Podcast · News
ABC News Top Stories
by ABC Australia · English · News
ABC News Top Stories delivers the biggest breaking news and headlines from Australia and around the world, updated throughout the day. Get fast, trusted coverage of politics, business, extreme weather, and major national events from the ABC's newsroom direct to your podcast feed. Whether you're c
- New episodes
- Several times a day
- Typical length
- 4 min
- Latest
- 13 Oct 2026
- Language
- English
Latest episode
Earlier episodes 29 most recent
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13 Oct 2026 · 1 minNew
PM describes live-streaming execution as "abhorrent" | ABC News Top Stories
The Prime Minister is describing the planned live-streaming of an execution of a man convicted of a mass shooting on a US military base as abhorrent. Australia's competition regulator has launched legal action against some of the country's biggest egg producers, alleging "cartel conduct" and other anti-competitive behaviour. A body found in a cattle dip last week in the new south Wales northern rivers region has been identified as missing grandmother Yvonne Whear. And for more news at any time you can follow the ABC Top Stories podcast.
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13 Oct 2026 · 1 minNew
Deputy Premier calls death of baby found in hotel "tragic" | ABC News Top Stories
Police in northern New South Wales are appealing for any information from locals about the apparent murder of a 73 year old woman. South Australia's Deputy Premier says the death of a baby found in a Adelaide motel is tragic and heartbreaking. Russia says it will be able to recover its diesel exports under a new deal signed with US President Donald Trump. And for more news at any time you can follow the ABC Top Stories podcast.
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13 Oct 2026 · 3 minNew
How hackers are targeting French supermarket fridges
Hundreds of French supermarket refrigerators have been targeted in a cyber attack that's caused fires and food losses. Paris prosecutors are investigating after hackers remotely raised fridge temperatures to as high as 50 degrees Celsius.
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13 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
Why women are more at risk as dementia cases look to soar
A new international dementia study predicts cases will skyrocket in coming decades, and women will be disproportionately affected. The new study from the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing at the University of NSW predicts women and people from low and middle income countries will experience higher rates of the disease.
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12 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
How our ageng population is straining the health system
There are fresh warnings about the pressure Australia's aging population is putting on our health system, with doctors bracing for a huge spike in older patients in the next few decades. A new report from the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine says emergency departments are bracing for a more than 400 per cent increase in patients aged 85 and over by 2050. Doctors say the health system is already at a tipping point.
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12 Oct 2026 · 3 minNew
Would publicly owned supermarkets make groceries cheaper?
The Australian Greens' official research body is proposing a federal government-owned supermarket chain called Fair Go Grocers, which it claims could cut the average grocery bill by 22%. The plan would involve nationalising hundreds of Coles and Woolworths stores, but critics say the idea isn't workable.
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12 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
Can Australia stop an execution being livestreamed?
The planned livestream of the US military execution of former army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan is drawing criticism in Australia, with politicians from One Nation to the Greens calling on the federal government to act. There are real questions about whether a ban would even be enforceable, and whether it amounts to censorship. And experts are also warning about the broader effects of making a state execution into public viewing.
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11 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
Why are the Houthis and Saudi Arabia attacking each other?
The conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Iran backed Houthis in Yemen is escalating The international airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh has been hit by deadly air strikes The Houthis have claimed responsibility for the attacks -and reported on Sunday that two air strikes also hit Yemen's capital, Sanaa.
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11 Oct 2026 · 3 minNew
Why is 'Manosphere' content rife among teen boys?
Teenage boys who say they don't search for or engage with manosphere content are still being fed misogynistic videos via social media. While the federal government is drafting new laws to "switch off" social media algorithms, experts say it's not as simple as it seems.
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11 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
Why are data centre developers looking to the bush?
Data centres used to be mainly clustered around Sydney and Melbourne. But the new generation of AI factories are bigger and way more power hungry. So now developers are scouring the bush to look for the perfect spot to build one of these server farms which will handle AI queries and training for the likes of Claude and Chat GTP.
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11 Oct 2026 · 4 minNew
Is Trump siding with Russia over Ukraine on oil?
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy are in an escalating dispute over Russian oil, and it's got Trump saying Ukraine should get a new leader. So why is the US appearing to side with Russia, and what's driving a deal that cuts against its longstanding stance on the war?
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11 Oct 2026 · 3 minNew
Did your favourite coffee quietly swap to a cheaper bean?
The price of coffee beans has surged to record highs, and some major brands have quietly changed what's inside their products without making it obvious on the packaging. Australian food labelling rules don't require companies to identify the type of bean unless they make a specific claim about it, which means a recipe can change without much fanfare. So are coffee drinkers getting enough information to know what they're actually buying?
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9 Oct 2026 · 4 min
Is Russia telling the truth about the Irkutsk plague lab death?
A 28-year-old woman who worked at a plague research institute in Siberia has died. The World Health Organization has asked Russia for more information about the death. Hear what a former White House pandemic expert says would worry him and what the WHO wants from Russia.
