If You're Listening

In the days since the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the internet has been awash with conflicting information about the assassin’s ideological motivations. Until recently, most people understood that political violence in America tends not to be organised, but one idea has galvanised many of those on the right: “they are trying to get us”. Just minutes after the shooting, US President Donald Trump and his allies called for revenge on what they call “left-wing extremists”. There is no evidence of an organised left wing militia trying to take down the Trump Administration, but is a crackdown on anti-Trump groups now inevitable? Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

While researching our last episode on the bizarre wave of Iran-banked anti-semitic attacks in Australia and around the world, Matt ended up somewhere unexpected… Swedish TikTok. He was intrigued (and baffled) by a viral sound from a gangster known as the Kurdish Fox that blew up in late 2023.To help him understand this meme, Matt got in touch with the journalist who broke the story and released this now-apparently-iconic audio to the public. Kim Malmgren is a crime reporter for Swedish Newspaper Expressen and hosts the Swedish-language true crime podcast Krimrummet. What starts as a conversation about a meme leads to a bigger story about Sweden’s growing problem with gang violence, tracing the Kurdish Fox’s rise, his war with the fearsome Strawberry, and the teenage "child soldiers" caught in the crossfire.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

There has been a spike in antisemitic attacks around the world, but there was something off about the ones happening here in Australia. The graffiti had Israel spelled wrong and they were committed largely by people with no clear ideological motivation. For many, the slapdash nature of these attacks raised a serious question about who was really behind them. Recently ASIO revealed that at least some of these attacks were coordinated and financed by Iran to intimidate and destablise their enemies. It turns out, Iran has spent the last few years bankrolling low level attacks just like this all over the world so is this a signal of Iran’s strength or a weakening regime? Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

There’s a story Matt’s been trying to tell on If You’re Listening almost since day one. It’s about the agriculture, soil and water of Ukraine, and he thinks it’s fascinating. Over the years he's tried to write it into episode after episode, only for it to be cut out by four separate producers.Today, Matt attempts to convince Supervising Producer Kara Jensen-Mackinnon (and hopefully you, too) on his obsession with the jet-black soil that’s altered the course of wars from WWII to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Maps referenced in the episode:Map of chernozem distributionMap of European waterwaysFollow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Donald Trump once said he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine in one day. Well, it’s now been over 200 days and he’s finally admitted that it might be a little more complicated than he originally thought. The man he’s sent to broker this important peace deal is his best bud Steve Witkoff, a lawyer turned billionaire real estate developer turned peace negotiator. In the last few months, Witkoff has had a number of top-secret peace meetings with Vladimir Putin. Unfortunately we don’t know what happened in those meetings, and it now appears that Witkoff didn’t know what was happening in those meetings either. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

In 1999, a young American called Robert Bogucki dumped his bicycle and walked out into the Great Sandy Desert in remote northern Australia. In 2022, Erin Parke became obsessed with this story and the media circus surrounding it. It's a tale that spans three decades, two continents and a bizarre cast of characters: from booty-wearing bloodhounds, to a cigar-chomping, moustachioed American named Garrison ‘Gunslinger’ St Clair. Matt chats to Erin about her quest to uncover the truth about the mysterious Gunslinger. From his colourful past of fraud and rumours of international espionage, he was larger than life and, as it turned out, too good to be true.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

It’s no secret that Donald Trump has his sights set on a Nobel Peace Prize. He already claims to have brokered peace in a number of conflicts around the world - and is now planning ceasefire talks for Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Palestine. So how does Trump intend to bring lasting peace to these decades-long conflicts? Well, he’s tasked his best bud and former real estate tycoon, Steve Witkoff with the job. Unfortunately, Witkoff doesn’t really have any credentials for negotiating peace… but he is very good at golf and for Trump that’s all that matters. CORRECTION: In this episode we state that “Armenians are mostly catholic”, and that is incorrect, the vast majority of Armenians are Christian and are members of the Armenian Apostolic Church.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

When Palestinian statehood is recognised at the UN General Assembly in September, a small office tucked away in a residential street in Canberra will become the official embassy of Palestine. This office is near many other embassies in the nation’s capital - some similarly unassuming, while others are incredible ornate architectural feats complete with gardens and water features. On a recent work trip to Canberra, Matt and producer Kara strolled around the Canberra suburbs judging the architectural merits of some of our nation’s great embassies.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Australia, the UK, France and Canada intend to recognise Palestine as a state at the UN General Assembly in September. But what does that actually mean? Well Timor Leste, the small island nation 500km off the coast of Australia was recognised as a state back in 2002 after years of Indonesian occupation and violence, and might offer us a glimpse into what the future looks like for Palestinians. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

