and the principles they would embody, like cultural leadership, community-led design and empowerment.

There would be "a clear, two-way flow of advice and communication" between them and the national voice, the report said.

What would an Indigenous voice to parliament not do?

The national voice would be an advisory body to the Australian parliament and government. It wouldnotdeliver services, manage government funding, be a clearing house for research, or mediate between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.

How would disputes be resolved?

The report recommended mediation in the first instance. If that failed, matters would go to an independent review. The report suggested there be an agreed list of people with appropriate experience to conduct such reviews, and at least one of the reviewers should be an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person.

It suggested the final decision-maker could be the relevant minister, alongside two respected, independent Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people.

For more information people can read the Uluru statement from the heart, the final report of the Indigenous voice co-design process and the joint select committee on constitutional recognition's final report.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is the Indigenous voice to parliament, how would it work, and what happens next?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Here's what we know so far about how the Albanese government hopes to enshrine an Indigenous voice in the constitution via a referendum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Will Elon Musk’s X rebrand help Twitter soar to new heights?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Analysts question whether Tesla boss will manage to turn around platform with plans for ‘everything app’

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: Who do you believe when it comes to your Diet Coke?

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: Who do you believe when it comes to your Diet Coke?

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/whos-cancer-research-agency-say-aspartame-sweetener-possible-carcinogen-sources-2023-06-29/ and https://www.statnews.com/2023/07/08/diet-coke-cancer-aspartame-who-world-health-organization/#:~:text=A%20recent%20systematic%20review%20of,an%20increased%20risk%20of%20cancer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
LONDON, June 29 (Reuters) - One of the world's most common artificial sweeteners is set to be declared a possible carcinogen next month by a leading global health body, according to two sources with knowledge of the process, pitting it against the food industry and regulators.

Aspartame, used in products from Coca-Cola diet sodas to Mars' Extra chewing gum and some Snapple drinks, will be listed in July as "possibly carcinogenic to humans" for the first time by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the World Health Organization's (WHO) cancer research arm, the sources told Reuters.

The IARC ruling, finalised earlier this month after a meeting of the group's external experts, is intended to assess whether something is a potential hazard or not, based on all the published evidence.

It does not take into account how much of a product a person can safely consume. This advice for individuals comes from a separate WHO expert committee on food additives, known as JECFA (the Joint WHO and Food and Agriculture Organization's Expert Committee on Food Additives), alongside determinations from national regulators.

However, similar IARC rulings in the past for different substances have raised concerns among consumers about their use, led to lawsuits, and pressured manufacturers to recreate recipes and swap to alternatives. That has led to criticism that the IARC's assessments can be confusing to the public.

JECFA, the WHO committee on additives, is also reviewing aspartame use this year. Its meeting began at the end of June and it is due to announce its findings on the same day that the IARC makes public its decision - on July 14.

Since 1981, JECFA has said aspartame is safe to consume within accepted daily limits. For example, an adult weighing 60 kg (132 pounds) would have to drink between 12 and 36 cans of diet soda - depending on the amount of aspartame in the beverage - every day to be at risk. Its view has been widely shared by national regulators, including in the United States and Europe.

An IARC spokesperson said both the IARC and JECFA committees' findings were confidential until July, but added they were "complementary", with IARC's conclusion representing "the first fundamental step to understand carcinogenicity". The additives committee "conducts risk assessment, which determines the probability of a specific type of harm (e.g. cancer) to occur under certain conditions and levels of exposure."

However, industry and regulators fear that holding both processes at around the same time could be confusing, according to letters from U.S. and Japanese regulators seen by Reuters.

"We kindly ask both bodies to coordinate their efforts in reviewing aspartame to avoid any confusion or concerns among the public," Nozomi Tomita, an official from Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, wrote in a letter dated March 27 to WHO's deputy director general, Zsuzsanna Jakab.

The letter also called for the conclusions of both bodies to be released on the same day, as is now happening. The Japanese mission in Geneva, where the WHO is based, did not respond to a request for comment.

DEBATE

The IARC's rulings can have huge impact. In 2015, its committee concluded that glyphosate is "probably carcinogenic". Years later, even as other bodies like the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) contested this, companies were still feeling the effects of the decision. Germany's Bayer in 2021 lost its third appeal against U.S. court verdicts that awarded damages to customers blaming their cancers on use of its glyphosate-based weedkillers.

