What in the World
Our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world.
Trial by Water podcast
A new investigative podcast about one of Australia’s most controversial cases.
Take The Age quiz
Test your knowledge of Melbourne and Victoria with Stephen Brook’s weekly quiz.
Melbourne Uni investigated over use of tracking data to punish students
More than 20 university students were sent images of themselves caught by campus CCTV cameras as evidence of wrongdoings during anti-conflict protests.
Premier refuses to budge on airport rail timeline despite station backdown
Building works on the rail line to Melbourne Airport are at least four years away despite the owners agreeing to a station above ground.
Opinion
US Votes 2024
Trump is the master conman, but Biden is giving him a run for his money
Joe Biden, his wife, his vice president and his long-time aides worked hard to conjure a mirage where everything is fine in Bidenworld. That mirage vanished with the debate.
Maureen Dowd
New York Times columnist
Concerns over badminton racket at proposed centre stuns sport’s players, officials
Residents’ claims that a new Melbourne badminton centre will bring noise and antisocial behaviour have stunned participants.
Exclusive
Domestic violence
‘I’m no hero’: Man who saved children from inferno tells of horror night
A neighbour who charged into a burning house in western Sydney to save four children says he is not a hero and was only following his instincts.
AFL Briefing
AFL 2024
How Stringer helped Stewart recapture his form; Gawn expects to miss Dons clash
Melbourne skipper Max Gawn predicts he will miss Saturday night’s crunch clash with Essendon due to a painful ankle injury.
‘Playing in fear’: Why rankings points mean everything in tennis
Making the top 100 is the holy grail for many tennis players because it is the gateway to grand slam main draws and enormous prizemoney.
Analysis
For subscribers
Big-moment Bomber must keep playing; Swans’ stumbles change flag race
This week in key takeouts: examining whether the Pies trust their depth players, another false dawn for Suns and a selection squeeze at Essendon.
Peter Ryan and Andrew Wu
How it all went wrong for Le Pen’s far-right National Rally
The French election result could also put the brakes on Marine Le Pen’s ambitions to be president in 2027.
Opinion
World elections
If this was an Olympic event, Le Pen’s far right would not make the podium
It was tense at the Place de La Republique in Paris, as crowds from all sides of the political spectrum gathered to see which way the vote would go.
Peter FitzSimons
Columnist and author
‘Tourism kills the city’: Protesters soak diners with water pistols
The rise of tourism rental properties in Barcelona is partly blamed for a 61 per cent rise in property prices between 2013 and 2023.
Exclusive
Foreign relations
Australian woman’s fury at DFAT over husband’s 1000 days in Iraqi jail
Desree Pether says “the living hell” of the three years since her husband was arrested is made worse by DFAT’s “quiet diplomacy” policies.
Opinion
Executive pay
Woolworths boss pays the price for its sagging reputation
Canberra has played a game of one-upmanship on supermarket bashing over the past six months and may make the Guinness World Records for the use of the term price gouging.
Elizabeth Knight
Business columnist
NT Police declare curfew for three nights in Alice Springs
NT Police Commissioner Michael Murphy said the centre of Alice Springs would be a “declared area” from 10pm until 6am for the next three nights.
The case for Justin Timberlake, the celebrity we deserve
JT has once again proven that he is there to meet the moment, to show us who we are.
Buyer splashes $5.05m on Hawthorn East four-bedder to be close to family
Five families attracted to the location competed for the four-bedroom residence with manicured gardens and luxury finishes.
Exclusive
Virtual reality
How Apple chief Tim Cook wants you to use the new Vision Pro mixed-reality headset
Apple’s first new product in almost eight years is about to launch in Australia.
Victoria
Push for all-girls school to go co-ed as enrolments dwindle
Mentone, Canterbury, Melbourne, Pascoe Vale and Matthew Flinders girls’ colleges have all recorded a decline in enrolments since 2018.
Melbourne uni vowed not to spy on students. Now it’s using tracking data to punish them
Human rights experts have raised concerns over the University of Melbourne’s use of tracking technology to identify students staging a pro-Palestinian sit-in on campus.
Exclusive
Victorian budget
Melbourne Water borrowed money from the state government – to pay a state government bill
Melbourne Water had to borrow from the state to pay a bigger-than-expected land tax bill in a cash merry-go-round.
Copenhagen, not Docklands: Nick Reece wants to be lord mayor for real – here’s how
The former deputy mayor has confirmed he will run for the city’s top job at the coming elections, saying he’ll insist new growth suburbs are about putting “people first, not developer profit”.
‘Everyone loves chocolate’: Cocoa fiends flock to chocolate festival
Chocoholics headed to Abbotsford Convent to give thanks for chocolate.
