Unmasking Monsters
Bob Montgomery was one of Australia's most famous psychologists.But he was hiding a dark secret.Josh Robertson has the story of how he got away with it for so long.
Jul 10, 2021•45 min
Background Briefing
Background Briefing tells true stories not everyone will want you to hear. We infuse investigative reporting with captivating drama, following the thread of an individual story only to find that it leads us to something bigger. It's the only podcast in Australia that does this week in, week out.
Hosted by Thomas Oriti.
We want to hear from you too. If you have a tip-off, please contact us at backgroundbriefing[at]abc.net.au
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Episodes
Her name was Mhelody Bruno
She died in tragic circumstances, but it seems that the public, her family, even the court may not have been given the full story. Elise Kinsella investigates why.
Jul 03, 2021•45 min
The death Uber Eats disowned
Relatives of a dead food delivery rider say he was at work when a truck hit him. Uber Eats says he wasn’t. Patrick Begley investigates
Jun 26, 2021•41 min
The death Uber Eats disowned
Relatives of a dead food delivery rider say he was at work when a truck hit him. Uber Eats says he wasn’t. Patrick Begley investigates
Jun 26, 2021•41 min
The killer we've invited into the lounge room
When winter arrives there's nothing like curling up in front of a fire heater with a glass of wine. But there's something disturbing in this cosy picture. As Alison Branley discovers, there's a huge risk to our health that we seem determined to ignore, even though it's estimated to kill hundreds of Australians every year
Jun 19, 2021•36 min
How Australians are escaping India's Covid catastrophe
Thousands of Australians went to India back when it seemed like coronavirus was under control. Some went to care for elderly parents. But, as Alex Mann discovers, their noble intentions counted for nothing when they were locked out of Australia and found themselves in a fight to survive and find a way home.
Jun 12, 2021•41 min
The rural stoush fuelled by our chicken meat obsession
As Australians eat more and more chicken, we need to find places to raise the animals. But as broiler sheds pop up across rural Victoria, the neighbours are learning that there are more downsides than the smell. A chicken shed next door can stop you building on your own land. Rachael Brown heads to Gippsland to investigate why Rosedale locals are worried that their area will soon be nicknamed 'Chickendale'.
Jun 05, 2021•39 min
The memo that erased a scandal
Ballarat orphanage superintendent Hylton Sedgman was due to face nine child abuse charges. Buried in a 1964 file is the reason he never stood trial. Charlotte King investigates why.
Apr 24, 2021•42 min
The Archbishop, the luxury pad, and the COVID-ravaged aged care home
It was the site of Australia's deadliest coronavirus outbreak. This week, Ashlynne McGhee investigates how Melbourne's St Basil's Homes for the Aged has been funnelling tens of millions of taxpayer dollars into the Greek Orthodox Church.
Apr 17, 2021•38 min
The hidden park of last resort
It’s one of the last affordable caravan parks near Sydney's CBD where people can actually make a home. Many of the residents were driven here in one of life's desperate moments, but as Mridula Amin discovers, not everyone wants to leave.
Apr 10, 2021•45 min
The Base Tapes | Part 2
In the second and final episode of his investigation, Alex Mann tracks down the two youngest candidates who applied to join the neo-Nazi group and tries to find out how they were radicalised.
Apr 03, 2021•45 min
The Base Tapes | Part 1
Secret recordings reveal how a global white supremacist terror group dedicated to inciting a race war recruited young Australian men. Alex Mann investigates.
Mar 27, 2021•42 min
The small town torn apart by big bets
Peter and Kath were investors in a secret punters' club that turned out to be a multi-million dollar scam. When the kingpin pleaded guilty, there were nearly two thousand victims left desperate to find out where their money went. Rachael Brown investigates whether the middlemen know.
Mar 13, 2021•38 min
The place where people mysteriously disappear
Warren Meyer was a keen bushwalker who always came prepared for a hike. When he vanished in the wild terrain of the Yarra Ranges, police were baffled. Ashlynne McGhee investigates whether his disappearance could be linked to the other unsolved mysteries of Victoria's high country.
Mar 06, 2021•43 min
The chilling secrets of a Melbourne guru
For decades people have flocked to a bucolic ashram in one of Melbourne’s most exclusive suburbs to hear Russell Kruckman spin his folksy brand of meditation, yoga and spirituality. But as Dan Oakes reveals, there's something rotten in this Shangri La: a horrific list of sexual abuse allegations.
Feb 27, 2021•44 min
A nearby nurse and the firefighter left to wait in agony
Volunteer firefighter Rodney O'Keeffe survived a fire tornado, but it left him with broken ribs and severe burns. A mere 800 metres away, there was a remote area nurse desperately trying to reach him. Jess Davis investigates why she couldn't.