The IARC's decisions have also faced criticism for sparking needless alarm over hard to avoid substances or situations. It has four different levels of classification - carcinogenic, probably carcinogenic, possibly carcinogenic and not classifiable. The levels are based on the strength of the evidence, rather than how dangerous a substance is.

The first group includes substances from processed meat to asbestos, which all have convincing evidence showing they cause cancer, IARC says.

Working overnight and consuming red meat are in the "probable" class, which means that there is limited evidence these substances or situations can cause cancer in humans and either better evidence showing they cause cancer in animals, or strong evidence showing that they have similar characteristics as other human carcinogens.

The "radiofrequency electromagnetic fields" associated with using mobile phones are "possibly cancer-causing". Like aspartame, this means there is either limited evidence they can cause cancer in humans, sufficient evidence in animals, or strong evidence about the characteristics.

The final group - "not classifiable" - means there is not enough evidence.

"IARC is not a food safety body and their review of aspartame is not scientifically comprehensive and is based heavily on widely discredited research," Frances Hunt-Wood, secretary general of the International Sweeteners Association (ISA), said.

The International Council of Beverages Associations' executive director Kate Loatman said public health authorities should be "deeply concerned" by the "leaked opinion", and also warned it "could needlessly mislead consumers into consuming more sugar rather than choosing safe no- and low-sugar options."

It followed a study from the Ramazzini Institute in Italy in the early 2000s, which reported that some cancers in mice and rats were linked to aspartame.

However, the first study could not prove that aspartame caused the increased cancer risk, and questions have been raised about the methodology of the second study, including by EFSA, which assessed it.

Aspartame is authorised for use globally by regulators who have reviewed all the available evidence, and major food and beverage makers have for decades defended their use of the ingredient. The IARC said it had assessed 1,300 studies in its June review.

Listing aspartame as a possible carcinogen is intended to motivate more research, said the sources close to the IARC, which will help agencies, consumers and manufacturers draw firmer conclusions.

But it will also likely ignite debate once again over the IARC's role, as well as the safety of sweeteners more generally.

(This June 29 story has been corrected to drop the reference to aspartame being removed from PepsiCo products in 2020, in paragraph 25. A PepsiCo spokesperson corrected an earlier statement from an outside company spokesperson)

Keep up with the latest medical breakthroughs and healthcare trends with the Reuters Health Rounds newsletter. Sign up here.

Reporting by Jennifer Rigby and Richa Naidu Editing by Michele Gershberg, Mark Potter and Susan Fenton

Our Standards:

Jen reports on health issues affecting people around the world, from malaria to malnutrition. Part of the Health & Pharma team, recent notable pieces include an investigation into healthcare for young transgender people in the UK as well as stories on the rise in measles after COVID hit routine vaccination, as well as efforts to prevent the next pandemic. She previously worked at the Telegraph newspaper and Channel 4 News in the UK, as well as freelance in Myanmar and the Czech Republic.

London-based reporter covering retail and consumer goods, analysing trends including coverage of supply chains, advertising strategies, corporate governance, sustainability, politics and regulation. Previously wrote about U.S. based retailers, major financial institutions and covered the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Exclusive: WHO's cancer research agency to say aspartame sweetener a possible carcinogen

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
One of the world's most common artificial sweeteners is set to be declared a possible carcinogen next month by a leading global health body, according to two sources with knowledge of the process, pitting it against the food industry and regulators.

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 4: Working from home is becoming an issue ...

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 4: Working from home is becoming an issue ...

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/banking/commbank-staff-treated-like-kindergarten-kids-with-office-day-roll-call/news-story/c195f8d4e271aaa92b5d960b13b9b587

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
CommBank employees claim they are being treated like "kindergarten kids", asked to mark their attendance on an internal roll call system ahead of the bank's mandatory return to office next week.

The nation's largest bank sparked an internal revolt in May after ordering its 49,000 staff back to the office for at least 50 per cent of the time from July 17, as a growing number of businesses and organisations seek to wind back Covid-era work-from-home policies.

Last month, the Finance Sector Union (FSU) said hundreds of CommBank members had written to the union to complain about the edict, with some threatening to quit their jobs.

In a message to staff in May, CommBank group executive of human resources Sian Lewis outlined some of the reasoning behind the change, including that "we build stronger connections face-to-face".

She also announced the launch of "our new Connect Me tool" inside the WorkDay HR system, which "provides a view of who will be coming into the office each day and allows you to plan for in-person collaboration that maximises time with colleagues".