After an entire week looking into the Oslo Accords, we still had a residual urge to find out more about Mona Juul and Terje Rod Larsen, the Norwegian couple who were instrumental in brokering that landmark agreement. We were reading about the Broadway play about their work, reading about the movie adaptation... and then suddenly, unexpectedly, Kara plunged into a rabbit hole. A very unexpected, but oddly familiar one…it involves a trip to Mongolia, a former Australian Prime Minister, and Mona and Terje.

Even the most seasoned negotiators can’t agree on how to bring peace to the Middle East. Everyone agrees that - on a personal level - it’s a problem too big, too old and too entrenched for them to even have an impact on. Except Mona and Terje. Norwegians Mona Juul and Terje Rød-Larsen looked at this extremely complicated conflict and said “we can fix this”. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Getting accused of murder is never a good thing. But, hypothetically if you are going to get accused of murder, it’s generally for the best that it’s not somewhere like Houthi-controlled Yemen - a part of the world that barely has a functioning justice system.This is the reality for Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse who has been convicted of murder and is currently awaiting trial in a Yemeni prison. The question is now whether she’ll be executed for her crimes or whether the victim’s family will accept a blood money payment to spare her life. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

The internet is flooded with hour-long podcasts about what really happened to Jeffrey Epstein. Until recently, two of the most high profile Epstein conspiracy truthers were MAGA podcasters, Dan Bongino and Kash Patel. But that all changed when they joined the FBI. In the last few months, Bongino and Patel have done a complete 180, and are now saying there’s nothing to see… So are they telling the truth about the so-called Epstein files? Or has the deep state got to them too?Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

So Jeffery Epstein probably wasn’t a Mossad spy. But online conspiracies like this pop up closer to home too. Could Israeli intelligence have been involved in Australia’s most traumatic mass shooting? There are people who think so. In this bonus episode of If You’re Listening, Matt is joined by Conspiracy Nation author Cam Wilson, who breaks down the pervasive PA96 conspiracy about the Port Arthur massacre. Cam Wilson and Ariel Bogle's book Conspiracy Nation is out now.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

The Jeffrey Epstein rabbit hole has opened into a cavernous rabbit abyss and it seems no one is safe. Conspiracy theorists and right-wing podcasters are following a particularly spicy lead: that Epstein was actually Israeli intelligence. It explains the curious circumstances around his death, the suppression of his so-called client list, and why Donald Trump seems keen to bury the story entirely. But where did the Mossad rumours come from and are they all just an elaborate smoke screen? If you're in Canberra and interested in coming to our live show on the 21st of August at the Canberra Theatre Centre you can buy tickets here: https://canberratheatrecentre.com.au/show/if-youre-listening-live-25/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Forty years ago, a man named Mordecai Vanunu came very close to exposing Israel’s secret nuclear enrichment facility in a bible group in the heart of Sydney. But before he could speak to journalists, he was lured to Rome by a beguiling blonde named Cindy. In this bonus episode of If You’re Listening we take a closer look at “Cindy” the mysterious Mossad honeypot who abducted Vanunu and changed the course of his life forever. If you're interested in watching Stanley Hanin's tyre company advertisement you can find it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-zCM_8APc0 If you're in Canberra and interested in coming to our live show on the 21st of August at the Canberra Theatre Centre you can buy tickets here: https://canberratheatrecentre.com.au/show/if-youre-listening-live-25/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

It’s widely accepted that Israel has nuclear weapons. How many? Well, it’s impossible to know because to this day the Israeli government has never officially confirmed or denied that it possesses a nuclear arsenal at all, instead it maintains a policy of “strategic ambiguity”. In truly one of the most extraordinary stories we’ve told on this show - we get to the bottom of how Israel hides its nukes, how we found out about them, and why the global community seems to be fine with it.If you're in Canberra and interested in coming to our live show on the 21st of August at the Canberra Theatre Centre you can buy tickets here: https://canberratheatrecentre.com.au/show/if-youre-listening-live-25/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

