November
- Updated
- Hong Kong protests
Wong blasts Beijing over Hong Kong protest sentences
Australian Gordon Ng was among 45 dissidents who Hong Kong’s High Court on Tuesday sentenced to jail terms of up to 10 years.
- Updated
- Andrew Tillett, James Pomfret and Jessie Pang
High Court judge warns of world’s ‘slide towards autocracy’
Elsewhere, voting closes today in Victorian Bar Council elections, and Justice Ian Jackman continues on his anti-direct speech crusade.
- Maxim Shanahan
October
- Opinion
- Global economy
As Nobel Prize winners prove, strong institutions are good for us
The 2024 gong in economic sciences went to Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson. Their studies have vital lessons for today’s democracies.
- Richard Holden
Over a billion have voted in 2024: Has democracy won?
Half the world has taken part in elections so far this year, but with the US set to vote in less than a month, the trickiest is yet to come.
- The Economist
- Explainer
- Social media
Everything you need to know about Labor’s misinformation crackdown
More than 75 per cent of people believe addressing the deliberate spread of misinformation online is extremely important or quite important. On how you achieve that goal, the country is far more divided.
- Ronald Mizen
September
A new ‘axis of evil’ is threatening the world
United by a shared hatred of the US-led order, the rulers of China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are growing worryingly close.
- The Economist
AI deepfakes: deeply worrying or deeply amusing?
There are big fears that AI deepfakes could be used by foreign enemies or political operatives to influence elections. Just how worried should we be?
- Paul Smith
August
Venture capitalist teams up with CBA for next big project – democracy
Venture capitalist Paul Bassat is worried Australia is heading in the wrong direction and has teamed up with the Commonwealth Bank and others to get it back on track.
- Ronald Mizen
July
- Analysis
- US election
If Joe Biden goes: how would it work – and who would replace him?
The president faces huge pressure to step aside from his campaign. But what would happen next?
- Andrew Jack
- Analysis
- Government Observed
Why competent government is the answer to political extremism
The US has its unique national blind spot for guns, but as two reports on social cohesion and democracy point out, the ingredients of division and extremism have been rising everywhere.
- Updated
- Tom Burton
- Opinion
- Letters to the Editor
University teaching could explain why democracy is ‘backsliding’
Letters from readers on social science teaching and democracy; the place of gas in the energy transition; and why any inflation is not desirable.
Under-pressure Biden says he almost ‘fell asleep’ during debate
Joe Biden said he was exhausted heading into the debate. Four major polls in the last 24 hours question if he is the right person to lead the Democratic ticket.
- Updated
- Matthew Cranston
June
Why markets like to see new political faces
Whether a government is weak or strong, left or right, doesn’t seem to matter much for economies, but new leaders are associated with higher growth and returns.
- Ruchir Sharma
May
Australian among 14 convicted in Hong Kong’s biggest security case
A Hong Kong court has found the pro-democracy activists guilty in a national security case that has effectively wiped out the city’s political opposition.
- Jessie Pang and James Pomfret
Albanese’s diary reveals the CEOs who scored access in 2023
Absent from the diary was a black-tie gala to celebrate Qantas’ centenary, at which the PM gave a speech and was photographed on the red carpet with Alan Joyce.
- Ronald Mizen
April
- Opinion
- Political leadership
Hearings shouldn’t be McCarthy-like blood sport
The Greens’ cheapening of the purpose of parliament’s power to compel witnesses to appear is too galling for Australian business to remain silent.
- Geoff Culbert and Bran Black
March
Girls know more about how to rule the world, but it’s boys who want to
A global study found that girls have a greater understanding of civics and citizenship. Boys, however, are more likely to want to become a politician.
- Julie Hare
‘You weren’t afraid’: Mourners defy riot police at Navalny’s funeral
Hundreds of Russians braved riot police and the threat of arrest to attend the funeral of opposition leader Alexei Navalny after his death in a prison camp.
- Katie Marie Davies
February
Putin critic Alexei Navalny dies in Arctic prison camp
Alexei Navalny, the Russian lawyer and activist who became the most potent voice in opposition to President Vladimir Putin, died in his prison camp on Friday.
- Updated
- Benedict Smith, Cameron Henderson, Timothy Sigsworth and Peter Baker
- Opinion
- Putin's Russia
Alexei Navalny was too brave to be allowed to live long
All of those in the West who admire Vladimir Putin for his strength should take a long hard look because Navalny’s fate is the true face of the Kremlin’s rule.
- Marc Champion