Feb 20, 2021•41 min
The fight to stop a tiny battery from killing kids
Andrea and Allison formed an unlikely friendship after their daughters died in remarkably similar circumstances. Annie Gaffney investigates how they turned their grief into action to prevent that kind of tragedy from happening again.
Feb 13, 2021•40 min
The scientists and shamans of psychedelic retreats
There's a landmark project underway in Melbourne to find out whether psilocybin - the hallucinogenic compound in magic mushrooms - can be used to improve end-of-life experiences. But many Australians have already turned to the underground because they're convinced psychedelics improve their mental health. Geoff Thompson investigates whether it's worth all the risks.
Feb 06, 2021•45 min
Summer Season: how one school failed its students
Kimberly's sunny, athletic and inquisitive about everything. But for years she harboured terrible secrets about what happened to her. This week, Janine Fitzpatrick investigates why her school failed to heed credible warnings that she was in danger.This is a repeat of a program that aired in October 2020.
Jan 02, 2021•40 min
Summer Season: This judge’s unfair decisions upended people’s lives. What can be done about it?
These Australians were denied a fair hearing by one controversial judge. Now, for the first time, they're speaking out about their experiences. Hagar Cohen investigates what happens when the behaviour of a judge inside a courtroom is called into question. This is a repeat of a program that aired in February 2020.
Dec 26, 2020•41 min
Summer Season: He wanted an ambulance. He got a police "dog box".
Tristan was a kind and gentle 23-year-old surfer from Byron Bay. One night he suffered a drug-induced psychotic episode. And ended up driven to hospital in a small steel cage. Police say it is probably the worst place he could be. Tristan later died in hospital. Mario Christodoulou investigates the series of tragic events that led to Tristan's death that raise questions about how emergency services treat young drug-affected people in New South Wales. This is a repeat of a program that aired in M...
Dec 19, 2020•41 min
Summer season: Inside the brazen tax scam where the homeless are made company directors
It's a long-running ‘dummy director’ scam that’s siphoned tens of millions of dollars from workers, small businesses and the taxpayer.In Victoria, a small group of accountants spent 15 years signing on drug users and homeless Australians to help their clients cheat the system.Reporter Dan Oakes investigates how this was allowed to go on for so long.This is a repeat of a program that aired in February 2020.
Dec 12, 2020•39 min
Buyer Wanted - Mothballed Oil Rig
Did you know you're the lucky operator of a rusty oil rig floating in the Timor Sea? You, along with 25-odd-million others, that is. This week, reporter Alex Mann investigates why Australian taxpayers are forking out four million dollars a month for this facility, some 550km off the coast of Darwin.
Dec 05, 2020•35 min
The billion-dollar sports industry that can't keep up with the cheats
It's got audiences bigger than the Superbowl. Its star players earn more for a single tournament than the winner of the Australian Open. Mario Christodoulou investigates how esports became such a success with the match-fixers too.
Nov 28, 2020•35 min
450 days trapped on a cargo ship
Ronbert has sailed into bustling ports all over the world. But he can't get home or even set foot on dry land. Geoff Thompson investigates how the closure of borders has left 400,000 seafarers stuck on ships and what can be done to save them.
Nov 21, 2020•39 min
How contact tracers confront lies on the COVID frontline
They helped stamp out coronavirus by relying on human intelligence. But as Rachael Brown discovered, there was a weakness in the system. Sometimes people can't be trusted.
Nov 14, 2020•41 min
Introducing: Thin Black Line
On a spring afternoon in Brisbane's Musgrave Park, 18-year-old traditional dancer and amateur boxer Daniel Yock is drinking with his mates. But when a police van arrives, the mood suddenly changes, triggering a dramatic chain of events. Presented by Allan Clarke, Thin Black Line is a deep dive into what happened that day — according to the one eyewitness who saw it all unfold, speaking publicly for the first time in almost three decades.
Nov 07, 2020•7 min
The Ponzi scheme that preyed on faith
Bhavesh was in trouble. His wife had just suffered three heart attacks and he couldn't afford treatment. So he turned to trusted members of his spiritual community for help. But as reporter Meghna Bali discovers, Bhavesh soon started getting death threats instead, and he found himself at the wrong end of one of Australia's biggest cryptocurrency Ponzi schemes.
Oct 31, 2020•37 min
Welcome to Tent City, the underside of WA's coronavirus success story
The thin walls of Neville Riley’s makeshift tent do little to block the constant sound of passing cars and trains. And if he was living in a different city when COVID-19 hit Australia, chances are Neville would have been given emergency accommodation months ago. This week, Alex Mann investigates whether a historic opportunity to address homelessness in Western Australia has been lost.
Oct 24, 2020•34 min
A horrific playground incident: how one school failed its students
Kimberly's sunny, athletic and inquisitive about everything. But for years she harboured terrible secrets about what happened to her. This week, Janine Fitzpatrick investigates why her school failed to heed credible warnings that she was in danger.
Oct 17, 2020•40 min
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