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Episodes

• ‘I couldn’t breathe’: Russell Brand trial hears from first alleged victimFormer comedian Russell Brand is on trial facing multiple charges of rape and sexual assault against six women, spanning a decade from 1999 to 2009. On Thursday the court heard evidence from a woman who alleged Brand told her “it’s just fun” as he raped her at the 1999 Labour party conference. He denies all the allegations against him. Lucy Hough speaks to senior national news editor Aaron Sharp

  1217|10M
• Alan Jones on trial: Will Alan Jones take the stand? | Week 10After the youngest complainant began giving evidence, Judge Glenn Walsh placed a non-publication order on much of this week’s testimony. In this episode, Guardian Australia media correspondent Amanda Meade and host Nour Haydar answer your questions about the Alan Jones trial. They unpack why court reporters have to withhold certain details about complainants, and discuss the challenges of a high-profile trial being held in a local court. Finally, they tackle the question they are asked the most: will Alan Jones himself take the stand?

  1216|19M
• Everything you need to know about the midtermsIn this episode of Guardian Australia’s US politics podcast, co-hosts Reged Ahmad and Jonathan Yerushalmy take a special look at the midterms which are coming up in early November. All 435 House seats are up in this election as representatives only serve fixed two-year terms. In the Senate, 35 of 100 seats are up for grabs too as senators serve six-year terms. There are many predictions of a blue wave -– a big win for the Democratic party who are tipped to take back the House and Senate. But are pollsters being too optimistic? What are the factors that could instead allow the Republican party and the Trump administration to hold on to power in Congress? They also look at why US ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle has been ousted from her job – and whether criticism of new White House press secretary Katie Zacharia is fair

  1215|33M
• How Firmus went from Australia’s AI 'fairytale' to flopIt was supposed to be an Australian business success story. Just over a week ago local AI company Firmus was preparing to hit the market with a value that would put the startup in the same league as Woolworths. But last Friday, everything fell apart. At the centre was Firmus co-founder Oliver Curtis, an entrepreneur trying to rebuild his reputation after spending time in prison for insider trading. Curtis said the collapse was down to Australia’s ‘mantra of disbelief around entrepreneurs’. Business editor Jonathan Barrett speaks to Matilda Boseley about the hubris of the firm’s founders and what this says about the future of the AI investment bubble

  1214|26M
• ‘Gaza is a moral tear in the universe’ – Naomi Klein and Astra TaylorAre we really living through ‘end times fascism’? The authors Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor think so. In a new series from the Guardian, the pair speak to Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty in an extended interview. From Trump 2.0 and the rise of the tech billionaire to Gaza and the ongoing climate emergency, Klein and Taylor argue we are not just lurching from crisis to crisis, but are in a new and dangerous moment in history. However, they have not given up hope of a fightback. Radical Thinking will be published every Saturday in the Guardian UK’s Politics Weekly feed

  1213|51M
• Why does Hegseth want the world to see a death by firing squad?It has been nearly 100 years since the last public execution in the US but, on 3 December this year, that could change. The US secretary of war, Pete Hegseth, said last week that the execution of Nidal Hasan, the man who killed 13 people at Fort Hood, will be a public event – a claim that was later confirmed by a defence department official. On Saturday, the US president, Donald Trump, said he had yet to decide whether to let the livestream go ahead. Washington bureau chief David Smith tells Reged Ahmad why the US secretary of war wants the world to see a death by firing squad

  1212|21M
• The Australians buried together in unmarked gravesUsing evidence from family and friends, analysis of cemetery registries, and aerial and satellite imagery, a special investigation by Guardian Australia has found that ‘persons without means’ are being buried in bare patches of earth between walkways and old headstones in Sydney’s Rookwood cemetery. The vast majority of the graves do not have a plaque or tombstone. The investigation has prompted an immediate apology from NSW Health, which oversees the process, while the state health minister, Ryan Park, has signalled that he wants to end the use of unmarked communal graves. Chief investigations correspondent Christopher Knaus and investigations reporter Ariel Bogle speak with Reged Ahmad about their Guardian investigation into unmarked graves and the families left devastated by the discovery of where their loved ones have been laid to rest

  1211|21M
• Black Box: The Chatbots | The Line | Ep 5Five stories that feel like five answers to one important question: in a world where AI chatbots can help us through a breakup, listen like a friend, be a life coach, draft a difficult text message and do our work, where do we draw the line?

  1210|49M
• Back to Back Barries: How Labor should fight One NationTony Barry and Jessie McCrone examine the latest Redbridge poll (‘the poll that stops the nation’) that shows a slump in support for the prime minister and weaker support for Labor. How would Jessie – a former senior Labor advisor – counsel Anthony Albanese, and what does she think could improve Labor’s chances against Pauline Hanson’s One Nation? The two former sparring partners also look at next month’s Victorian election and what it could mean for the major parties at a federal level. Email the show: backtobackbarries@theguardian.com Read more: Constitutional expert labels Albanese government’s golf club grant ‘grey corruption’ One Nation celebrated stunning success in Queensland in 1998 – then it all fell apart. What happened?

  1209|33M
• Alan Jones on trial: The youngest complainant’s testimony | Week 9The fifth and final complainant has taken the stand to detail his allegations against Alan Jones. He is also the youngest of the alleged victims, telling the court he accepted an invitation to visit the former broadcaster’s rural home when he was 17. Guardian Australia media correspondent Amanda Meade joins host Nour Haydar to unpack the latest developments from the courtroom

  1208|19M