Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast

It’s been ten years since the Panama Papers exposed a global network of hidden offshore accounts used by politicians, celebrities, and corporations to avoid taxes and hide wealth. The leak sparked investigations in dozens of countries, led to high-profile resignations, and debates over financial transparency and accountability. A decade later, the Panama Papers remain a landmark in investigative journalism, showing both the scale of global tax avoidance and the ongoing challenges in regulating offshore finance.Guest: Gerard Ryle, Executive Director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ)Producer: Ali Benton

In October 1994 then US Labor Secretary Robert Reich wrote his old friend and now boss, Bill Clinton, a letter with an urgent warning. “We’re in danger of losing Congress” he said. “Polls show that the voters who are most alienated from the administration are adults without college degrees, whose incomes have dropped the most. Many are (so-called) “Reagan Democrats,” who were slowest to rally to you in 1992, are still distrustful of government, and are most likely to desert the Democrats this November.” His warning fell on deaf ears and thirty years later those disaffected American voters turned in droves to Donald Trump. Now Robert Reich has traced how the Democrats lost the working class in his memoir. Guest: Robert B. Reich former Professor of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. Former Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton, author of ‘Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America’, published by Penguin Australia. Producer: Catherine Zengerer

The division and deep discontent in Iran gave Israel and the US a public rationale for attacking its brutal leadership. How did this nation become so divided in the first place, and which of its extreme leadership models, the Shahs or the Ayatollahs, have served Iran best?Guest: Robert Templar, author of 'The Shah's last party, and the Iranian Revolution that followed' (Hurst)Former journalist, and former policy analyst with the International Crisis Group.Producer: Ann Arnold

Just one hour after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese addressed the nation about oil supply issues, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer gave a press conference with his plan. But unlike Australia's response, UK Labour has a plan to address fuel prices. Guest: Ian Dunt: iNews columnist and regular LNL commentatorProducer: Ali Benton

An environmental scientist and his colleagues have just finished mapping Australia's remaining wilderness areas - the first time it has been done in 40 years. The project shows that true wilderness areas have declined in area by at least 20%, and raises questions about how wilderness is defined. Guest: James Watson, Professor of Environmental Science, University of QLD . Australian mapping commissioned by the Wilderness Society in 2024.Producer: Ann Arnold

Israel's parliament has passed a law that makes the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank who have been found guilty of killing Israelis. The law effectively enshrines capital punishment for Palestinians alone, as it explicitly excludes Israeli citizens or residents who are tried in civilian courts. The UN Human Rights Office in Palestine has called on Israel to immediately repeal the law which they say violates the country’s obligations under international law. Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative has described the law and "unjust and inhuman" and is calling on the international community to take punitive measures against it. Guest: Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National InitiativeProducer: Ali Benton

This year Western Australia will once again be the big winner in the GST carve-up, with $6.6 billion from taxpayers heading its way as part of a sweetheart deal which will cost Australia about $60 billion in the next five years. That’s despite WA’s very healthy state coffers. The mineral-rich state has been running a surplus for 8 years, while running down debts. So how does WA keep justifying the deal?Guest: Shane Wright – Senior Economics Correspondent for the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. Producers: Jack Schmidt/ David Marr

The province of British Columbia, Canada has officially ditched its biannual seasonal clock changes, embracing daylight savings time forever - renamed Pacific time. It's a seemingly popular decision locally, likely fast-tracked in response to Donald Trump's unfriendly rhetoric, but challenges await when the province falls out of sync with its neighbouring US states. Guest: Maurice Katz, video journalist, CBC

In her book, Minority Rule, Ash Sarkar argues that parts of the modern left have drifted away from focusing on material issues like wages, housing, and public services, and have instead become overly focused on identity, language, and symbolic actions. While she acknowledges the importance of struggles around race and gender, she believes these issues are sometimes treated separately from class and economic power, which can weaken solidarity. Sarkar also criticises a tendency toward moralism and internal conflict within left-wing spaces, where people prioritise calling each other out over building collective movements.Guest: Ash Sarkar, Senior Editor at Novara Media and author, Minority RuleProducer: Ali Benton

