The latest episode of the painfully good Succession pays pointed homage to the appearance of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his son before a British parliamentary inquiry. Contains a shitload of spoilers, obviously. Succession has delighted from the start in refracting the venal and vulgar absurdities of real-life media dynasties. The story of Logan Roy, his … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews the second season premiere of Succession, the dark-as-tar family drama from one of the minds behind The Thick of It. There’s one scene in the first season finale of Succession that sums up the family-slash-business drama in a few brutal, bleak moments. The wedding reception of Shiv (Sarah Snook), the only daughter of … Read more
Fresh shadows are descending on Australian rugby – and it goes further than the Israel Folau saga, writes Trevor McKewen. Folau’s dismissal from his $A4m four-year playing contract was as predictable as the inevitable legal appeal that will follow – and probably swallow up his salary, savings and more. There have been missteps all over the … Read more
It’s all relative, sure, but New Zealand’s media has clearly done a far better job at holding the line against Islamophobia than their UK and Australian counterparts, writes Elle Hunt from London. The danger of speaking relatively about race relations is that it risks excusing wrongdoings already being committed and in doing so allowing them … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. It’s a public holiday, so we’re going to have a slightly different edition of The Bulletin this morning. We’ll cover off a few major world news stories that are worth keeping an eye on, and if possible, what they mean for New Zealand. Don’t worry, normal service of the … Read more
Why is Australian politics so poisonous? A lot of the blame can be laid at the feet of the right-wing media, which has given a megaphone to reactionary forces within the Liberal Party, writes the University of Melbourne’s Denis Muller. Note: This article was originally published on Thursday 23 August, before the second spill that … Read more