From outspoken to silent: how China gets its critics to toe the lineIn the last week China has released artist Ai Weiwei and blogger Hu Jia, both known internationally as fierce critics of the government. They are now strangely silent. How does China do it? asks Kathleen E. McLaughlin.
June, 2011
Less time in the slammer in the ACT
Canberra doesn’t have any shock jock radio hosts, so politicians and judges are not under the same pressure to act like law and order toughies. This may be the reason why on average ACT courts issue shorter sentences, writes Richard Farmer.
theatre reviews Circus Oz: Steampowered — Melbourne
Cheeky and irreverent, Circus Oz is distinctly Australian in its bawdy mix of cabaret, burlesque and athletics. Director Mike Finch’s artistic vision is impressive, even if there’s nothing very cohesive about the show’s rough narrative, writes Jason Whittaker.
Redundant in London: from the beginning
New Back in a Bit blogger Amanda Austen writes about getting laid off from her television production job three years ago in London, just as the GFC hit.
Newspoll and Essential: 55-45 to Coalition
The latest Newspoll has Julia Gillard recording yet another slump in her personal ratings, which are now at disastrous levels. Newspoll and Essential both have Labor trailing the Coalition 55-45 on two-party preferred, writes William Bowe.
Forget the food bit, just give me a drink
Younger generations of French wine drinkers are less likely to savour a bottle over food and more prone to drink simply for pleasure, according to latest research, reports Richard Farmer.
How video games can be good for you (and society)
For those working in healthcare, video games present exciting possibilities to get messages across to targeted audiences in engaging and interactive ways, writes Mae Hurley.
film reviews Cars 2 — a well-oiled crowd pleaser
Pixar Studios continue a stellar track record — 12 good movies, no bad — with this eye hurtingly colourful sequel about talking cars who find themselves embroiled in 007-esque spy story, writes Luke Buckmaster.
Media briefs: No radicals at RN … Oz’s US sceptic ‘scoop’ …
ABC Radio National managers were locked in talks about the future of programming and the need to attract a younger audience. Plus, Oz exclusive from a US sceptic and other media news.
Essential: would Rudd give Labor a winning lead over Abbott?
Kevin Rudd would put Labor ahead of Tony Abbott, voters say in this week’s Essential Report.
Guy Rundle: Rundle: Timbertop, Moll Flanders and life as rehearsal for budding elites
When ruling classes lose the confidence in their own legitimacy, they start to believe in signs and wonders.
Innovation in journalism: looking to collaborate
If we are to preserve journalistic capacity, if we are to engage the support of society at large for what journalists do, it may be time to drop our fists a little, and examine the possibilities of alliance.
ABC’s complaints depart: footy, religious bias over politics
Complaints of political bias at the national broadcaster grab headlines, but it’s accusations of favouritism at the footy that can most concern the ABC’s complaints department.
Middle East hopes rest on the battle for Libya
It’s just over three months since NATO began its campaign of air strikes against Colonel Gaddafi’s forces in support of the Libyan opposition. There is now some evidence the opposition may be getting the upper hand.
Parkinson: EU carbon … a zero-sum game?
Just as the federal government prepares to announce details of its carbon pricing regime in the next week or two, the European emissions trading scheme is lurching through another crisis, writes Giles Parkinson.
Abbott makes Irish joke of Liberals’ economic cred
Tony Abbott’s incapacity to handle the basics of economic policy is hurting his party.
HuffPo setting its sites on Oz? Let’s wait and see
Last week the founder of the Huffington Post said, in what may or may not have been a throwaway line, that it would soon open sites to serve several countries, including Australia.
Maley: teetering on a Greek precipice
Global financial markets are braced for a nervous week as investors wait to see whether Greece’s governing Socialists can ram the country’s latest bitter austerity measures through parliament, writes Karen Maley.
Reel film festival dreams: bureaucratic bungles now showing at SFF
Concerns have been raised about the Sydney Film Festival and the relatively glacial pace of its board in seeking a new artistic director. It highlights the general ineptitude of bureaucracy and the various boards that oversee its parts, reports Matthew Clayfield.
Letter from...: Dadaab, the world’s largest refugee camp
The world’s biggest refugee camp is getting bigger. Fast. The steady stream of new arrivals at the Dadaab refugee camp has now officially become a flood, writes Rafiq Copeland.
Tuna quotas for fishermen may cost Baillieu coastal seats
At first glance, a quota system for fishing seems to make sense, writes Crikey naturalist Lionel Elmore.
A new world dawning as space probe closes in on asteroid
Far away from the euro crisis, Boganville and rogue attacks by volcanic ash clouds, a new world Vesta is coming into focus in the cameras of a tiny, internationally supported US spacecraft called Dawn.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Poles apart polls have too much pull
Crikey readers have their say.
Morning Market Report: Markets down on European concerns
Fear of Greece not passing the proposed austerity package and Italy’s banks being undercapitalised caused markets to fall over.