The Albanese government will halve the fuel excise for three months at a cost of $2.5b, to provide some petrol and diesel price relief to consumers. The PM is urging calm and encouraging Easter travel, but how will the current crisis shape the political landscape, and Jim Chalmers' looming budget? Guest: Anna Henderson, chief political correspondent, SBS

The longstanding Director-General of the National Library of Australia Dr Marie-Louise Ayres has just retired after a long career, overseeing the digital cataloguing of millions of physical archives. It's a never-ending project, as the archive grows and technology continues to improve. Guest: Marie-Louise Ayres, General-Director, National Library of Australia

The wars on Iran, Gaza and Lebanon have seen millions left without shelter or food. People are fleeing into neighbouring Syria, Turkiye and Iraq and aid organisations are struggling to meet the demand for help. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has seen much needed aid stranded in key transportation hubs like Dubai. Crucial fertiliser for growing crops is also being blocked just as spring planting season has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere, meaning we could see global food supplies impacted. Here in Australia getting the message through that help is urgently needed has been difficult as people are focused on the cost of petrol and paying the bills.Guests: Susanne Legena, CEO of Plan International Australia; and Mat Tinkler, CEO Save the Children AustraliaProducer: Catherine ZengererAustralians wishing to donate to the Middle East Appeal can do so here: https://emergencyaction.org.au/middle-east-appeal/ or call 1300-939-000.

The Museum of Failure, founded by psychologist Dr. Samuel West, is a celebration of innovation gone wrong. It showcases a wide range of failed products and ideas from around the world, from famous flops like the Apple Newton and Google Glass to lesser-known attempts that never made it to market. The museum emphasises that failure is not something to be feared or hidden, but rather a crucial part of creativity, experimentation, and progress.Guest: Dr Samuel West, Clinical psychologist and founder, Museum of FailureProducer: Ali Benton

Donald Trump’s private business footprint in the Gulf spans luxury real estate, golf courses, and high-profile partnerships. The Trump administration denies that this business activity is a conflict of interest with the US presidency. The Democrats, US based ethics groups and the American constitution says otherwise.Guest: Eric Lipton, Investigative reporter, New York TimesProducer: Ali Benton

Donald Trump told the press his Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner conducted talks with Iran on Sunday. The US stock market rose sharply but fell again when Iran denied the talks. Now a Guardian report says Egypt has been assisting negotiations - so is Trump looking for an out? Meanwhile Congress has confirmed a new Homeland Secretary to replace the disgraced Kristi Noem, but Markwayne Mullin will have his hands full dealing with chaos as airports across America as Trump sends ICE agents in to replace workers affected by a go0vernmet shutdown. And the Pentagon loses its defence of media shut-out rules. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine and Director of the Global Center for Journalism and Trauma. Producer: Catherine Zengerer

Pretty flowers often carry a dark side. Pesticides that harm the florists who handle them. Thousands of travel miles for the many imported flowers. And floral foam that leaks microplastics into water, and therefore waterways.Guest: Rita Feldmann, founder and education director of the Australian-based Sustainable Floristry NetworkProducer: Ann Arnold

Trailblazing Arts executive and Widjabul Wieybal woman of the Bundjalung Nation Rhoda Roberts AO has died, aged 66. Alongside her vast accomplishments in Australian arts, media and culture, she is credited with coining the term 'Welcome to Country' - a modern ceremony with ancient roots, which first emerged in Australia's cultural scene in the 1970s. Rhoda joined David Marr on Late Night Live in February 2025, at a time when some federal politicians were suggesting these ceremonies were too costly and 'overdone'. Rhoda discussed their origins, purpose and value to First Nations people and the broader community. Guest: Rhoda Roberts AO, Arts executive and Widjabul Wieybal woman of the Bundjalung Nation