With Iran still in the news, we thought we would revisit the man who created the regime that so many in the Israeli and American political establishments would love to topple: Ayatollah Khomeini. This is the man who came back from 16 years in exile to be the Supreme Leader of Iran’s fundamentalist Islamic regime and overthrew the 2500 year old monarchy. This episode was originally published on the 22nd February 2024.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Before Iran was the Islamic theocracy it is today, it was a monarchy for two and a half thousand years. The last Shah or king of Iran was overthrown in 1979. In this episode of If You're Listening we hear about the Shah’s battle with cancer that resulted in a Shakespearean tragedy that brought about the end of the Iranian monarchy and shaped the Middle East conflict we see today.This episode was originally published on the 15th February 2024.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vOsdbCwS5qQ?si=ye2_zy0TOkLRMZLi

The chaotic 12 days of the Israel-Iran war ended with the United States dropping bombs on Iran’s nuclear facilities, then quickly brokering a ceasefire. But there are still many questions about the conflict: Has Iran really been mere months away from building a bomb for the last fifteen years, as Israel claims? Did the US’s strikes bust all plans for an Iranian nuke? And what does an American bowling alley company have to do with Tehran’s nuclear program? That’s this week on If You’re Listening. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Israel recently bombed Iran’s notorious Evin prison, a place that Dr Kylie Moore Gilbert came to know all too well. The political scientist and author was imprisoned in Iran for 804 days and eventually released in a prisoner swap in November 2020.In this chat with Matt Bevan, Kylie talks about solitary confinement, Iranian cheetahs, how her first cellmate was a spy, and why the regime is cracking down on dissidents right now. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

For the last century, since the rise of mechanised and then nuclear warfare, defence budgets are designed to stop big existential attacks. Ships, planes, submarines.But cheap, retail store level technology - drones - have changed the game in the conflicts involving Ukraine and Israel. There’s no real way to immunise against a drone swarm that’s been smuggled into your country and hidden in a truck. These covert attacks are relatively cheap to deploy and incredibly effective. Like the nuclear bomb, the machine gun, and the crossbow - drones mean the traditional way we fight wars is finished.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

The United States has dropped some very large bombs on Iran, inserting itself into what we are currently calling the Israel-Iran War, despite Donald Trump saying just days earlier that he was going to spend two weeks thinking about it. The bombs they dropped managed to destroy or at least severely damage a nuclear facility buried 90 metres underground. Which kind of makes Matt’s studio basement bunker superfluous. So what’s next? Matt is joined by Emma Shortis, Director of the Australia Institute’s International and Security Affairs Program and host of podcast and book After America to chat about what this means for the Middle East, and whether Australia will get pulled into the conflict. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

There is violence on the streets of America as anti-ICE protesters push back hard against the Trump Administration’s immigration policies. In the early months of the Trump presidency it seemed like everything was going his way but now that’s changing and fast as his executive orders are challenged in the courts. When it comes to stopping mass deportations Americans are learning that protests can actually work. These protesters aren’t backing down… but neither is Trump so what does that mean for undocumented immigrants across the country and the future of the Trump Administration’s deportation plans? Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

It’s been a manic week in global politics. Trump and Musk have officially broken up, Americans have taken to the streets to protest ICE deportations… oh and we’re seemingly on the brink of a nuclear war in the Middle East! To take stock of these rapidly deteriorating news stories, Matt Bevan talks to Dr Emma Shortis, Director of the Australia Institute’s International Security Affairs Program, author and host of the podcast After America.If you have a burning question for Emma or Matt send it to [email protected] and we’ll answer it on next week’s show!Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

In news that will surprise no one, the big beautiful bromance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk has finally come to an end. Over the last week, there's been a dramatic shift in Trump's presidency - he's publicly fighting with his former First buddy, judges are overruling his executive orders and there are protests in the streets of LA. As we pass 100 days of the Trump administration, everything is changing fast and understanding the gravity of this moment is vital. So for the next two episodes, we’re going to take a look at what led to this sudden shift - Trump's summer of discontent. How it started and what it means for the future of the administration.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

While investigating the history of fluoride, Matt Bevan stumbled upon a regional newspaper insert from the 1940s called Modern Weekly News Magazine. And let’s just say that the content was ... rather unique. In this bonus episode of If You’re Listening Matt swaps articles with supervising producer Kara Jensen-Mackinnon from the quirky pages of Modern Weekly News Magazine.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYWsonBlNaY

