| | | | | 07/07/2025 Alarm over pokies influencers; toxic algal bloom reaches Adelaide; Oscar Piastri cops penalty at British GP |
|
|
| | | Good morning. There are calls for a clampdown on social media influencers allegedly using “shocking” content to push viewers towards the use of poker machines. Meanwhile, a toxic algal bloom that has torn through coastal ecosystems in South Australia has now arrived on Adelaide’s beaches – and there are warnings that it may be here to stay. The death toll in the Texas floods continues to rise as search and rescue efforts give way to the recovery of bodies. And Australian Oscar Piastri led for most of the British F1 Grand Prix but a controversial penalty cost him victory. |
|
|
| Advertisement |  |
|
 |
|
|
|
Full Story | |
| Japan’s rice crisis Homegrown rice is a key part of Japanese culture, identity and politics, dating back thousands of years. So much so that any disruption can spark a wave of consumer anger, reaching even the highest echelons of power. But as the country grapples with a shortage of the grain, locals are asking whether it’s finally time to learn to love the imported version. Reged Ahmad spoke with Justin McCurry in Osaka about the dilemma. | | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
In-depth | |
| After months of angst and uproar in the arts, the decision has finally been reconfirmed: Khaled Sabsabi and Michael Dagostino will represent Australia at the Venice Biennale in 2026. An independent report has identified “missteps” – and raises red flags about the selection process for future Venice Biennales. So, asks curator and art historian Elizabeth Ann Macgregor, how can Creative Australia rebuild confidence in its role in supporting the visual arts? |
|
|
| Advertisement |  |
|
|
|
|
|
Not the news | |
| “Elderspeak” may involve the use of inappropriate terms of endearment, juvenile language or unnecessarily loud or slow enunciation. It can often be a vehicle for attributing ageist stereotypes to the older person, defining them not by their selfhood but by their age. Marcia van Zeller surveys this form of benevolent ageism – and explains how even well-intended words, such as “sweetheart”, can still sting. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
What’s happening today | RBA | The Reserve Bank of Australia board is meeting today ahead of this week’s rates decision. | NT | The findings in the Kumanjayi Walker coronial inquest are due to be released this morning. | Tasmania | A man is due to appear in court in Launceston over the alleged murder of a police officer. | Victoria | The jury in the Erin Patterson trial continues its deliberations in Morwell. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Brain teaser | And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. | |
|
|
A message from Lenore Taylor, editor of Guardian Australia I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask whether you could support the Guardian’s journalism as we face the unprecedented challenges of covering the second Trump administration.
As the world struggles to process the speed with which Donald Trump is smashing things, here in Australia we regularly wake to more shocking news. Underneath it is always the undermining of ideas and institutions we have long deemed precious and important – like the norms and rules of democracy, global organisations, post-second world war alliances, the concept that countries should cooperate for a common global good or the very notion of human decency.
This is a moment the media must rise to, with factual, clear-eyed news and analysis. It’s our job to help readers understand the scale and worldwide ramifications of what is occurring as best we can. The global news-gathering and editorial reach of the Guardian is seeking to do just that.
Here in Australia, our mission is to go beyond the cheap, political rhetoric and to be lucid and unflinching in our analysis of what it all means. If Trump can so breezily upend the trans-Atlantic alliance, what does that mean for Aukus? If the US is abandoning the idea of soft power, where does that leave the strategic balance in the Pacific? If the world descends back into protectionism, how should a free trading nation like Australia respond?
These are big questions – and the Guardian is in a unique position to take this challenge on. We have no billionaire owner pulling the strings, nor do we exist to enrich shareholders. We are funded by our readers and owned by the Scott Trust, whose sole financial obligation is to preserve our journalistic mission in perpetuity.
Our allegiance is to the public, not to profit, so whatever happens in the coming months and years, you can rely on us to never bow down to power, nor back down from reporting the truth.
If you can, please consider supporting us with just $1, or better yet, support us every month with a little more. Thank you. | | |
| Lenore Taylor
Editor, Guardian Australia |
|  |
|
|
|
|
