A spat has flared over small US-based fashion house Rodarte unveiling its autumn collection that featured, in some small part, several images and motifs drawn from Australian Aboriginal art.
Articles by Bob Gosford 
A (big, blue) sign of the times for NT Intervention
On Tuesday night the Darwin City Council considered a letter from Dave Chalmers, state manager of the federal Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs’ NT state office, with the seemingly innocuous subject of “highway and community signs”.
Alice Springs News takes a bath in acid pool of defamation law
In the Northern Territory we characterise the unit of value for defamation proceedings as a “swimming pool” — in Darwin at least that is one of the first things that a successful defendant would buy with an award of damages.
Four wakes and a funeral for Andrew McMillan
Most of us would be lucky to get one wake after we kick off — a few maudlin mongrels standing around for just long enough to neck a few whiskies, exhale a few whines and piss off before the fights break out. But our mate Andrew McMillan got better than one miserable wake — he got four raucous send-offs. […]
Lajamanu — police communications back to the Stone Age
Concerns about the Northern Territory Police’s call centre operations have been around for a while.
Slow death of Aboriginal research? AIATSIS suspends research grants
From my research, I found the resources in the AIATSIS library and archives an great source of information and inspiration.
Ethics, anthropologists and anthropolitics in the wild, wild west
Over at AASNet (the Australian Anthropological Society web discussion group) a recent thread that dragged a hangnail across the raw ethical and professional nerves of many anthropologists caught my attention.
The 98% — over-policing, suicide and Aboriginal youth in the NT
Most young people in custody in the NT are on remand, the consequences of which – social isolation, family and community fracture, stigmatisation, disrupted education, cultural and work opportunities – are all significant suicide risk factors.
NT govt gets real on remote service delivery … maybe
The most challenging part of Olga Havnen’s new job will be to renew the faith and trust in governments as service providers of choice among the NT’s Aboriginal communities.
Federal Court decision breaks through the native title roadblock
This power to determine native title applications without a court hearing has been neglected in most Australian state jurisdictions, however in the NT the government, native title representative bodies and non-government parties have embraced the approach set out in section 87.
Google, Demand Media, Lance Armstrong and ‘the worst IPO of the year’
What do cyclist Lance Armstrong, “content farmer” Demand Media and Google have in common? Read on.
Remote NT education crisis: lost in the Warlpiri triangle
Bob Gosford takes a closer look at the crisis at the heart of the administration of remote education in the Northern Territory, examining attendance levels in Lajamanu, Alice Springs, which is about as remote as you can get in the NT.
The NT Emergency Response Act, the law, and a toilet
That part of the Northern Territory Response Act can now be used to deny consideration the hurt and suffering felt by the custodians of the sacred site at Numbulwar is surely a bizarre.
Frog of the week: Desert Tree Frog, Litoria rubella
A night-time frog watch reaps huge dividends.
‘Wag school, die young’ — beyond carrots and sticks in remote NT education
How many remote Northern Territory schools have fallen below par in terms of attendance rates? NT Education Minister Chris Burns has spoken of a “bold new strategy” to curb falling attendance.
NT government and police — losing the plot on traffic crime in the bush?
I was interested to see if there has been an increase in the number of traffic matters before the court, particularly since the massive increase in police numbers in remote communities following the NT Intervention in late 2007.
Terry Mills — a politically dead man walking trashes his own brand
Terry Mills is undoubtedly a nice bloke. But in the Northern Territory, as elsewhere, nice isn’t enough and Mills won’t be leading the NT opposition Country Liberal Party (the CLP) at the next Northern Territory general elections due by August 2012.
NT police get it all wrong at Alpurrurulam
A Northern Territory police memo, advising the Alpurrurulam community that they were banned from a nearby cattle station, was not authorised and held no legal authority.
Adam Giles, Mike Rann and the slapping lettuce
Notwithstanding the inherent pettiness of two politicians — Mike Rann and Adam Giles — taking pot-shots at each other over a distance of 3000 kilometres, there are some serious issues in contention here.
NT, the Montara oil spill and the regulatory ‘dog that didn’t bark’
Yesterday Federal Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson tabled the Report of inquiry into the oil spill at the Montara Wellhead Platform in the Timor Sea in August 2009 — and gave the NT government the kind of kick in the teeth you’d normally reserve for your political enemies.
Alice Springs News sets about its own defence
The first lesson in litigation as a defendant is to mitigate your losses.
Phone tapping in the Top End: a loophole in the law, or just a ‘beat-up’?
NT police asked the NT News to reveal its sources of information about a specific leak from a serving officer in relation to a raid on the home of Darwin lord mayor Graham Sawyer. They declined. But there are worrying implications.
Alison Anderson’s ‘greatest gift’ to NT: a citizen’s right of reply
The introduction of a right of reply may, in a supreme irony, be seen as the most enduring legacy of Alison Anderson’s political career.
Lance Armstrong: ‘dancing on the pedals*’ all the way to the bank — again
Over the years the speculation over how much Lance Armstrong has been paid for each visit to ride here varies between $1.5 million and $3 million … but the SA government is being shy about saying.
Slavery returns to Top End
Today, workers at the small townships of Kalkaringi and Dagaragu in the Victoria River district of the Northern Territory will be out on strike over their pay and conditions. As Bob Gosford reports, it’s a case of history repeating.
