Crikey's Electioncast - a daily Australian federal election podcast

How did Karl Stefanovic rise to the pinnacle of TV stardom, and what does his move to even smaller screens say about the current state of Australian media? Tina Quinn joins the podcast to go behind-the-scenes of her latest article for Crikey, which saw her speak to a long list of sources who worked alongside Stefanovic — from junior producers all the way up to senior management — about how he really got to the top. Quinn and host Crystal Andrews discuss what made Stefanovic “special”, the one industry development that changed Australian TV for the worse, and why we might never see a TV personality like Karl again.Have a tip for us or want to ask a question? Send an email to letters@crikey.com.au or contact us using the secure methods detailed here: https://www.crikey.com.au/tip-off-crikey/ Subscribe to Crikey now to get 60% off your annual subscription!Read more:Insiders reveal the real story behind Karl Stefanovic, a monster of Nine’s own makingJob cuts, takeovers and mergers can’t fix the mess that is Australian TVThe Stefanovic saga and Hanson’s haymaker: it’s all part of Australia’s surging right-wing momentGina Rinehart joins Australia’s billionaire media moguls. You’re welcome, One NationThe Free Speech and Free Fall of Karl Stefanovic on Fourth Estate podcast

There was a flurry of activity in parliament as politicians tried to make the last sitting fortnight before the winter break really count. So it’s the perfect time to bring Cut Through back from our mid-year break – re-energised and ready to call it as we see it! Crikey’s politics writer Rachel Withers joins readers’ editor Crystal Andrews and reporter-at-large Charlie Lewis to discuss the highs and the lows, from the announcement of Zali Steggall and Allegra Spender’s new party “Community Strong Australia”, to the Greens’ role as policy gatekeepers, and why Barnaby Joyce is clearly not helping One Nation MP David Farley learn the ropes. Plus, where does Nuclear for Australia get its cash from… and is Bridget McKenzie up to something?Have a tip for us or want to ask a question? Send an email to letters@crikey.com.au or contact us using the secure methods detailed here: https://www.crikey.com.au/tip-off-crikey/ Read more:Does Steggall and Spender’s new party go against the independent movement — or strengthen it? by Tina QuinnWhat Liberal-types like Jason Falinski get wrong about the ‘teals’Labor is playing a dangerous game on gambling reformTax reform has winners and losers. Business makes an ugly loserOne Nation now has to hold itself together — and grow by Leonardo PuglisiTip on Nuclear for Australia’s merch salesWhat is Bridget McKenzie up to?

The 2026 federal budget was one of the more “memorable” in recent history. Despite the vast majority of measures having already been aired in the media weeks prior, Jim Chalmers kept one major reveal for budget night: a three-part tax reform, winding back the favourable settings of capital gains tax, negative gearing and private trusts.The mainstream media has been bleating about “broken promises”, but do voters actually care if the government changes its mind in pursuit of better policy? Politics editor Bernard Keane and readers’ editor Crystal Andrews discuss what they liked in the budget, what was disappointing and the missed opportunity of the gas export tax. Plus, does Angus Taylor have any hope of improving the Coalition’s fortunes with his budget reply speech?

There are just three days until the Farrer by-election and – for the first time ever – it looks like voters won’t be electing a National or Liberal MP to represent them in Sussan Ley’s old seat.. Instead, the frustration with establishment politics has seen independent Michelle Milthorpe and One Nation’s David Farly emerge as the frontrunners in a fierce and unpredictable campaignTo help you follow the final days of the by-election campaign, Crikey politics reporter Anton Nilsson and Region Riverina editor Oliver Jacques join this special early episode of the podcast. We discuss the water policy problems that all candidates agree is a top priority for the region, the collapse of the Coalition’s reputation in regional Australia, and how public scrutiny over big donations from the likes of Gina Rinehart has impacted the campaign.Plus, Nilsson and Jacques give their prediction for who will claim Farrer on Saturday.Read more:How One Nation is riding a wave of anger over water towards a federal breakthrough‘You can only sell so many stubby holders’: We asked the Farrer frontrunners about the role of big money in politicsJust how ‘teal’ is independent Farrer candidate Michelle Milthorpe?In the seat of Farrer, candidates are united by their concern for water, and disdain for LaborThe Coalition’s pitch to Farrer voters: only we can topple a Labor government. But can they?Richard Hendrie wants to stop the ‘right-wing slogfest’ in FarrerFarrer could start the duopoly’s downfall — and blare a klaxon horn for the Liberals

