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Good morning!
If you see people in green today, it’s because it’s St Patrick’s Day!
May the craic be grand, and the Gs be split.
On the note of celebrations, we’re hosting our first TDA Culture event this Thursday with Fujifilm and we’re so excited… if you’ve RSVP’d and can no longer make it, please update attendance as our waitlist is long!
Anyhoo. Sláinte! (The Irish get it.)
I’ve got 10 seconds
The quote: “I am deeply ashamed and humiliated. I know that my actions have caused hurt and concern for others, including the woman involved, my family, friends, colleagues and the many people connected to the businesses I have been privileged to lead”.
Australian Community Media (ACM) executive chair Antony Catalano in a statement published by ACM paper The Canberra Times, after he was charged with physically assaulting a woman on Friday. The woman has been hospitalised with injuries.
The stat: 59.59%. The proportion of new large cars sold in the last quarter of 2025 that were battery-powered, up from 24.37% during the same period in 2024, according to the Australian Automobile Association. The data was recorded before the war in the Middle East affected fuel prices.
The big question:
Yesterday’s results: 77% of you said you research online when you want to make a big purchase. [2,019 votes].
I’ve got 30 seconds
Some headlines from this morning:
Australia has declared it won’t send naval ships to the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane off Iran. The waterway has been cut off to petrol tankers since war broke out last month. Before that, at least 20% of the world’s oil moved through the strait every day. U.S. President Donald Trump says he’s in talks with seven countries about helping secure the Strait, arguing nations that rely heavily on oil from the Gulf have a responsibility to protect it. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said: “I'm demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory, because it is their territory”. In a post to Truth Social, Trump said he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate in helping to protect ships in the channel.
The bodies of three fishermen have been recovered after a huge search effort off the South Australian coast. The men, from NSW, went on a fishing trip near Beachport, about 300 kilometres southeast of Adelaide on Sunday. When they failed to return on Sunday afternoon, police launched an immediate search of the area, by sea and air. The bodies of all three men, aged 64, 67 and 74, have now been recovered. Police asked members of the public not to collect debris from the boat and leave them in place for police to collect.
Together with AAP.
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I’ve got 1 minute
Australian author Craig Silvey has been charged with alleged production of child abuse material.
The charge was confirmed on the same day Silvey faced a hearing for existing counts of possession and distribution of child exploitation material charges.
Silvey has written several acclaimed books, including ‘Honeybee’ and ‘Jasper Jones’.
A 68-year-old woman was also arrested in February in connection to the charges.
Background
On 12 January, WA Police said officers had raided a 43-year-old man’s home, catching him allegedly actively engaging with child exploitation offenders online.
He was charged with alleged possession and distribution of child exploitation material.
Silvey was widely named as the alleged offender by multiple media outlets, and faced Fremantle Magistrates’ Court on 13 January, where he was granted bail.
Further charges
Silvey appeared in court again on Monday, and was charged with two additional alleged offences:
producing child exploitation material; and
an additional count of possession of child exploitation material.
A 68-year-old woman, also from Perth, was charged with alleged producing and distributing child exploitation material, uncovered following Silvey’s arrest.
WA Police said forensic analysis of devices seized from the author’s home led to the woman’s arrest.
1800 RESPECT: 1800 737 732
Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800
Reporting by Emily Donohoe.
Quick hits
🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, Emma explains if Australia is going to run out of fuel.
💶 The RBA will announce its latest interest rate decision this afternoon. You can sign up to TDA Finance here for a full explainer in your inbox on Wednesday morning.
Good finds
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I’ve got 2 minutes
U.S. and Iranian leaders have provided conflicting reports about a potential ceasefire in the Middle East.
Human rights organisations, health ministries and militaries report 1,444 Iranian, 826 Lebanese, 15 Israeli and 13 U.S. deaths. These tolls include civilians and soldiers.
On Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied U.S. President Donald Trump’s claims that Iran was seeking a ceasefire.
On Monday (AEDT), Trump repeated himself, saying Iran “want[s] to negotiate badly.”
Context
A key driver for the start of the war was a breakdown in negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over Iran’s nuclear capacity.
In June 2025, Israel announced it had attacked nuclear and military targets in Iran, citing concerns about progress toward a nuclear bomb.
Soon after, Trump announced the U.S. had bombed Iranian nuclear facilities.
Earlier this year, the U.S. and Iran ended a round of indirect talks to limit Iran’s nuclear capability.
While the mediator of those negotiations said “significant progress” had been made, no deal was reached.
Amid those talks, Trump said the U.S. would “have to make a meaningful deal” with Iran, “otherwise bad things happen.”
On 20 February, he suggested a 10-day window for the regime to respond.
The U.S. and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran on 28 February.
U.S. claims
On Saturday (local time), NBC News journalist Kristen Welker spoke to Trump, who reportedly claimed that Iran was “ready” to make a deal but “the terms aren’t good enough”.
Trump did not tell Welker details of the deal. He also said that Iran has been “defeated militarily”.
The President told Welker he believes that new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is dead, but did not provide evidence of this.
Iran response
On Sunday (local time), Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied Trump’s claims to CBS News, saying Iran “never asked for a ceasefire”.
Araghchi said they will only discuss ending the conflict when “Trump comes to the point that this is an illegal war with no victory”.
Referencing nuclear negotiations earlier this year, Araghchi said he does not “see any reason why we should talk with the Americans, because we were talking to them when they decided to attack us”.
What’s next?
Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin told CNN that Israel and the U.S. have “plans” for the next three weeks, as well as “deeper plans for even three weeks beyond that”.
In a post to X, Araghchi said Iranian forces “will keep firing” until Trump “realises that illegal war he’s imposing... is wrong and must never be repeated.”
Aboard Air Force One on Monday (AEDT), Trump told reporters: “[Iran] want to negotiate but I don’t think they are ready”. He later said Iran “is known for a lot of fake news.”
Reporting by Emily Donohoe.
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Give me some good news
Credit: EPA.
For the first time in the 98-year history of the Academy Awards, a woman has won the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who was recognised for her work on ‘Sinners’, is also the first Black cinematographer to win the category. During her acceptance speech, Durald Arkapaw asked all the women in the room to stand up, saying she wouldn’t be there without them. “I have felt so much love from all the women on this whole campaign, and I just feel like moments like this happen because of you guys,” Durald Arkapaw added.
Reporting by Emma Gillespie.
TDA titbit
The RSPCA wants pigeons, mice, and seagulls to feature on the UK’s new banknotes.
The Bank of England said earlier this month it will replace historical British figures with native wildlife on UK bank notes. The figures to be replaced include author Jane Austen and former PM Winston Churchill.
The RSPCA wrote in a Facebook post: “We absolutely love the idea of celebrating our local species on a national scale, so we’re putting forward our top 'note-worthy' candidates”. Their nominees include a fox, badger, mouse, and hedgehog.
Reporting by Annabel Whitehouse.
TDA asks
