Defending Democracy with Malcolm Turnbull

What do you do when a country suddenly falls into darkness?   

Afghan Australian businessman Saad Mohseni is Chairman, Chief Executive, and CEO of Moby Group, which runs Afghanistan's 24/7 Tolo News channel. 

Saad is widely applauded for advancing press freedom and defending women's rights; Time Magazine recognized him in 2011 as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.    

In this episode, Saad relives the chaotic 48 hours inside his Tolo news network when the Taliban took over as U.S. forces pulled out.  

Malcolm and Saad alsodiscuss how the Australian war crimes investigation and the Ben Roberts Smith defamation case were reported inside Afghanistan. And how the remaining Tolo news journalists continue to report on women's rights.   

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Climate change and the decline of democracy are two global crises that have come to a head in recent years. Transitioning to green energy is key to tackling both.  
 
Can we make enough progress fast enough to save the planet and democracy?  
 
Energy security expert Anna Mikulska discusses how Vladimir Putin weaponised gas for decades before the ground invasion of Ukraine and warns that Europe is not yet clear from danger.  
 
Malcolm and Anna discuss if the transition to clean energy could save European democracies from Russian aggression as well as save the planet.  

Available on Listnr 

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Who are the new autocrats and what’s their playbook?  

We are now living in the era of the strongman - and every dictator has built on the accomplishments of his predecessors.

Hitler watched Mussolini, and Gaddafi learned from Lt Col Gamal Abdul Nasser.

So why, despite the evidence of history, do strongmen still hold such appeal for us? What does the playbook reveal about  Donald Trump’s run for the 2024 Presidency? 

Malcolm talks with Ruth Ben-Ghiat, Author of Author, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present about how the new high-tech autocrats are gaining popularity.  

Available on Listnr.

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Congressman Adam Kinzinger reflects on the toxicity that has overtaken the United States and why it’s almost certain Donald Trump will be the Republican Presidential nominee.

What would a Trump 2.0 Presidency look like and what does this mean for the allies and democracy around the world?

Available on LiSTNR

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How is artificial intelligence reshaping the battlefield?

As a teenager, Palmer Luckey designed the Oculus Rift, a virtual reality headset he then founded Oculus VR and sold it to Facebook for $2.3b.

Now he is bringing the ingenuity of Silicon Valley to defence technology. Founder of Anduril Industries Palmer is on a mission to reshape our defence forces. Find out how his technologies are helping Ukrainians fight against Vladimir Putin.

In this episode, Malcolm and Palmer discuss if killer robots will save or destroy us.

Available on Listnr

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Even the founders of generative AI ChatGPT say they are “super nervous” about how autocrats will use the platform.  This new release of artificial intelligence has the potential to unleash disinformation at a pace and scale that is unprecedented.  We won’t be able to fact-check ourselves of this problem.

Malcolm Turnbull talks to one of the world's leading voices on AI Toby Walsh, Author of Machines Behaving Badly.

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Should Tik Tok be banned for Australian users? Is our social media data safe? How much power do foreign-owned apps have in a free and open society?

Last year the Australian government banned TikTok from staff devices over security concerns, while many experts say it should be banned full-stop. Still, over seven million Australians log on each month.  

Justin Bassi is the executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. He was also Malcolm Turnbull's national security advisor when he was prime minister. In this episode, he explains why Tik Tok poses such a great threat.

Available now on Listnr.

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Democracy around the world is being challenged from forces within and afar. Autocrats are gaining momentum and the release of generative AI models like ChatGPT could play to their advantage. 
Join Malcolm Turnbull in his podcast, Defending Democracy as we open up a discussion about the future of democracy. Hear how insiders are thinking about the challenges and ultimately how we chart a pathway to a more secure and peaceful world.

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Rupert Murdoch's Fox News has settled with Dominion for $787.5 USD; he's also fired the network's most popular host Tucker Carlson.

