A Rational Fear

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Here’s a tighter, no‑fluff version you can drop straight into podcast apps:
A Rational Fear – 18 September 2026
Dan Ilic is joined by Lewis Hobba, Grace Vegesana (AYCC) and journalist Laura Banks to tear into Australia’s media, politics, and AI hype.
In this episode:

Karl Stefanovic’s podcast implosion, his blame‑shifting over the Tommy Robinson interview, and whether progressives should just buy his show and reprogram him.
AI “we might end humanity” doom talk from Anthropic, OpenAI and Musk, and how it smells more like cartel-building and excuse-making than conscience.
Grace on the Beetaloo Compute Zone and how AI data centres are being hard‑wired to fracked gas projects to keep fossil fuels alive.
Laura’s investigation into Samsung (and others) auto‑surfacing Sky News/News 24 on smart TVs, the commercial deals behind it, and what that means for regional voters and media diversity.
The panel’s on-the-ground view of AI in creative, legal and health work: hallucinations, bad posters, fake court cases, and very few genuine wins.

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It was a real thrill for Lewis and me to chat with a new voice in Australian satire: Henry Bretz.
For the past four months, Henry has been making the internet laugh with his uncanny, permanently furious impression of Karl Stefanovic's Right Wing Nut Job era. He's a fellow Queenslander, which only makes it sweeter.
By day he's on Mix FM on the Sunshine Coast. The rest of the time he's on TikTok and Instagram, taking apart the Australian political and media landscape. We can't wait to work with him again.
Henry's performing September 3rd at Good Chat Comedy Club in Brisbane.
And we're on October 24th at the Cheerful Earful podcast festival in Melbourne. Line-up TBA — we haven't booked anyone yet, so tell us who you want to see.
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REGISTER FOR THE BIG BBQ: https://bigbbq.com.au/lesson

In this episode, we explore Australia's energy transition, climate policy, and innovative initiatives like the world's largest veggie burger lesson powered by electric vehicles. Guest Thom Woodroofe shares insights on policy levers, sustainability, and Australia's future in the global green economy.

Thom has a book — you can check it out here: https://publishing.monash.edu/product/power-prosperity-planet/

🤑 CHIP IN TO OUR PATREON https://www.patreon.com/ARationalFear
Here's all the fun stuff you get when you sign up to Patreon.
🎧 Get an ad-free and sponsor free version of the show.
🎟 Get early access and discounts to live shows.
🎥 Get early access to final videos, and draft edits of upcoming videos.
👨🏼‍⚖️ Make show suggestions.
💬 Get a link to the A Rational Fear discord.
If you enjoyed this please drop us a review on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/a-rational-fear/id522303261a
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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This week Dan and Lewis Hobba are joined by independent journalist Michael West of Michael West Media — who's being sued by BHP, Australia's biggest company, over his reporting on coal miner Simon Turner's decade-long fight for compensation. Turner broke his back at BHP's Mount Arthur mine in 2015, was misclassified as a "clerical worker," and paid $400 a week for a job whose award rate is $137,000 a year. Sitting behind the lawsuit is a potentially $10 billion labour hire wage theft scandal involving Chandler Macleod and Coal LSL — and the awkward fact that BHP, a $300 billion company, is also the major sponsor of the Walkley Awards while using Minter Ellison to muzzle a four-person independent newsroom.

🤑 CHIP IN TO OUR PATREON https://www.patreon.com/ARationalFear
Here's all the fun stuff you get when you sign up to Patreon.
🎧 Get an ad-free and sponsor free version of the show.
🎟 Get early access and discounts to live shows.
🎥 Get early access to final videos, and draft edits of upcoming videos.
👨🏼‍⚖️ Make show suggestions.
💬 Get a link to the A Rational Fear discord.
If you enjoyed this please drop us a review on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/a-rational-fear/id522303261a
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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This week former Industry & Science Minister Ed Husic joined us in the A Rational Fear bunker to chat about the big fault lines where Labor's values meet Labor's actions — gas exports, the Iran strikes, Pauline's rise, and how you actually get things done when your own party doesn't always want to hear it.
Ed was frank, funny, and refreshingly honest about the messiness of politics from the inside. Lewis came armed with the hard questions and didn't let up. And Dan tried to get Ed to endorse non-lethal Wedge-tail aircraft parts. It's that kind of show.

April 16th: I’ll be hosting this very interesting keynote lunch about democracy, satire, and why Scott Dikkers from the Onion won’t be allowed back into the United States. Andrew Nash was the technical adviser on Silicon Valley, and John Delmenico (friend of the show) is one of the sharpest brains in comedy in Australia — you know him and laugh at his work everyday on The Chaser’s socials. https://businessofcomedy.com/schedule/lunch-keynote-why-we-need-satire-for-a-healthy-democracy/

🤑 CHIP IN TO OUR PATREON https://www.patreon.com/ARationalFear
Here's all the fun stuff you get when you sign up to Patreon.
🎧 Get an ad-free and sponsor free version of the show.
🎟 Get early access and discounts to live shows.
🎥 Get early access to final videos, and draft edits of upcoming videos.
👨🏼‍⚖️ Make show suggestions.
💬 Get a link to the A Rational Fear discord.
If you enjoyed this please drop us a review on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/a-rational-fear/id522303261a
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.