Behind the Lines - podcast cover

Behind the Lines

The Guardianwww.theguardian.com
Come behind the scenes at the Guardian Australia newsroom. We talk to our journalists about the stories they’ve written and how they came to write them. If there are particular articles you’d like us to discuss, please do get in touch
Last refreshed:
Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.
Download Metacast podcast app
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Introducing Breathless: The Death of David Dungay Jnr

Indigenous man David Dungay Jr died in Sydney’s Long Bay jail after a disagreement about a packet of biscuits. Our new podcast explores the questions his death raises about the use of medical restraint and tranquillisers Listen to Breathless, episode 2: Brothers Listen to Breathless, episode 3: Life Inside

Jul 27, 201821 min

How did we start Guardian Australia? Behind the lines podcast

In 2012 Katharine Viner’s editor, Alan Rusbridger, took her aside and proposed starting a branch of the Guardian in Australia. A few months later she met the people who would become her first local journalists: Lenore Taylor and Katharine Murphy. In this special podcast Taylor talks to Viner – now the Guardian’s global editor-in-chief – and the founding chief executive of Guardian Australia, Ian McClelland, about the first five years of Guardian Australia

May 25, 201821 min

Introducing Common Ground – Behind the Lines podcast

Gabrielle Jackson introduces you to our latest Guardian Australia podcast: Common Ground. Lenore Taylor and Rebecca Huntley bring four very different Australians together to find out where their views come from

Nov 01, 201722 min

Brigid Delaney on wellness: yoga, colonics and 'the commodification of spirituality' – Behind the Lines podcast

The Guardian columnist Brigid Delaney talks with Gabrielle Jackson and Bonnie Malkin about the highs and lows of the years she spent researching her new book Wellmania. Delaney talks about how retreats and yoga have worked for her … but bird-poo facials not so much. She says she has become alert to the ‘savage and savvy business people’ in a ‘multitrillion-dollar industry’ but recommends the value that being quiet and disconnected from the phone can bring. ‘It’s definitely made me more aware of ...

Jul 24, 201719 min

Sexual assault and Australian universities: how big is the problem? – Behind the Lines podcast

‘This is not a feminist issue. This is a public health issue,’ says Amy Ziering on the prevalence of sexual assault on university campuses in the USA. She was speaking on a panel to discuss her 2015 documentary, The Hunting Ground, which will air on ABC2 this week. But is any of the film relevant to Australia? A panel including Karen Willis, Allison Henry, Mariam Mohammad, Anna Hush, Katie Thorburn and Gabrielle Jackson talk through the issues

Jun 21, 201754 min

'Trump can't stop progress on climate change' – Behind the Lines podcast

With action in countries around the world and on the ground at a state level in the US, is Donald Trump’s position on climate change irrelevant? Martijn Wilder, from Baker & McKenzie and Greg Bourne previously the regional president for BP Australia and the CEO of WWF Australia join Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor to discuss the future of the energy market. Has the market already leapfrogged political debate?

Jun 01, 201736 min

Black Lives Matter: 'We're trying to re-imagine humanity' – Behind the Lines podcast

Calla Wahlquist talks to Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of Black Lives Matter and Aboriginal activist Latoya Rule, whose brother Wayne Morrison died in custody in South Australia last year. As the Sydney peace prize is awarded to the Black Lives Matters movement, Cullors discusses the formation and philosophy of the movement while Rule explains how the group has influenced campaigns for Indigenous justice in Australia

May 22, 201730 min

Katharine Viner and Lenore Taylor: Does the truth matter? - Behind The Lines Podcast

The ABC’s Mark Colvin joins Guardian’s editor-in-chief Katharine Viner and Guardian Australia’s editor Lenore Taylor to discuss the changing face of journalism. They examine Donald Trump’s presidency and the difficulty the media has in holding him to account, as well as the rise of social media networks that provide mass audiences to media organisations while taking increasingly large amounts of advertising revenue. What will the future of the Guardian and journalism be?

Mar 18, 20171 hr 9 min

Thomas Frank: Donald Trump is right but a hypocrite – Behind the Lines podcast

When the US president talked about ‘the forgotten men and women of our country, people who work hard but no longer have a voice’ he connected with voters. After his winning pitch to the working class have the Democrats lost their relevance? And did Barack Obama miss the chance to create true change?

Mar 17, 201732 min

The lighter side of 2016 – Behind the Lines podcast

We look at the biggest news stories of 2016 that were ‘not really news’. From Harambe’s rise to meme stardom to Pokémon Go and Taylor Swift, Guardian staff discuss some of the year’s cultural phenomena

Dec 30, 201625 min

Ms Dhu: how an Aboriginal death in custody unfolded – Behind the Lines podcast

Calla Wahlquist explores the timeline of Ms Dhu’s detainment and how she was misdiagnosed. We also hear from Ms Dhu’s grandmother and uncle on the impact of her death and why it’s important for everyone to watch the footage of what happened to her • Ms Dhu endured ‘inhumane treatment’ by police before death in custody – coroner • Ms Dhu’s inquest shines spotlight on failures but will it prompt change?