Employees have been asked to fill out which days they will be in the office one week in advance.

But one worker, who wished to remain anonymous, told news.com.au it was "ridiculous and annoying" that staff had "become kindergarten kids again, forced to tick attendance at school".

"They said that by using this system [you can] see when your favourite person will come the next week," they said. "So if you are my favourite buddy, I can see when you will be in the office so I can come and hang out with you."

But the staffer said most people were "infuriated". "They are annoyed at being treated like kids," they said. "They are fine to return to the office but not the way they treat us like kids, ticking attendance. If we go back to the office we will do it because we want to, not being forced like this. They need to know the way of working is changing now."

While the employee said they weren't aware of any colleagues who had quit as a result of being forced back, "I keep hearing people complaining", particularly those under 30, that they shouldn't have to as "working from home is more effective and efficient".

"They also complain that the public transport cost is getting higher and higher nowadays," the employee said, adding that many were pointing the finger at "baby boomers" who struggled with working from home and "have to meet with others physically to be able to connect".

"We believe they're doing this [because] they are renting the office building and it relates with the investment attached to those buildings - they don't want to lose their investment or make losses," they said.

Meanwhile, screenshots of internal discussions provided to news.com.au show CommBank staff members complaining about Ms Lewis' email.

One person wrote that "we should rethink how we advertise working with CBA", suggesting the bank's claim that "we're giving our employees flexibility in how, when and where they work" was no longer accurate.

Another wrote, "When I accepted the offer at CBA 1.5 years ago, I was informed that I can completely work from home for the role. The consideration at the time was combined benefits of 'work from home', 'salary' and 'environment' your organisation provides. When CBA suddenly announces mandatory office, it took away the benefit without renegotiation. This violates the core value 'care' CBA tries to achieve. When our bank claims we 'care', do we do one-way announcement or do we try to speak with/listen to employees?"

A third said, "I completely support the insights and observations expressed in the email, and I certainly experience these every time I visit my leader and team who are based in Sydney. Unfortunately I don't achieve these experiences when sitting in the Melbourne office. The flexibility of WFH was one of the benefits advertised for my role I accepted 12 months ago."

Another person questioned if "this is really about employee wellbeing and productivity/collaboration or more about improving ESG [Environmental, Social, and Governance] score and keeping institutional investors happy".

"I'm all for transparency and would love to see data on this, it would definitely be an opportunity to dispel all the conjecture in the comments if supported by data," they wrote.

In a statement, a CommBank spokesman said the Connect Me app was "developed for our employees, in response to their feedback on helping them connect with their colleagues on the days they come into the office".

"The app is entirely voluntary and is being used by thousands of our people to share their in-office days and see where colleagues they work closely with are planning to work," he said.

"In recent years, CBA has been transparent on its position that no role should be performed fully remotely. We have a longstanding commitment to flexible working and options to accommodate specific needs where possible. We're not able to comment on individual circumstances but our guidance for employees is to speak with their manager."

Late last month, FSU National Secretary Julia Angrisano said Ms Lewis "angered" many members with the edict, adding the direction was issued "without consultation with CBA staff or the union".

The union and a delegation of members from CommBank "sought to meet with the HR boss last week to have the edict overturned but Sian Lewis failed to show up", the FSU said in a statement.

Ms Lewis "left it to HR staff to explain to upset CBA workers why the bank was placing limits on its Work From Home policy", the statement said.

"It is totally unacceptable that CBA delivers an edict to its staff altering work from home arrangements without any consultation," said Ms Angrisano.

"Hundreds of our members at CBA have contacted the union complaining the bank was overturning working arrangements that have worked well for the bank and its staff."

Ms Angrisano said FSU members had "raised serious concerns about the significant impact this change would have on them, including on their work-life balance, mental health and wellbeing and caring responsibilities".

"They complain about the financial impact of increased commuting costs and childcare costs," she said. "Some say they will now be seeking employment elsewhere."

She added that for some staff, "their teams are not local so they are being made to go to an office to engage in video meetings with other workers interstate or overseas, or working from home that day".

"The pandemic showed how well working from home can be achieved and the FSU believes that a new benchmark on remote work has now been set," Ms Angrisano said.

"We want the CBA to suspend the mandate and engage in proper consultation to jointly develop a working from home policy which should then be enshrined in the CBA Enterprise Agreement."