Health Minister Mark Butler’s “major overhaul” of the National Disability Insurance Scheme will reduce the total cost of the scheme by $15 billion over the next four years. The majority of the savings will come from the 160,000 people who will be kicked off the scheme – a brutal decision given that the NDIS only supports a fraction of the 2 million Australians with a severe disability.The justification for these cuts is the “social licence” that even supporters of the NDIS believe it has suffered from reports of provider rorting and criminal abuse of the system. So why has Butler’s overhaul focused on reducing participant numbers, rather than scrutinising the business-side waste within the scheme?Grace Tame joins the podcast to challenge the corporate media spin that has made disabled people the scapegoats for what she believes is a poorly designed system. Read more:Slashing $15bn from NDIS while giving $53bn to Defence. Anyone’s autistic pattern recognition radar wailing? I’m an NDIS insider. Forget rogue providers — conflict of interest is built into the auditing systemNDIS headlines are turning autistic people into the new dole bludgersBelting the disabled, protecting fossil fuel giants: That creaking sound is Albanese’s project under severe stressGillard’s NDIS vision was a promise she couldn’t keep

Is “free speech” an Australian value? We examine the latest developments concerning two state laws attempting to restrict political expression, and how the people are pushing back.First, the verdict is in on the protest-restricting laws introduced by the Minns government ahead of the divisive visit by Israeli President Isaac Herzog: the changes are unconstitutional. Grata Fund founder Isabelle Reinecke explains what this means for the protesters who were arrested under laws that have now been overturned. Next, Queensland’s new hate speech laws criminalising the phrase “from the river to the sea” have been challenged by protesters impersonating… John Farnham. Comedian and Crikey columnist Sami Shah joins the podcast to discuss why banning speech never works. Catch up on our previous episode about the NSW protest laws here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TijjR1SJeFsRead more:Chris Minns is a constitutional vandal. He must apologise for NSW protest laws or resignA view from the ground: As police argued with MPs, Sydney’s protest against Isaac Herzog descended into chaosTry to understand it: John Farnham’s ‘river to the sea’ and Queensland’s war on words by Sami ShahRed flags and ‘the six-word phrase’: Queensland protest arrests are part of an Australian history of crushing dissentOne critical word is missing in Australia’s push to criminalise pro-Palestine phrasesHow Australia became a police state

If it walks, talks and quacks like a duck… is it insider trading? Journalist Lachlan Keller joins the podcast to explain the suspicious pattern of behaviour that has lead experts and analysts to believe people within the Trump administration are using insider trading to make huge, lucrative bets on global news events.We discuss the major oil commodities trades made just hours before Trump announced the US-Iran ceasefire, how prediction market platforms like Polymarket could be influencing the behaviour of White House staffers, and why the $TRUMP meme coin is the perfect case study for how the Trump family profiteers off his presidency.Read more:$1.4bn was bet on oil falling mere hours before Trump’s Iran ceasefire. It follows a pattern of suspected insider tradingHas $TRUMP pulled off the world’s most brazen crypto scam?Australia urgently needs a debate about the damage the US is doing to us

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made a surprise announcement before the Easter long weekend – the government’s long-awaited proposal for gambling advertising reform was finally ready and intended to come into effect from January 1, 2027. So, where will gambling ads be banned, and how?Crikey media reporter Daanyal Saeed joins the podcast to unpack the proposed gambling ad reforms, including three big recommendations from the Peta Murphy report that the government has ignored, and how “vested interests” from gambling companies, sporting codes and mainstream media broadcasters have slowed down the process. At the end of the day, a proposed bill will not pass without the support of non-Labor senators. Who will they negotiate with to get it through?Read more:‘Really disappointed’, ‘betrayal’, ‘bare minimum’: The reaction to Albanese’s long-awaited gambling advertising reforms‘It’s fucked … most people know that’: Sports podcasters speak out over gambling ad influenceHas Albanese done anything at all on sports betting ads?Here’s how much gambling money is worth to Crikey, and why we won’t take it‘Lost in the product’: How the gambling industry creates problem gamblersThe gambling ad ban isn’t about gambling. It’s about the future of the mediaWhat the media earns from gambling — and what it costs the rest of us

Originally labels for a person’s economic perspective, “left” and “right” have been transformed into social markers that are not only wielded as weapons in political discourse, but actually tell us very little about how someone will vote. In fact, most Australians prefer to call themselves “centrist” regardless of their beliefs. So does the left-right political spectrum still apply to Australian politics in 2026?That’s the question debated in today’s episode by Crikey politics editor Bernard Keane and RedBridge Senior Insights Adviser Alex Fein. We cover the generational divides, economic transformation and total erosion of trust that has almost all voters, from orange to blue to red, united against the “ruling class”.So, what’s the alternative? And does it even matter? N.B.: The quote at 44:36 is by Nobel Prize winning economist Robert Lucas.Read more:Are ‘left’ and ‘right’ useful anymore or do we need a new political alignment?Left and right, forward and back, in and out: labels for a new political worldThe Political CompassAlex Fein: Polarisation is a Myth