Dec 22, 201620 min

'We need a moratorium on all coalmines': Naomi Klein in conversation – Behind the Lines podcast

On a Sydney Peace Prize panel moderated by Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor, the author Naomi Klein, anti-Carmichael coalmine campaigner Murrawah Johnson, climate action leader Maria Tiimon Chi- Fang, Community and Public Sector Union national secretary Nadine Flood and GetUp! human rights campaigner Shen Narayanasamy discuss the need to transition to a post-carbon Australia. Naomi Klein at the Great Barrier Reef: what have we left for our children? – video

Nov 10, 201648 min

'All they see is your race, because that is what's written on your body' | Christina Ho

It’s impossible to talk about rising pressure in education without addressing the elephant in the room, that is, the prevalence of children of Asian background working overtime for their excellent academic outcomes in our schools, particularly our selective schools. People are reluctant to address this head on, because invariably an accusation of racism – or actual racism – will follow. Lucy Clark spoke to Dr Christina Ho from UTS about her latest research in a Guardian Australia Behind the Line...

Oct 27, 201625 min

Pauline Hanson voters speak: 'I'm utterly disappointed in the way our country is run' – Behind the Lines podcast

There has been plenty of speculation about why One Nation supporters voted the way they did in the 2016 federal election. Bridie Jabour asks the voters themselves for the Behind the Lines podcast and the answers are complicated – and surprising • Meeting Pauline Hanson’s voters: silent screamers find their voice • Comprehending Pauline is not the problem. Engaging constructively with Hansonism is | Katharine Murphy • First Dog on the Moon | A cartoon about Pauline Hanson voters. What are they?

Oct 06, 201620 min

David Marr at Fodi: can we solve the asylum seeker crisis? – Behind the Lines podcast

Could a simple change to the law make a difference for asylum seekers in Australia? Or do we need to stop acting as though there are ‘good’ and ‘bad’ types of refugees? David Marr, Shukufa Tahiri, Jane McAdam, Daniel Webb and Geoff Gilbert explore alternative solutions to the current situation for asylum seekers in Australia

Sep 07, 201642 min

How Guardian Australia broke the Nauru files story – Behind the Lines podcast

What’s it like combing through thousands of reports of abuse? Bridie Jabour talks to Paul Farrell, Helen Davidson and Nick Evershed about the investigation, how the project came together and why reporters used to covering immigration and child cruelty cases still found themselves shocked by what they read. ‘If this happened in an institution on the Australian mainland it would be shut down the next day,’ Evershed says

Aug 11, 201621 min

Dr Munjed Al Muderis' journey to Australia – Behind the Lines podcast

Dr Munjed Al Muderis lived very comfortably in Iraq but what led him to leave as a traitor? Today he is an inspiring doctor who specialises in crafting new limbs for amputees but to get here he risked a dangerous journey by boat and a long stay in detention. He tells the story behind his Dear Australia video

Aug 09, 201613 min

Kristina Keneally: what has Malcolm Turnbull got himself into? - Behind the Lines podcast

He’s still going to be prime minister, but Malcolm Turnbull did not get the election result he wanted. So how can he recapture political momentum? Kristina Keneally joins Bridie Jabour and Miles Martignoni and suggests at least one way the PM can stamp his authority on the Coalition again. Plus why we should keep a very close eye on the monthly poll ratings for ‘preferred prime minister’ to find out Turnbull’s fate.

Jul 08, 201623 min

Lenore Taylor and Katharine Murphy on a 'strange, upside-down' election – Behind the Lines podcast

Join an all-star cast of Guardian contributors as we unpack how election night went. Lenore Taylor, Katharine Murphy and Gabrielle Chan discuss what the result means for Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten. Election analyst Ben Raue takes a close look at where the numbers stand. Michael Safi discusses the resurrection of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party and Elle Hunt takes us through the defining image of the day: a sausage sandwich

Jul 02, 201638 min

Gay Alcorn in Indi: voices from a divided electorate – Behind the Lines podcast

Gay Alcorn travels to the Victorian seat of Indi, which independent Cathy McGowan won from Liberal party MP Sophie Mirabella in 2013. Can McGowan repeat her success or will the electorate return to Mirabella, or possibly Nationals candidate Marty Corboy? Voters in the electorate talk about what matters to them, who will they vote for and why More coverage: Will Indi hold on to the power of one?

Jul 01, 201620 min

Attack ads: do they actually work? – Behind the Lines podcast

Kristina Keneally joins Gabrielle Jackson and Miles Martignoni to discuss election ads and slogans, what you should be doing in the last week of the campaign, the best and worst performers so far, and why Scott Morrison could be Australia’s next PM

Jun 28, 201627 min

Van Badham: don't fall for the same old neoliberal election ads – Behind the Lines podcast

Van Badham joins Gabrielle Jackson and Miles Martignoni to discuss inequality in Australia and what the economic policies being presented this election cycle might mean for everyday Australians • Is Australia egalitarian? Ask the worker sacked for using a Post-it note • It’s time Australians looked more closely at our privileged ruling class

Jun 13, 201626 min

Kristina Keneally: the truth about election tax cut promises – Behind the Lines podcast

Kristina Keneally joins Gabrielle Jackson and Miles Martignoni to discuss the election campaign at the halfway stage, including the claim that Labor once supported corporate tax cuts, Scott Morrison’s aggressive language in a press conference, why Malcolm Turnbull’s father is the focus of a new campaign ad and why a double dissolution may work well for independents

Jun 07, 201635 min
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android