Why One Nation appealed to South Australians, plus the looming fuel shortage - is Australia moving fast enough to prepare for it?Guest: Anna Henderson, chief political correspondent with SBS

In 2017, a lawsuit uncovered internal emails from chemical giant Monsanto that suggested its employees helped ghostwrite an influential paper that claimed to find no evidence the company’s widely used glyphosate herbicide, Roundup, caused cancer. Now, the scientific journal that published the 2000 paper has announced it has been retracted, at the request of Harvard scientist Naomi Oreskes.Guest: Naomi Oreskes, Henry Charles Lea Professor of the History of Science at Harvard University. Producer: Ali BentonThe authority which regulates pesticides in Australia - the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) - maintains that glyphosate products are "...considered safe to use when the instructions on the label are followed."

In the USA today the Americans who own the most guns are not military veterans or hunters. They are white evangelical Christians, and there are 60 million of them. Evangelical churches are not only encouraging their congregations to bring their guns to church, in some cases they are setting up shooting ranges, raffling off guns as prizes and even manufacturing the mass killing weapons being used in school shootings. Veteran journalist Bill Kole was an evangelical Christian himself when began investigating the intersection between guns and god, and what he found out made him question his own religion. Guest: William J. Kole, journalist and author of In Guns We Trust -The Unholy Trinity of White Evangelicals, Politics, and Firearms, published by Broadleaf books Producer: Catherine Zengerer

Pauline Hanson rose from Ipswich City Council in 1994, to win the federal seat of Oxley in 1996, as a disendorsed Liberal turned independent. Her maiden speech ignited national controversy, and after just two years in Canberra, and a string of failed comebacks, she’s now back at the centre of Australian politics — with One Nation now polling at 24% of the primary vote (Resolve Strategic). Some of Australia's finest political minds unpack Hanson's remarkable resurgence.Guests:Niki Savva, journalist, author and former political advisor to Peter CostelloPaul Kelly, Editor-at-large for The AustralianSimon Hunt and his alter ego Pauline PantsdownABC Election Analyst Emeritus, Antony GreenProducer: Ali Benton

On the day of his inauguration, US President Donald Trump issued a mass pardon covering over a thousand people charged or convicted in connection with the January 6 riots. Trump has gone on to issue hundreds of other pardons, many of them controversial. Law professor Saikrishna Prakash has looked at the use and abuse of presidential pardons, and says the law should be changed to restrict their power. Guest: Saikrishna Prakash, Distinguished Professor of Law and Miller Center Senior Fellow at the University of Virginia and author of The Presidential Pardon: the short clause with a long, troubled history, published by Harvard University Press.Producer: Ann Arnold

"I don't feel like it's satisfactory at all." Geoffrey Watson SC, has compared the sealed section of the Holmes Royal Commission into Robodebt with the recent findings by the National Anti-Corruption Commission. The NACC found two senior public servants engaged in serious corrupt conduct, but cleared former prime minister Scott Morrison and three other public servants, including former secretary of the Department of Human Services, Kathryn Campbell. Watson says it was clear from both the NACC and the Royal Commission reports that there was a culture of fear in the public service of consequences for not agreeing with directions from superiors.Guest: Geoffrey Watson SC, Director of the Centre for Public Integrity, Senior Counsel at New ChambersProducers: Catherine Zengerer/ David Marr

US President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of the UK government over its response to the Iran conflict, after Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the country would not be drawn into the "wider war". On the domestic front in the UK, Starmer announces a cost of living package, to help with the rising cost of oil.Guest: Ian Dunt: iNews columnist and regular LNL commentatorGuest: Ian Dunt: iNews columnist and regular LNL commentator

Adelaide writer Margaret Merilees has spent her life protesting: from Pine Gap in the 1980 through to the Rising Tide protests against coal exports, to joining Extinction Rebellion and protesting SANTOS' support of the Tour Down Under bicycle race. Now she's written a collection of essays reflecting on the issues she's fought for, why people in their seventies are as determined as ever, and why younger generations need to know whose shoulders they are standing on. Guest: Margaret Merrilees, author of Scared Angry Laughing - how to fix the world, published by Pink Shorts Press.Producers: Ann Arnold and Catherine Zengerer