A CommBank spokesman said in response that after being contacted by the union, "we responded promptly ... arranged the meeting and hosted it with our two most senior executives responsible for industrial relations and key decision makers".

"It was attended by the FSU's national campaign manager and three CBA FSU workplace representatives and it was a cordial and constructive discussion," he said.

"In recognising how important flexibility is to our people, we have been consistently seeking and listening to their views over the past three years. Over that time, we've sought feedback through nine group-wide surveys and the responses from tens of thousands of our people on wellbeing, hybrid working and how people preferred to work. Three of these surveys have been in the period since our formal return to the office in March last year."

He added, "We've also provided two months' notice of our current expectations to help support our people with the time to make adjustments to their current working patterns and raise any questions and concerns they may have. Where someone needs specific support, they can discuss individual flexible working arrangements with their leader that suits both their needs and those of our customers."

After the initial order, an internal technology town hall was described as a "bloodbath" by business gossip website The Aussie Corporate, which shared screenshots of some of the anonymous comments posted in the online meeting.

NAB, Westpac and ANZ all have set similar targets to bring staff back into offices.
frank.chung@news.com.au

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Bank staff lash WFH ban in leaked messages

# data[].attributes.headline
Week 3: Visit Phillipines because it's different ... by showing people pictures of other places

# data[].attributes.subject
Week 3: Visit Phillipines because it's different ... by showing people pictures of other places

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/philippines-tourism-video-used-images-other-countries-says-ad-agency-3601016

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
MANILA: Philippine tourism officials were left red-faced after the creators of a video promoting the archipelago nation as a holiday destination said on Sunday (Jul 2) they had used stock shots from other countries.

Advertising agency DDB Philippines apologised for the "highly inappropriate" images, which included rice terraces in Indonesia and sand dunes in Brazil.

The agency was behind the video for the government's US$900,000 "Love The Philippines" tourism campaign launched on June 27.

The country's tourism ministry announced late on Saturday that it was investigating allegations that DDB's video included "non-original shots". The video was later removed from its Facebook page.

Popular Filipino blogger Sass Rogando Sasot had posted on Facebook that several images in the campaign video were from other countries.

Analysis by AFP's fact check team confirmed that the video showed places in Brazil, Indonesia, Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates.

DDB apologised on Sunday for using "foreign stock footage", describing it as an "unfortunate oversight on our agency's part".

"Proper screening and approval processes should have been strictly followed," it said in a statement.

"The use of foreign stock footage in a campaign promoting the Philippines is highly inappropriate, and contradictory to the DOT's (Department of Tourism) objectives."

The video was produced at its own expense, DDB said.

TOURISTS WANT "AUTHENTIC INTERACTIONS"

The tourism ministry said in its statement it had "repeatedly sought confirmation from DDB on the originality and ownership of all materials contained in the AVPs (audio-visual presentations) and key visuals presented to the department".

"In all these occasions, DDB repeatedly assured the DOT that the originality and ownership of all materials are in order," the ministry said.

Some of the images used in the promotional video can be found on the websites of stock footage providers.

For example, footage of rice terraces is on Pond5, which identified the location as Ubud on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali.

Videvo has the same aerial shot of sand dunes as the one used in the DDB ad but says the location was Cumbuco in northeastern Brazil.

Other footage shows a fisherman casting a net while wearing a hat that is not typically worn in the Philippines and a person driving a buggy over sand dunes in the United Arab Emirates.

A spokeswoman for the tourism ministry did not respond to AFP's requests for comment on Sunday.

Tourism minister Christina Frasco told local media last week the new branding campaign cost 49 million pesos (US$900,000).

Frasco said the ministry conducted a global survey which found that, in the post-pandemic era, tourists wanted "authentic interactions with communities".

The new slogan replaced the old slogan: "It's More Fun in the Philippines".

Tourism is a key industry in the Philippines, which boasts pristine dive spots and white sand beaches, but arrivals lag those of its neighbours due to poor infrastructure and high costs.

There were 2.7 million inbound tourists to the Philippines last year, down 68 per cent from pre-pandemic levels in 2019, according to United Nations' World Tourism Organization data.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Philippines tourism video used images from other countries, says ad agency

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
MANILA: Philippine tourism officials were left red-faced after the creators of a video promoting the archipelago nation as a holiday destination said on Sunday (Jul 2) they had used stock shots from other countries. Advertising agency DDB Philippines apologised for the "highly inappropriate" images, which