The private powerbroker who has Lachlan Murdoch’s ear

This week we're going to talk about the government's weaknesses, which might seem a little bit counter-intuitive, because Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been flying so high on the international stage, where he dined with US President Donald Trump at a dinner at ASEAN. But back on the domestic front, there are a few weaknesses, particularly in the economy. Chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal, joins host and senior columnist Jacqueline Maley for this week's Inside Politics.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, King Charles was doing something the British royal family are accustomed to - shaking the hands of royal fans who had lined up for a chance to greet him outside a Cathedral in the UK. But then there was a shout from the crowd - loud and clear over the hum of voices and clicking of cameras: “How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein?” Today, senior columnist Jacqueline Maley on the problem of Prince Andrew and why the scandal is being called the “stuff of which revolutions are made”.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2005, Rupert Murdoch famously sided with his right-hand man, former Fox News chairman and now disgraced businessman, Roger Ailes, over his son, Lachlan, in a television dispute.He chose proven loyalty over blood ties. Perhaps it’s a lesson Lachlan never forgot. Because after a decades-long succession battle over his family’s media empire, he came out as the victor in September, over three of his siblings. And with the help of a little known power-broker who has become the closest thing to being an honorary Murdoch.Today, media writer Calum Jaspan on Siobhan McKenna, the unlikely ally from a humble background in Canberra who manages Lachlan’s conflicts, in order to help him retain power. And the impact this has on his professional - and familial - relationships.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You sure can tell a lot about a person by what they eat. Actor Marilyn Monroe once said that she was told her eating habits were “absolutely bizarre”, to which she replied, “I don’t think so.” (Her daily breakfast was a cup of hot milk with two raw eggs whisked in.) Well, today, you can now judge the tastes of those across the nation. Because the results from the 2025 Good Food Guide Awards are in. Today, Good Food head Sarah Norris, national restaurant editor Callan Boys and Melbourne restaurant editor Emma Breheny, on the restaurants you can’t miss. What this year’s dominant food trends say about what we value - and no longer care for. And the affordable must-order dish that our team says is the “undersell of the year”.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You couldn’t escape last week without hearing the ad for Kim Kardashian's latest rage-bait release: a so-called micro thong with faux pubic hair.Of course, Kardashian has called her thong - a pair of tiny underwear that comes in 12 shades - “the ultimate bush”. She’s capitalising on the latest trend.Today, lifestyle writer Lauren Ironmonger on the shame women are feeling now, as a result of being convinced to treat their bodies as trends. And whether anyone is actually buying their pubic hair back, after being told, since puberty, that they must get rid of it.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The week in federal politics could not have been more fun. We had Prime Minister Anthony Albanese travel to Washington, finally, for his meeting with US President Donald Trump. The meeting was a total hit, and Albanese came home with a deal on critical mineral supply and reassurances on the AUKUS submarine pact.Jacqueline Maley is joined by chief political correspondent, Paul Sakkal and special guest Bill Shorten, former opposition leader and a cabinet minister. Bill Shorten is now Vice Chancellor at the University of Canberra.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For decades, analysts have been predicting the moment when China would inevitably overtake the United States as the world’s strongest power. That moment still hasn’t come. But then came last week, when Donald Trump’s economic threat against China backfired spectacularly. Today, Peter Hartcher on the political turmoil in China that is stopping the country from realising superpower supremacy, for now. And whether Australia - unexpectedly thrust into a power position in this fight thanks to Anthony Albanese’s triumph with Trump this week - moves us out of our spot as a “middle power”, and nudges us higher up the ladder.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was the meeting that has been hanging over our prime minister’s head for nine months. But Anthony Albanese’s face-to-face with Donald Trump, on Tuesday morning Australian time, was never going to be easy.It wasn’t just the presence of our American ambassador, Kevin Rudd, who once called Trump a “village idiot” and a “traitor to the West”. But how would Albanese handle the most mercurial of world leaders?Today, North America correspondent Michael Koziol, who was in the White House with Trump and Albanese, on what Australia gained, or lost, from this meeting. And his first-hand account of what it’s like to be told off by the American president, in front of the world.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They are the heroes who might be called to winch you to safety, if you fall into a crevasse, get stuck in a bushfire, or find yourself circled by sharks at sea.  But behind the daring rescues by members of the Westpac Rescue service in NSW, multiple staff members have made allegations of sexual harassment, bullying and lack of safety compliance at the organisation.  Today, investigative reporter Eryk Bagshaw, on the months-long investigation he led, along with 60 Minutes, into the rescue service where staff members treated like “god amongst men” are alleged to have engaged in behaviour that might have endangered patients’ safety. Warning: Listeners might find some content in this podcast distressing. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Victoria is on the cusp of legislating a treaty with Indigenous people.When it's enacted, Victoria will become the first state in Australia with such an agreement. It's also noted because Australia is the only developed Commonwealth country without a treaty with its First Nations peoples.Today, Gunditjmara elder Aunty Jill Gallagher, AO, the chief executive of the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation, explains what treaty is and what Victoria’s historic one will entail.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.