Former Guardian newspaper editor, Alan Rusbridger and Malcolm Turnbull have both known Rupert Murdoch for decades. In this episode, they unpack the chaos inside the network and evaluate the carnage wrought by the reckless embrace of Donald Trump’s big lie.   

Alan Rusbridger was the editor of the Guardian for over 20 years and during that time he took on Rupert Murdoch when no one else would. Journalists at the Guardian uncovered the infamous phone hacking scandal in the United Kingdom that led to the Leveson Inquiry and the closure of one of Rupert Murdoch’s flagship properties News of the World.

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Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger took the infamous phone call from Donald Trump in which he repeatedly urged him to alter the outcome of the 2020 presidential vote.

A fellow Republican, Secretary Raffensperger stood up to Trump but after the call he was doxxed and his family received death threats.

A grand jury is now considering whether to charge Trump for crimes against Georgia’s electoral laws. Malcolm Turnbull and Brad Raffensperger discuss elections, politics and Trump. 

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In a rare interview, former British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks with Malcolm Turnbull about the state of democracy in Europe.

As British Prime Minister at the time of the successful Brexit referendum, it fell to Theresa May to lead her country out of the European Union. When her own Conservative Party voted against the withdrawal deal for the third time she resigned as PM. 

May reflects on the Brexit vote and speculates on what Putin will mean for the future of democracy in Europe.  Available now on LiSTNR.

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Almost exactly two years on from the January 6 attacks in the U.S., a similar attack took place in Brazil. Brazil shares some of Australia’s electoral mechanics including compulsory voting and an independent electoral commission. 

So why has Australia moved to the centre while Brazil has shifted so dramatically to the right? What’s the future of democracy in the South American nation? And what does it mean for us here in Australia?

Available now on LiSTNR.

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Drug wars, death threats and disinformation. 

This is the story of how journalist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Maria Ressa, stood up to a dictator, the Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte. Maria’s reporting on the Philippines’’ war on drugs and killings has seen her on the receiving end of death threats and legal cases designed to silence her. But she won’t stop. Why? Maria talks with Malcolm Turnbull about what it takes to fight back.

Audio clips from this podcast were from Ramona Diaz's Frontline documentary  'A Thousand Cuts’.

Available now on LiSTNR.

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The majority of Republicans in the U.S. still don’t believe Joe Biden won the 2020 election.Can the United States find a way out of the lies and anger-tainment chaos? And is anyone safe from the online mob? Nina Jankowicz briefly led President Biden’s newly established Disinformation Governance Board before an online disinformation attack forced her out of the job. Veteran Homeland Security official John Cohen says the language we’re seeing today isn’t too dissimilar to that used by Hitler. 

Available now on LiSTNR.

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Donald Trump, riots, an attempted insurrection - things aren’t looking good for the Republican Party.

Former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger was inside the U.S. Capitol on January 6 when rioters attempted a coup. He voted to impeach Donald Trump and sat on the January 6 Committee to investigate the deadly attacks. Malcolm Turnbull speaks with Adam Kinzinger about the perfect storm that led to the January 6 attacks, why it still matters, two years on, and what’s next for the GOP.

 Available now on LiSTNR.

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How did they do it? And will they pull it off? Australia’s 2022 election ran against the international trend. A group of mostly female independents - the Teals - were elected on a ticket of action on climate change and integrity in politics.

Member for Wentworth, Allegra Spender & Member for Warringah, Zali Steggall sit down with Malcolm Turnbull to share how they unseated their opponents Dave Sharma and Tony Abbott, and what needs to change in Australian politics. 

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Democracy around the world is in decline. From authoritarian governments to misinformation campaigns, the greatest threats to our democracies are no longer external, but from within. Former Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, hosts the brand new podcast Defending Democracy.

Over six episodes, Mr Turnbull speaks to leaders across the globe and at home. Join him as he delves deep into the chaos of the last few years: unpacking some of the world's biggest political stories from those on the front lines.

Hear Defending Democracy with Malcolm Turnbull on Listnr, March 6. 

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