Vatican goes Wilde for OscarIn a move akin to Green Left Weekly celebrating the life and times of Wilson Tuckey, the official newspaper of the Vatican has written a glowing article on homosexual icon Oscar Wilde.
July, 2009
Obama loses his cool
Obama’ “Mr Cool” image is slipping as he ramps up the heat on his critics and in his rhetoric.
Daily Tele serves up a big plate of fail
Keen to scoop all the other news outlets with the story of who won last night’s MasterChef finale, the Daily Telegraph filed their story on it half an hour before the fact — and with the wrong winner.
Tom Watson made everyone believe he could win the British Open
Watson made believers out of everyone. He wasn’t succumbing to the moment, crosswinds or age. He knew how to finish. Watson made us certain that the most fanciful sports story of the century was going to get every last edit and chapter heading and wind up in hardcover.
Ashes 09 Media Wrap: Lord’s, Day Four
Australia need just 209 runs to win tomorrow. England need just five wickets. What a day’s play ahead.
Lord’s, Day Four: Australia dare to dream
Australia now finds themselves only 209 short. Australia now finds themselves only 209 short. Sorry. It just seems so odd. Tomorrow one record will fall, either Australia wins and breaks the world record (by more than a hundred) for the highest Test chase, or England win and finally end their 75-year misery at the hands of Australia.
The unseen army at Lord’s
Johnny Dennis clears his throat and rehearses the seven words that he has uttered countless times before: “Good morning everyone and welcome to Lord’s.” His greeting is one of the most familiar sounds of the summer, up there at Lord’s with the first pop of a champagne cork.
Tuffnell goes nude for Marmite
A 15m-high image of the former cricketer Phil Tufnell has been projected – Gail Porter-style – on to the side of the London hotel where the Australian team is staying during the second Ashes test, currently under way at Lord’s.
Top Ten ways Andrew Strauss cheated Australia at Lord’s
Last of the Summer Whine cheekliy rubs Asutralia’s noses in it.
An interview with Tim Nielsen
Australia coach Tim Nielsen told Grandstand’s Jim Maxwell the tourists still believe they have a “sniff” of victory in the second Ashes Test against England at Lord’s.
How Cronkite led to Murdoch
Anchorman and TV founding father Walter Cronkite, who has died aged 92, influenced how America saw the world, helping shape his country’s electronic reporting “into the extraordinarily insular and inadequate chronicle it has become,” says Harold Jackson.
Video of the Day: Andy Rooney gets fruity
If you think Liz Hayes, Peter Harvey, Tara Brown et al. churn out some pretty dubious journalism on Australia’s 60 Minutes, check out this “report” by Andy Rooney on the US version.
Hooters Australia goes tits up
The Australian arm of US restaurant chain Hooters has been placed in liquidation, with the sale of two of its remaining restaurants imminent.
Flawed segue from Jakarta to Afghanistan
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith connected a soldier’s death in Afghanistan and the Jakarta bombings, saying “we’re fighting international terrorism”. So did Kevin Rudd. But linking the two is problematic, writes Michelle Grattan.
$160m Ponzi scheme uncovered
London police have unearthed a £80m (over AUD$160m) Ponzi scheme that they believe has duped over 600 people around the world — a scheme so good that many of the investors are still refusing to believe they’ve been scammed.
Mike Rann: tweet or die
I started using Twitter earlier this year, writes SA Premier Mike Rann. Why? Essentially, because I rarely saw young people at my street corner and town hall meetings.
Qantas and Virgin go to war with Tiger
Qantas and Virgin Blue are being forced into a full-scale fare war with Tiger Airways, after the The Singapore Airlines-controlled low cost announced it is more than doubling its Sydney-Melbourne flights to up to nine daily returns from 4 October.
Roast chook and choccy cake wins MasterChef
After all the talk about Australia’s great culinary creativity, the judges seemed uncomfortable with Asian food, and were more impressed by OTT deserts and the winner’s propensity for emotional outbursts, writes Trevor Cook.
From Washington to waterboarding
The Washington Post reveals that CIA bosses labelled the interrogation team handling terror suspect Abu Zubaida’s case spineless for objecting to waterboarding… until the chiefs viewed the technique for themselves, and immediately pulled the plug.
Ashes 09: Australia dares to dream
Today one record will fall: either Australia wins and breaks the world record, or England win and finally end their 75-year misery at the hands of Australia. Jarrod Kimber keeps the hope alive.
Journalists on Cronkite
Today’s biggest names in US broadcasting commemorate an icon of yesteryear.
Cronkite puts modern journalists to shame
The journalism world is soulfully commemorating Walter Cronkite’s death as though his work is somehow a reflection of their own; but can you imagine a modern media star actually speaking out against the US government and military the way Cronkite did? asks Glenn Greenwald.
Why we’re fat — and getting fatter
Weight-[em]loss[/em] books have been an ever-expanding genre for decades, but now an increasing body of literature on exactly what is driving the West’s weight [em]gain[/em] is appearing. So why are we getting so porky?
Why vampires get our blood racing
They’re dead, evil, murderous cannibals — and the ladies love them. So just what makes vampires so sexy? Psychologists weigh in.