AFL 2024
Opinion
Heeney didn’t mean to hit Saint high. It should still be graded intentional
Michael Gleeson
Sports columnist
‘He’s not playing next week’: Are Heeney’s Brownlow hopes over?
Isaac Heeney’s Brownlow Medal hopes hang in the balance after a high fend that left his opponent with a bloodied nose, capping off a dirty day for Sydney as they suffered a second straight shock loss, this week to St Kilda.
AFL Briefing
Petracca in hospital with appendicitis; Collingwood’s heavy injury cost from prime-time defeat
Melbourne star Christian Petracca’s recent run of bad luck has continued with the 28-year-old admitted to hospital on Saturday night with appendicitis.
Politics
Australia buys ‘devastating’ kamikaze drones
The government has acquired Switchblade 300 drones, to be deployed from late 2024, for an undisclosed amount.
Business
Exclusive
Casinos
The high-stakes legal battle raging between Stake.com billionaires and former crypto bro
The fight is being played out in the US and could spill over into Australian courts amid allegations of stolen bitcoin, lies, and fraud.
World
How Anthony Albanese helped Keir Starmer win his way to Downing Street
Political gurus worldwide often look to the US to live out a West Wing-style fantasy, but UK watchers say it is Australia that really sets the tone in Westminster.
Opinion
Middle East tensions
Iran’s new president promises bold reform – under the watchful eye of Khamenei
Amin Saikal
Professor of Middle Eastern, Central Asian and Islamic Studies
Opinion
Australia will lose if Payman’s identity politics triumphs
Parnell Palme McGuinness
Columnist and communications adviser
Shame, humility and tennis balls: Going to the dog park is like church, but better
Charlotte Mortlock
Journalist and political advisor
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Property
‘Fighting a losing battle’: Melbourne suburbs where rents have soared
Tenants are searching far and wide for their next home as rents in several suburbs spiralled 20 per cent or more in a year.
This home passed in at $1.27 million. The sole bidder paid an extra $45,000 to buy it
The renovated Victorian-style property passed in at auction before selling to a downsizer from a neighbouring suburb.
Good Food
Lifestyle
‘I was mobbed at shopping centres’: How Daniel MacPherson coped with fame
The former Neighbours star shares how he dealt with landing the high-profile gig so young.
Culture
Welcome to Netflixland: the streamer’s plan to dominate Disney
Don’t think of it like Disneyland, says the Netflix boss, but it does look like the first step to a full-scale challenge
Traveller
Drivedrive
From Our Partners
Sport
AFL Briefing
AFL 2024
How Stringer helped Stewart recapture his form; Gawn expects to miss Dons clash
Melbourne skipper Max Gawn predicts he will miss Saturday night’s crunch clash with Essendon due to a painful ankle injury, while Tom Stewart found inspiration from the most unlikely of places to reignite his season.
Analysis
AFL 2024
Big-moment Bomber must keep playing; Swans’ stumbles change flag race
This week in key take-aways: examining whether the Pies trust their depth players, opportunity for change at Carlton, another false dawn for Suns and a selection squeeze at Essendon.
Peter Ryan and Andrew Wu
‘Playing in fear’: Why rankings points mean everything in tennis
Making the top 100 is the holy grail for many tennis players because it is considered the threshold to tour legitimacy, and the gateway to grand slam main draws and enormous prizemoney.
‘He can go all the way’: How Demon can rewrite his Wimbledon history
Alex de Minaur’s extraordinary breakout year has convinced conquered countryman Alexei Popyrin that his Davis Cup teammate can win this year’s Wimbledon title.
Opinion
AFL 2024
Heeney didn’t mean to hit Saint high. It should still be graded intentional
In Four Points this week: when to worry after a shock defeat, and when to stay calm; a Brownlow favourite should be out of contention; Jack Lukosius embodies the Suns’ road woes; and the Tigers become the frontrunners for the top pick in the draft.
Michael Gleeson
Sports columnist
Updated
Paris 2024
Records tumble on eve of Olympics, including one that stood since 1987, as athletics team finalised
The women’s high jump world record stood at 2.09 metres for 37 years until it was broken at the weekend at the same meet where Australian runner Jess Hull set a blistering pace of her own only to be up against a rival who also set a new world record.
‘He’s not playing next week’: Are Heeney’s Brownlow hopes over?
Isaac Heeney’s Brownlow Medal hopes hang in the balance after a high fend that left his opponent with a bloodied nose, capping off a dirty day for Sydney as they suffered a second straight shock loss, this week to St Kilda.
Have Your Say
Global warning: Test cricket may shrink to six teams within four years
Test cricket may be played by as few as six countries within a few years without greater equalisation measures by its richest boards – India, England and Australia.