Saudi Arabia has long sought to be the dominant power in the Middle East and there is speculation Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman himself urged President Donald Trump to go ahead with the bombing of Iran on February 28. But in the past few years the kingdom has been softening its stance towards its formal rival, and Saudi Arabia has been diversifying its economy away from oil production. So who will emerge stronger after this war?Guest: Simon Mabon, Professor of International Politics at Lancaster University, specialising in Saudi-Iranian relations, and author of The Struggle for Supremacy in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Iran, published by Cambridge University Press (2023)Producer: Catherine Zengerer

The new Nationals' leader has announced his front bench. Our weekly correspondent analyses what the reshaped Nationals will offer, and how they will deal Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce.Guest: Anna Henderson, chief political correspondent, SBS

In January, AI-generated pornography flooded the social media site X, owned by Elon Musk. X's AI chatbot turned anybody into pornography, and brought millions of eyeballs to the site. What should we make of this new frontier of pornography?Guest: Jo Bartosch, journalist and assistant editor at The Critic, and co-author of PornocracyProducer: Alex Tighe

Grigory Rasputin rose from a humble Siberian peasant to become one of the most influential figures at the court of Tsar Nicholas II. A mystic and self-proclaimed holy man, he won the trust of the Romanov family and gained extraordinary access to power. But his growing influence, scandals and enemies at court deepened the crisis facing imperial Russia. In Rasputin and the Downfall of the Romanovs, historian Antony Beevor explores how the “mad monk” became entangled in the empire’s final collapse.Guest: Antony Beevor, historianProducer: Ali Benton

The Irish have high trust in government, and, also, a surprisingly widespread belief in conspiracy theories. What explains the Irish appetite for conspiracies, and how can damaging beliefs be slowed down? Plus: a digression about bouncy castles.Guest: Jane Suiter, Professor in the School of Communications at Dublin City University (DCU) and director of DCU's Institute for Future Media, Democracy and SocietyProducer: Alex Tighe

The amount of money going towards subsidising Australian film and TV has gone way up over the last two decades. The number of hours being made has gone way down. Why?Guests: Professor Anna Potter, a professor in Digital Media and Cultural Studies in Queensland University of Technology’s School of Communication; and Simon Nasht, a former political journalist for The Age and the ABC, and now a documentary producer and filmmakerProducer: Alex Tighe

In the early 2000s, esteemed Australian archaeologist Matthew Spriggs made a promise to the community of Aneityum, an island of Vanuatu: he would try to recover their lost numbering system, erased by English missionaries in the mid-1800s. He has now found it, and is returning the knowledge to the community.Guest: Matthew Spriggs, Emeritus Professor of Archaeology at The Australian National University (ANU). Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. Honorary Curator of Archaeology at the National Museum of Vanuatu, and Honorary Librarian of the Vanuatu and Pacific Collections at the National Library of Vanuatu. Producer: Ann Arnold

US military commanders have been invoking extremist Christian rhetoric about biblical “end times” to justify involvement in the Iran war to troops. A group called the Military Religious Freedom Foundation based in the US, says it has received more than 200 complaints from service members across the armed forces, about the rise of Christian nationalist rhetoric in the military.Guest: Mikey Weinstein, founder and President of the Military Religious Freedom FoundationProducer: Ali Benton

Will the war in Iran be long or short? According to Donald Trump: both, depending on what day you ask him. Plus, new and scandalous allegations from the Epstein files about Trump, which haven't made the front page due to all the other news. And: the firing of Kristi Noem.Guest: Bruce Shapiro, Contributing Editor with The Nation, and Executive Director at the Global Centre for Journalism and Trauma

