For generations, Australians could reasonably expect that their lives would be more prosperous than their parents.  But over recent years, that bargain has started to break down.  Productivity growth has barely moved for a decade. We’re working more hours, without producing much more for each hour we work, and that stagnation is showing up in incomes, living standards and rising interest rates.  Now with economic growth under pressure, the government is betting that new technology, particularly artificial intelligence, can help turn things around. Today, Productivity Commission Chair Danielle Wood, on why Australia has stopped becoming more productive, whether AI can change that, and what happens if it can’t.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Productivity Commission Chair Danielle Wood Photo: AAP Image/Dean LewinsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2009, US Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan opened fire on fellow soldiers and civilians at the Fort Hood military base in Texas, killing 13 people and wounding 32. He was sentenced to death in 2013 for the attack, which he described as an act of jihad. Now the Trump administration has scheduled his execution by firing squad for December 3. And Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says he wants the public to watch via livestream. It’s the latest example of an administration willing to put its use of deadly force on display – from sharing videos of boats being blown up in the Caribbean, to turning military strikes on Iran into social media content. So why is the US so determined to show off its military muscle?Today, journalist and filmmaker Abby Martin, on the growing spectacle of American state violence – and what happens when killing becomes something to watch and celebrate.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Journalist and filmmaker Abby Martin Photo: AP Photo/Mark SchiefelbeinSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Coalition is saying that soon, you won’t be able to criticise the Prime Minister on the internet. It’s part of its campaign against Labor’s proposed Digital Duty of Care – which the opposition has branded the “Albo-rithm”, arguing it would give the government the power to decide what Australians can see and say online. So what’s actually in the government’s bill? And how far does it go towards addressing the harms created by social media and its algorithms? Today, Digital Rights Watch chair Lizzie O’Shea on whether Labor can force Big Tech to change what we’re served – and why Donald Trump’s White House has now weighed in.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Chair of Digital Rights Watch, Lizzie O’Shea Photo: AAP Image/Lukas CochSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kath Madgwick has been to hell and back. One of the most recognisable faces of the Royal Commission into Robodebt, her only son Jarrad took his own life after being told he owed Services Australia nearly two thousand dollars.  Kath has been fighting ever since. The royal commission report dedicated more than a page to her story. But now, Kath says she’s experiencing injustice of another kind. Booted out of the $475 million robodebt class action – her compensation claim over Jarrad’s death has been denied by the Commonwealth. Today Kath Madgwick, on how – even as one of the worst affected victims of the robodebt saga – she’s somehow missed out.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Robodebt victim’s mother, Kath Madgwick Photo: SuppliedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth gathered hundreds of service members at a base in Virginia to lay out his vision for the American military. Alongside sweeping changes to the way it fights and trains, Hegseth announced a new Office of Religious Affairs – reporting directly to him – aimed at putting what he calls “spiritual health” on the same level as physical health. It’s the clearest sign yet of how Hegseth’s evangelical Christianity is shaping the Pentagon and religious policy across the armed forces. Earlier this year, we looked at the beliefs driving Hegseth’s push to remake the military – and why Donald Trump chose him to wage a cultural and ideological battle inside it, bringing so-called “warrior culture” back to an institution they believed had gone “woke”. Today, former Voice of America Chief National Correspondent Steve Herman on Pete Hegseth, Christian nationalism and the religious worldview reshaping the US military. This episode first aired in March, 2026.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Former chief national correspondent for Voice of America, Steve Herman Photo: Alex Wong/Pool Photo via APSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Coalition is under pressure from One Nation, and its response is becoming increasingly clear. Angus Taylor is pushing a much harder line on immigration, borrowing language that echoes populist movements overseas.  At the same time, One Nation is escalating its own rhetoric as it tries to capitalise on the anger and discontent spreading across the electorate. It’s part of a broader fracturing in Australian politics, as the major parties try to confront a more volatile electorate – and as the government faces renewed pressure over interest rates, inflation and the cost of living.  Today, press gallery journalist Karen Middleton, on a political system being pulled towards its edges, and whether Anthony Albanese can still make the centre hold.    If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Press gallery journalist Karen Middleton Photo: AAP Image/Mick TsikasSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Greens’ official think-tank has a new proposition — a national chain of 624 publicly owned supermarkets. To make that a reality would cost more than $25 billion, and involve the forced sale of 200 Coles and Woolworths supermarkets.  But the Institute, which took its inspiration from New York mayor Zohran Mamdani, says it would cut grocery bills by 22 per cent.  Today, former MP and now Green Institute Executive Director Max Chandler-Mather on his proposal for a publicly owned supermarket chain.    If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Green Institute Executive Director Max Chandler-Mather Photo: AAP Image/Dan PeledSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Big events have always had the power to shape elections: from John Howard and the Tampa affair, to the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.  And it doesn’t get much bigger than a foiled attempt to bring down a plane mid-flight. One week on from the Flydubai incident, details are continuing to filter out about the co-pilot accused of stabbing his colleague in an effort to crash the Tel Aviv-bound plane.  And as investigations continue, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been front and centre – with the country’s election just weeks away. Today, Middle East correspondent for The Economist, Gregg Carlstrom on what we know about what happened on Flydubai flight 1073 and whether Netanyahu could use it to help him get re-elected.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Middle East correspondent for The Economist, Gregg Carlstrom Photo: @IsraeliPM via x.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Angus Taylor has promised “the biggest cut to immigration in the history of this country” – vowing to cut net overseas migration to one hundred thousand for two years if he wins office, slashing Australia’s temporary migration intake by 650 thousand over four years. Temporary graduate visas would be scrapped and new international students capped at 240 thousand. Australia’s humanitarian intake to be halved at ten thousand a year. In a press conference which saw classic Coalition slogan “stop the boats” make a comeback, a new catch cry made an appearance as Angus Taylor tried to out muscle Labor and One Nation – promising to “raise the standards and reduce the numbers”. Today, Director of the Migration Hub at ANU, Professor Alan Gamlen on what the Coalition’s drastic cuts would actually mean for Australia, why this debate is happening now, and the dangers when migration rhetoric reaches fever pitch   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Director of the ANU Migration Hub, Professor Alan Gamlen Photo: AAP Image/Bianca De MarchiSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United States is once again tightening its grip on Cuba.  New travel and economic restrictions are adding to a brutal oil blockade that has already pushed the country deeper into crisis, leaving Cuba increasingly isolated both politically and economically.  But behind the decades of hostility between Washington and Havana, there’s a human cost that can be easy to lose sight of.  Power cuts stretch through the night. Food and medicine are scarce and millions of people are struggling with water shortages.  Today, SBS reporter for Dateline, Colin Cosier takes us inside Cuba, where he travelled undercover to document what life has become for the people caught up in an age old power struggle.    If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: SBS reporter Colin Cosier Photo: SBS / Colin CosierSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.