There’s no place on Earth like the Great Barrier Reef. And Australians know it.
Weekend Sunrise
All of these stories have been produced by me for Weekend Sunrise. Other Seven Network staff have assisted their production.
Sinking Feeling
Journalism, Weekend Sunrise30 September 2014
Sitting at home in our ivory towers it’s hard to comprehend the reality of climate change. But when your country is vanishing due to rising sea levels it hits home pretty hard.
I had the privilege of interviewing the President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, two weekends ago. He was late to our studio so I talked to him in his ear and we recorded his questions, putting them together into this segment the next morning.
One of the questions I asked was: “Mr President, I can only imagine how incredibly frustrating and angry you must feel at having to deal with the consequences of actions that are not your own, while those who caused those consequences refuse to accept them. How does that make you feel?”
He never gave me a direct answer (I guess being a president means he has to watch his words), but through the entire interview I got the sense of an immense calmness and control. Yes he was angry but throwing his arms in the air wouldn’t achieve anything. Instead he directed that energy into authority, into patience and into trying to save other people from the mistakes they are still making.
Watch for yourself.
Huffington’s Secrets
Journalism, Weekend Sunrise14 September 2014
We interviewed Arianna Huffington last week.
I didn’t know much about her before I started researching, but hers was a fascinating story to learn. To me the most interesting aspect of her journey was the switch from a conservative to a liberal understanding of the world. (Andrew O’Keefe was also fascinated by this transition.) In the interview she explains what caused this shift and why it’s important for people to change their viewpoints. Amen.
P.S. You can blame me for the climate change and Greek god questions, both topics I find fascinating. As I pointed out to Andrew and he repeated to Huffington, it’s rare to find aspects of divine failure in our monotheistic religions these days.
Making a Killing
Journalism, Weekend Sunrise30 August 2014
In 2013 global military spending totalled $1.75 trillion… more than 130 times higher than the foreign aid budget.
Where does the money go? Who’s benefiting from the world’s wars? And how might we begin to change it?
My segment with Dr Keith Suter.
Game Over
Journalism, Opinion, Weekend SunriseI’m a big fan of computer games.
Trust me, I’ve played more than my fair share. Ever since my friend gave me a copy of Age of Empires out of a cereal box, I’ve been somewhat addicted to both games and cereal.
But for an industry worth an estimated $93 billion worldwide and projected to grow to over $100 billion in the next two years, it’s high time game manufacturers became more responsible for their actions.
I think the gaming industry is irresponsible for three reasons. Firstly, for such an immersive medium it often fails to adequately educate us. Secondly, it seems indifferent about influencing the minds of younger generations. And thirdly, it fails it disclose information that is of vital importance to its consumers.
Damon Meredith 