Putting fluoride in drinking water has often been called one of the most successful public health measures in human history. But since the very beginning of fluoridation programs in the 1940s, it’s been plagued by misinformation and furious opposition.Now with Robert F Kennedy Jr at the helm of the US Department of Health, the Trump Administration is leading the charge to get states to ban the use of fluoride in water - and he’s succeeded in Utah and Florida. So when did this anti-fluoride scepticism begin? And can it be stopped?Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

A little trivia question for you... is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi married?He’s gotta be, right? World leaders do tend to be married, and someone like Modi probably is. But, picture him at a big rally does he have a spouse there with him? You can't can you?Well, it turns out Narendra Modu is married and his carefully crafted image of a bachelor was up-ended when it emerged that he had a wife who had been kept secret for decades.In this bonus episode of If You’re Listening Matt chats to Avani Dias who dove into this story as part of her work on the podcast series Looking for Modi.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

India and Pakistan have agreed to a temporary ceasefire, but tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations are still running high. There are factions in both governments that think a war might be a good thing for them politically. The old saying goes that most nations have an army, whereas Pakistan is a place where the army has a nation. So will nationalistic rhetoric from Pakistan’s military lead an inevitable escalation into all-out war? This is the second episode in a two-part series where we take a look at both sides: India and Pakistan. Why they want to fight, and what they have to lose.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

After a brief moment where two nuclear powers looked to be on the verge of war, India and Pakistan have agreed to a temporary ceasefire. But Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi says it’s not an end to hostilities, just a pause. The scary thing is - there are factions in both governments that think a war might be a good thing for them politically. So why is that and will it inevitably lead to a deadly conflict? Over the next two episodes, we’re going to take a look at both sides: India and then Pakistan. Why they want to fight, and what they have to lose. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

When two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers on September 11 2001 Howard Lutnick lost 658 of his colleagues. It was a tragedy of unthinkable proportions which we covered in last week’s episode. But Howard Lutnick lost something else that day and Matt can’t stop thinking about it. In this bonus episode of If You’re Listening we take a look at the most famous sculptor since Michelangelo; Auguste Rodin, and his work, “The Gates of Hell” which was on the 101st floor of the North Tower that day, and hasn’t been seen since. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

The man behind Trump’s trade war is Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and his backstory is extraordinary. He’s been a hero, he’s been a villain, he’s been a sympathetic figure and also one of the most hated men in America - and all of that is even before he attached himself to Donald Trump. Over the last few months, gambling with tariffs has caused economic chaos and sent global markets into a tailspin… but Howard Lutnick is clearly all in. So why is the Commerce Secretary so reckless when it comes to the future of America’s economy? Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Just a few months ago Elon Musk was heralded as a political kingmaker when he had a hand in helping Donald Trump win the US election. Musk has since meddled in the politics of the UK, Germany, Spain and elsewhere but has struggled to convert his political prowess into victories for his chosen Conservative parties. In fact, being in any way similar to Trump or Musk has been a dead weight around the ankle of political campaigns over the last few months. It was clear the DOGE dynamism had officially worn off when federal elections in Canada and Australia saw both conservative parties lose by a landslide…Given that Musk and the other tech bro billionaires have so much influence over how we communicate... why are they seemingly struggling to actually influence our politics?If you're around Newcastle on the 18th of May, come along to the live show of If You're Listening at the Young People's Theatre - tickets available here: https://yptninc.sales.ticketsearch.com/sales/salesevent/149193Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

To scroll through social media during an election campaign in 2025 is to experience some of the worst misinformation. But an online soup of bots spouting partisan talking points wasn’t inevitable, even in recent years. After the 2016 election of US President Donald Trump and UK vote for Brexit, it was clear that online platforms like Facebook and Twitter were used to target voters with misinformation and disrupt political discourse enough to sway elections. As a result, the social media giants really tried to crack down on harmful content spreading online…or at least they pretended to.But in the last year or so, they’ve almost completely given up… and the vast digital sea of misinformation has become more dangerous than ever. If you're around Newcastle on the 18th of May, come along to the live show of If You're Listening at the Young People's Theatre - tickets available here: https://yptninc.sales.ticketsearch.com/sales/salesevent/149193Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

When US President Donald Trump was inaugurated in January, the world’s three wealthiest people stood right behind him, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk. All own massive online platforms. These tech billionaires are now major political players in their own right, but for the last 15 years the platforms they control have shaped political debate, changed how people feel about their governments and gathered information on voters that tells politicians which buttons to push. The Australian government has attempted to force the social media giants to pay for the news that they profit from and that worked… for a little while. But in the last year the broligarchs have torn up those contracts and are embracing a brave new newsless world – which isn’t great news for Australia’s upcoming federal election.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