In Mafia: A Global History, Ryan Gingeras draws on more than a decade of research to uncover this suppressed underworld history. Crossing centuries and continents, he introduces legendary figures – Al Capone, Pablo Escobar, Du Yuesheng – and explores the conditions, cultures and locales that gave birth to modern mafias.Guest: Ryan Gingeras, author, Mafia: A Global historyProducer: Ali Benton

“For Lebanon we must act,” said French President Emmanuel Macron last week. “Everything must be done to prevent this country, so close to France, from once again being drawn into war.” The President is stepping forward to honour the long held ties between France and Lebanon.Guest: Sophie Pedder, Paris bureau chief for The Economist Producer: Catherine Zengerer

Australia's military capabilities are in focus as the government decides how it can assist Gulf states facing an Iranian retaliatory strike, amid the war in the Middle East. Guest: Anna Henderson, chief political correspondent with SBS

The State Library of NSW has had to adapt its collections and philosophy over the years, becoming both a foundation of, and mirror to, broader societal change. Guest: Richard Neville, Mitchell Librarian, State Library of NSW. Also Director, Learning, Scholarship & Outreach at the library. Co-editor, with Philippa McGuiness, of ‘The library that made me: 200 years of the State Library of NSW’ (New South)Producer: Ann Arnold

Yanis Varoufakis sits down with David Marr to reflect on the war on Iran, the failures of the Democracy in Europe Movement, cancelling his appearance at Adelaide Writers' Week and being charged with promoting drug use for admitting to taking ecstasy at Sydney Mardi Gras nearly forty years ago. Guest: Yanis Varoufakis - leader of the Democracy in Europe Movement, co-host of The Econoclasts podcast, and author of Raise your SoulProducer: Catherine Zengerer

For the first time, Late Night Live UK political commentator Ian Dunt, meets David Marr in person. In this special hour-long conversation, Dunt explores the parallels and distinctions between political developments in the United Kingdom and Australia, analyses the strains in relations between the UK and the US over the Iran conflict, and examines the recent Greens by-election win, in a long-held UK Labour seat.Guest: Ian Dunt: iNews columnist and regular LNL commentatorProducer: Ali Benton

Sometimes described as a 'phantom population', because so little is known about them, the first settlers across the arid interior of Australia are coming to life through a research project which is systematically documenting and dating cultural sites. The researchers say the evidence is very strong that people lived in even the most difficult landscapes well over 50,000 years ago.Guest: Peter Veth, ARC Laureate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Western Australia, leading a multi-party long term research project on the ancient desert people of AustraliaProducer: Ann Arnold

The green energy future depends on batteries. But batteries are not exactly a low-footprint technology; a massive mining and industrial operation will be required to make all of the batteries we need. And: is it worth recycling AA batteries?Guest: Jay Turner, Professor of Environmental Studies at Wellesley College, President of the American Society for Environmental History, and the author of Charged: A History of Batteries and Lessons for a Clean Energy FutureProducer: Alex Tighe

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the US bombing of Iran had to happen because they had intelligence that Israel was about to take action. He also said the hardest hits are yet to come from the US military. With Iran now bombing various targets across the Middle East and Israel sending ground troops into Southern Lebanon, how long could this war go on? And what are Israel's ultimate objectives in Iran, Lebanon and the broader Middle East? Guest: Gideon Levy, columnist with Ha'aretz newspaper and member of the editorial board. Producers: Catherine Zengerer and David Marr

Behind every great book lies a story — and sometimes, it’s a disaster. In When Books Go Bad, Alexander Johnson uncovers the scandalous mishaps that have shaped literary history. From bitter author feuds and savage reviews, to catastrophic misprints and publishing blunders.Guest Alexander Johnson, author, When books go badProducer Ali Benton

President Trump has put the United States, and the world, into an unpredictable situation: a war without a clear rationale, and without a clear end. In the week before Trump's attacks on Iran, lawmakers in the United States were attempting to rein Trump in. How is the country reacting now that America is at war with Iran?Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation and Executive Director at the Global Centre for Journalism and TraumaProducer: Alex Tighe, Catherine Zengerer