Redefining the Compass of International Politics

Trump’s Australia: Why a US President Matters Here

This episode aims to explain how Trump’s “America First” foreign policy reshaped the US–Australia alliance.[Attachment] Introduce your series: why Australians should care about a second Trump term.[Attachment] Set up recurring characters: Albanese, Morrison, Turnbull, the “AusMin Chorus,” Trump’s inner circle.

The Year In: Power, Protest, and Consequence

In this episode, the focus is on a single magazine spread: a timeline of one year under President Donald Trump, marked by executive orders, foreign interventions, protests, and political drama. Across just a few columns, this page captures tariffs on Venezuelan oil, military strikes on Iran, the shutdown of a U.S. aid agency, the deployment of the National Guard on American streets, and diplomatic deals that swap prisoners and reshape alliances. Today’s episode walks through that year, month by month, unpacking what each entry suggests about power, policy, and people’s lives—both in the United States and abroad. By the end, listeners will not just have a list of events, but a sense of how they connect and what they say about leadership in a turbulent time.

From Partition to Peace Talks: Australia’s Long Journey on Israel–Palestine

This episode seeks to explain how Australia became involved in the origins of the Israel–Palestine conflict. Trace major shifts in Australia’s position from 1947 to the Oslo era. Help listeners see the tension between values (human rights, “fair go”) and strategic calculations.

Demography: The True Destiny? A Debate on Minority Voting in American Politics

Welcome to our debate on Politics Decoded. Today, we are tackling the provocative topic, ‘Demography is Destiny’. Is the increasing minority population going to be a decisive factor in determining the future of American politics, spelling victories for Democrats or a crisis for Republicans?

The Role of Australian Universities in Confronting Antisemitism

Welcome to today’s episode. Across the world, antisemitism is again on the rise, and universities are on the front line of this challenge. In Australia, former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd recently argued that universities must be part of the solution, not part of the problem, when it comes to combating antisemitism and all forms of racial hatred. In this episode, the focus is on what antisemitism looks like today, why universities matter so much in this fight, and how campuses can actively promote safety, scholarship and respect for Jewish students and staff.