In the middle of the 1800s, the Confederate army built a stealth vessel that could travel undetected underwater to give them the military edge over the Union...so did it work and how has it impacted military innovation since? In this special episode of If You’re Listening, Matt Bevan sits down with Marc Fennell to talk about his new ABC RN show, “No One Saw It Coming”. Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

You’re not losing your mind, the internet is different now. The 2025 Australian federal election will be the first in a decade where news isn’t readily available on social media, and there’s no effort to fact check or moderate what is there. The billionaires behind the major tech platforms aren’t just background characters in politics anymore; they’re centre stage, making decisions around misinformation, bankrolling candidates, generating content that aligns with their own ideology and broadcasting it to the masses. Not only has the fight against misinformation online been lost, sometimes social media feels entirely divorced from reality. While the United States government has been incapable of regulating the tech giants, and now seems to have been taken over by them, Australia has made multiple attempts to push back. In this series from If You’re Listening, Australia vs the Internet looks at Australia’s attempts to rein in big tech, and how it's shaping the Australian election. First episode drops Thursday 24th April.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

Australia’s housing market is in the midst of a crisis that feels like it will never be solved and now housing is one of the major battlefields of the upcoming federal election. In this episode of If You’re Listening originally published last year we head to Japan, where 30 years ago, houses were the most expensive in the world. Today home ownership in Tokyo is comparatively affordable with plenty of housing stock up for grabs – so how did they achieve this massive turnaround? And is it something we could do here in Australia? This episode was originally published on the 28th March 2024Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

It has not been a good year so far for Elon Musk’s car company Tesla. Stocks are plummeting and sales are falling even faster as people around the world who are opposed to his involvement in the Trump Administration boycott the company. That’s been accompanied by arson and vandalism at Tesla dealerships around the world. But this isn’t the first time that a company has come under sustained attack for its connections to a Presidential administration. For three decades, one of America’s biggest beer companies was subject to a boycott because of the conservative views of the family that owned it.How did that turn out? And what does it tell us about what’s in store for Tesla?Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

Donald Trump is talking about rare earth elements like they are magic rings with the power to unlock world domination. The US President is on the brink of signing a multi-billion dollar deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, that would give the US access to Ukraine's rare earth minerals in exchange for financial security and continued military support in the war with Russia. Rare earths are critical for manufacturing electronics, batteries, magnets, and military weapons. But are these rare earth elements actually as rare and valuable as Trump has been led to believe? Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/SkEn86RIsOk?si=-APXjdvpRF5RAeM0And if you're a Newcastle fan come see If You're Listening live with Matt Bevan on Sunday 6th April at 4pm at the Conservatorium of music concert hall - Tickets are free! Find out more: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/

Donald Trump’s sudden shift on Ukraine has come as a massive shock to most countries in America’s orbit. European leaders who have long banked their national security on US military protection are beginning to lose confidence in their most powerful ally. But there is one American ally that has been planning for this potential eventuality for decades. France has long been sceptical of how much America can be trusted and now they may be the only safe refuge for countries looking for new security guarantees. So how did they see this about-face coming? And what capacity does Paris have to be the new security guarantor for global democracy?Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/SkEn86RIsOk?si=-APXjdvpRF5RAeM0And if you're a Newcastle fan come see If You're Listening live with Matt Bevan on Sunday 6th April at 4pm at the Conservatorium of music concert hall - Tickets are free! Find out more: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/

Since he took office, Donald Trump has made a lot of decisions that fly in the face of traditional US foreign policy. He’s left Ukraine high and dry, he’s abandoning Europe, he’s slapped tariffs on America’s allies, and he’s floated the idea of seizing new territory in Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal. And the big one: President Trump seems to have a great deal of time and respect for Russian President Vladimir Putin. So what’s the deal with Putin and Trump - is what we’re witnessing now just the beginning of their grand plans for a new world order? And what hints can we get on how things might unfold from a conference that happened 80 years ago between US president Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in a little town called Yalta?This week on If You’re Listening, will Putin’s dream of an emboldened Soviet sphere come true? And if you're a Newcastle fan come see If You're Listening live with Matt Bevan on Sunday 4th April at 4pm at the Conservatorium of music concert hall - Tickets are free! Find out more: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

