☕️ Is Lehrmann's defamation fight over?

Spotify Wrapped is finally here - delivering you a full rundown of what you've listened to this year from music to podcasts.

I’m glad to report I’m in the top 0.1% of Olivia Dean listeners (and yes, I am the person who claims to have found her music before everyone else did.)

Also glad to report that it’s a proven fact that no one cares about other people’s Spotify Wrapped. But hey! Keep sharing!

“Jacinta Allan, I’ve come to growl at you.”
A protester in the public gallery at Victorian Parliament on Wednesday. The protester was seeking to speak against Victoria increasing sentences for children convicted of serious crimes, according to The Guardian.

2,015
The number of posts made in one weekend about managers and players in England’s top soccer leagues that were classified as extremely abusive, according to a BBC investigation.

2024
United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot dead in Manhattan, allegedly by Luigi Mangione, who is now facing trial.

The Indian Government has ordered smartphone makers to pre-install a Government owned cybersecurity app on all devices in the country.

Manufacturers including Apple and Samsung will have 90 days to comply with the order.

The move has been met with criticism from opposition parties and advocacy organisations.

The Government has defended its mandate, saying the app is not for “surveillance” but instead will encourage citizens to “actively participate in protecting their own digital ecosystem.”

Sanchar Saathi (‘Communication Partner’) is already available to download on Indian app stores.

It is advertised as a citizen safety tool, allowing users to block and track lost or stolen mobile phones.

Additional features include the ability to report suspected fraudulent calls as well as verify second-hand devices before purchase.

The Government says the app has been downloaded over 10 million times, leading to the shutdown of more than four million fraudulent numbers.

Earlier this week, the Government issued a directive to mobile manufacturers to pre-load Sanchar Saathi on all devices.

It said the app must be “easily accessible during device setup, with no disabling or restriction of its features.”

Government officials said the mandate was made to “safeguard citizens from buying non-genuine handsets.”

Manufacturers have 90 days to install the app on their devices, and 120 days to report the successful rollout to the Government.

The Government’s main opposition, the Congress Party, has called for the mandate to be rolled back.

They have accused the Government of “spying” on citizens through the app, with Opposition Leader Mallikarjun Kharge calling the directive “akin to dictatorship.”

Digital rights advocacy organisation Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) called the mandate “structurally hostile to user privacy and autonomy,” and said it would “fight the direction till it is rescinded.”

Communications Minister Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia defended the mandate, saying Sanchar Saathi is “completely democratic and fully voluntary.”

Scindia also clarified that the app only activates after voluntary registration, and that users may delete the app anytime.

IFF said this clarification is incorrect since the original direction “clearly states… that Sanchar Saathi cannot be ‘disabled or restricted.’”

Reporting by Elliot Lawry.

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Former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann has lost the appeal of his failed defamation case against Network 10 and its journalist Lisa Wilkinson.

Last year, the Federal Court ruled it was more likely than not that Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019.

It accepted Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson’s truth defence, meaning he was not found to have been defamed.

Today, Lehrmann failed to overturn that decision.

Lehrmann launched defamation proceedings over an interview broadcast on Ten’s ‘The Project’ in 2021.

During the interview, Higgins alleged to Wilkinson that Lehrmann raped her in Parliament House in March 2019.

Lehrmann maintains his innocence.

He was not named in the interview, but alleged his reputation was damaged because he was identifiable.

One of the ways to defend a defamation case is to prove that the claims made were truthful.

In his judgment at the time, Justice Michael Lee ruled the claims laid out by Wilkinson and Ten that Lehrmann raped Higgins were true on the balance of probabilities (more likely than not), a lower standard of proof than a criminal case.

Lee’s ruling stated Lehrmann could not have been defamed because the allegations were truthful.

The court ordered Lehrmann to pay $2 million in legal costs.

Last year, Lehrmann filed an appeal against Lee’s ruling on four grounds.

This included contending he was denied fairness on some of the claims made against him, and that Justice Lee had “erred” in accepting the truth defence.

A full bench of the Federal Court – three judges not involved in the original case – heard the appeal.

Lehrmann’s lawyer Zali Burrows told the court he is “probably Australia’s most hated man,” citing abusive social media posts directed at him.

She argued Justice Lee had turned the defamation case into an unfair “quasi-rape trial”.

The hearing wrapped up early at the end of the second day, after the panel of Federal Court judges said they “struggled to understand” Burrows’ argument.

Lehrmann could try to appeal this decision in Australia’s top court, the High Court.

It does not automatically consider appeals, meaning Lehrmann would first need to seek permission for his appeal to be heard.

If the High Court declines to hear his appeal, the Federal Court’s judgment is final.

Lehrmann is also due to face court in Tasmania for a separate case this week.

Police allege he stole a car from the Huon Valley, south of Hobart, in November last year.

Additionally, Lehrmann has been accused of rape in Toowoomba, Queensland.

These charges were first heard in court in January 2023, and a trial is forthcoming.

Reporting by Lucy Tassell.

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At least 100 countries at the World Wildlife Conference in Uzbekistan voted in favour of a full international commercial trade ban on oceanic whitetip sharks, manta and devil rays, and whale sharks. The ban is among several reforms set to be enshrined in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. International research shows overfishing has led to a 71% decline in the “global abundance” of oceanic sharks and rays since 1970.

Luke Warwick from the Wildlife Conservation Society called the new protections “a landmark victory” to address an “urgent” crisis. Warwick said the world has chosen “action over extinction… and recognised sharks as essential marine wildlife. These decisions offer real hope for the future of our oceans.” The conference is continuing until Friday.

Want more good news? Sign up to our weekly Good Newsletter here - we promise it’ll make your week better!

Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

As if a pop star career, a book club, a newsletter, and a beauty brand weren’t enough, Dua Lipa has now opened a taco restaurant.

Taquería La Dua popped up in Mexico City this week to celebrate the singer ending her ‘Radical Optimism’ tour.

For a crisp $US249 ($AU378 or around 4,500 Mexican pesos), fans can dine on a menu of ‘Radical Optimism’ and ‘Houdini’ tacos, and ‘Training Season’ cucumber water.

Reporting by Lucy Tassell.

Yesterday, former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann lost the appeal of his failed defamation case against Network Ten and its journalist Lisa Wilkinson. It comes after the Federal Court ruled last year that it was more likely than not that Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019. In today’s podcast, we’ll explain the latest judgment and what it means for this long-running case.