In the United States, there are laws constraining the President’s power. The Attorney General and everyone who works at the Department of Justice aren’t meant to just do whatever the President tells them; they’re in charge of enforcing the law, whatever it is. So what will they do when enforcing the law doesn’t align with Donald Trump’s policies? In Trump’s first term, the Attorneys General and Justice Department staff prioritised the law over Trump’s desires, because that’s how democracies work. Is there any chance that will happen this time?Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3iLKlAcMl4&list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq&index=1&t=6s

Throughout Donald Trump’s campaign he declared that the Justice Department and the FBI were weaponised against him. Now that he’s US President, he’s making huge changes to both, putting loyal supporters in charge. Over two episodes, If You’re Listening looks at the massive transformation underway in the US federal criminal justice system, starting with the appointment of Kash Patel as Director of the FBI. For almost 50 years, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover used the bureau as a political weapon, and successive Presidents let him. The 50 years since his death have seen the FBI aim for independence from the President. Now, with Patel’s appointment, that work is at risk of being undone, with potentially terrifying consequences.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lG9pxvpGY-Q?si=XI4y-FicLE8mHyRe

Billionaire Elon Musk is at the helm of US President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, established to slash massive amounts of government spending as fast as possible. In just weeks they’ve dismantled agencies, cancelled programs and attempted to lay off tens of thousands of government workers. Everyone agrees that the US government is a mess, that it’s spending more than it earns and something should be done. And yet, there are mass protests across America against what Musk is doing. This week on If You’re Listening, can DOGE do what Musk and Trump say it will do? Adelaide, check out the full podfest program, including shows from Not Stupid and All in the Mind: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/podfest/Newcastle you can find details for our live show on April 6 here: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/events/if-youre-listening-live/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdUGdSEXkQU&list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq&index=1&t=8s

When US President Donald Trump announced his plan for America to take over the Gaza Strip, everyone was stunned. That includes the man standing next to him, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. President Trump says everyone he’s spoken to loves the idea. But who has he spoken to? In his first term as president, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner led efforts to broker peace in the region, and his approach makes this latest announcement make a lot more sense. This week on If You’re Listening, how Kushner and Trump turned geopolitics into property development.Are you in Adelaide? On March 1 we're performing live, with all new stories at the Adelaide Festival Writers' Week. Tickets are selling fast: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/2025-writers-week/if-you-re-listening/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RhRPA57_iQE?si=UhVFsMF5RIHgbUoX

Donald Trump started his presidency by picking a fight with Colombia. The US threatened its Central American neighbour with massive tariffs if it didn't accept planes full of handcuffed deportees. Colombia backed down — and that has serious implications for the rest of the region. President Trump is gearing up for negotiations over deportations and his new favourite issue, ownership of the Panama Canal. This week on If You're Listening, can one of the most divided, violent and vulnerable parts of the world find a way to fight back against President Trump's agenda? Are you in Adelaide? On March 1 we're performing live, with all new stories at the Adelaide Festival Writers' Week. Tickets are selling fast: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/2025-writers-week/if-you-re-listening/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RhRPA57_iQE?si=UhVFsMF5RIHgbUoX

Donald Trump has liked the idea of tariffs for a long time, since before his first term as president. Now that he’s back in office he’s using them to do all sorts of things — threaten other countries, crack down on drug importation and bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States. He’s starting with a 25 per cent tax on imports from Canada and Mexico, a move that would have huge implications for America’s economy and its relationship with its closest neighbours. President Trump is promising it’s just the beginning, and that this won’t make goods more expensive for Americans. It’s been a long time since most developed countries have used tariffs in this way, but there is one US ally with a recent memory of something like it. In this episode of If You’re Listening, what can we understand about tariffs from Australia’s recent past?We're coming to Adelaide! Find tickets to our live show at Adelaide Festival Writers' Week here: https://www.adelaidefestival.com.au/events/2025-writers-week/if-you-re-listening/Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

The people of Georgia are in the streets of Tbilisi, protesting the ruling party’s recent election win. At the heart of the fight is whether the country should appease Vladimir Putin, or oppose him. For years Georgia was moving closer to the European Union, but the war in Ukraine changed everything. Now, billionaire oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili and his Georgia Dream party are betting on a relationship with Putin, hoping to save the country from a fate similar to Ukraine’s. Today on If You’re Listening, the story of a democracy at the crossroads of the West and the East, fighting over whether to be afraid of Vladimir Putin or not.Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/q9zRfSut8TU?si=0KJ4A49zvSz35Th6