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9 Oct 2026 · 4 min
The fallout after data centre company Firmus axes its planned ASX float
Firmus is a data centre operator backed by chip-making giant Nvidia and it has axed its plan to list on the Australian share market. The float had been billed as one of the biggest debuts in the history of the market, and it was a $44 billion float. So what went wrong?
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9 Oct 2026 · 3 min
What happens after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's win on raid warrants?
UK police have admitted the warrants used to search Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's homes in February were unlawful, and the High Court has quashed them. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on 19 February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, and has been investigated over his links to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. A solicitor says the setback does not necessarily jeopardise the broader investigation, so what happens to the evidence police gathered?
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8 Oct 2026 · 3 min
Why are children confiding in chatbots instead of people?
New research shows a troubling number of young abuse victims in Australia are staying silent or turning to AI chatbots instead of a trusted adult. Australia's Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett says it's a trend that highlights the limits of what police can do, and calls for a whole-of-community response. So what does the research actually show, and what can caregivers do to help?
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8 Oct 2026 · 3 min
Sam Wood denied bail on DV charges, what did the court hear?
Prominent fitness influencer and reality TV star Sam Wood has been denied bail on domestic violence charges and remanded in custody until 23 November. Queensland police allege Mr Wood assaulted his wife during a family argument in Noosa on Saturday 3 October. So what did the court hear from the prosecution and from Mr Wood's lawyer?
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8 Oct 2026 · 4 min
Will the ATO be forced to accept credit cards?
The Australian Taxation Office has announced it will stop accepting credit cards as payments from 1 December, in response to the Reserve Bank's reforms to ban surcharge fees on card payments. The ATO says absorbing the surcharge would effectively transfer the cost to all taxpayers, but the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry wants the decision reversed. So what does the change mean for small businesses that use credit cards to manage their cash flow?
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7 Oct 2026 · 4 min
Rents are flatlining, but it's not great news
There's some new data out that could sound like good news for renters: it shows that rents are flat lining in most capital cities. In fact, for the first time in two years, the price of rent in Sydney has even dropped! But rents aren't going up anymore because tenants are at breaking point after years of increases.
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7 Oct 2026 · 3 min
How consequential is the High Court ruling on Australian coal mining?
The High Court has found planning authorities must factor in the emissions from fossil fuels burned overseas when approving projects, such as mines. The judgement centres on a New South Wales mine expansion. While environmental groups are hailing the case as a win, law experts are sceptical it will set a broader legal precedent across the country.
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7 Oct 2026 · 3 min
Genetic testing legal protections begin. What's changing?
Life insurance companies are now legally banned from using genetic test results to deny people cover or charge them more. It ends a long and anxious wait for some Australians, who've been delaying the tests out of fear for their insurance.
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7 Oct 2026 · 4 min
The mystery illness at a Russian plague laboratory explained
A mystery illness linked to a plague laboratory in Russia is being watched around the world, after a 28-year-old woman died on October 2. Russian authorities say they have traced her contacts and the situation is stable. So what do we know and is there any reason to be alarmed about pneumonic plague?
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7 Oct 2026 · 4 min
Christa Pike is speaking, can she be put to death again?
Lawyers for US death row inmate Christa Pike say she is awake and speaking six days after Tennessee's attempt to execute her by lethal injection failed. Tennessee's governor has halted executions for the rest of the year and ordered a review, and the state's prison chief is resigning. A legal expert says Pike may satisfy the legal test for cruel and unusual punishment, and her attorneys will ask the governor to commute her sentence to life in prison without parole.
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7 Oct 2026 · 4 min
What the Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery merger means for Hollywood
Paramount Pictures has bought Warner Bros Discovery in a mega-merger that has created Skydance, one of the biggest media empires in the world. Skydance will control HBO, DC Comics, New Line Cinema, CBS, CNN and Channel 10 in Australia, and will be led by David Ellison, son of tech billionaire and Trump ally Larry Ellison. Entertainment journalist Kim Masters says large layoffs are widely expected, and a Deakin University professor says the merger could undermine American democracy.
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6 Oct 2026 · 3 min
Why are French high school students protesting?
Tens of thousands of high school students have been protesting across France against under staffing and dilapidated classrooms. The demonstrations have turned violent at times , with police firing tear gas and protesters lighting fires in the streets and hurling projectiles. So what's happening in France?
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6 Oct 2026 · 4 min
What Israelis say three years after October 7
Three years on from Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Israelis are pausing to remember the day that changed their country and set off a chain of events that has reshaped the region. About 1,200 people were killed and hundreds were taken hostage, and the war in Gaza that followed continues, with more than 74,000 Palestinians killed according to local health authorities. With an election three weeks away, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opponents are promising a national, independent inquiry into what happened, something he has refused.
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6 Oct 2026 · 4 min
What's with all the moths in Australia's south-east?
After a devastating population crash around 2017, the endangered Bogong moth appears to be making a remarkable comeback. Researchers have a few theories about what's behind the explosion in numbers this year, from good rainfall to unusual wind patterns. The moths are a crucial part of the alpine ecosystem, but there's still a lot scientists don't fully understand about them and their extraordinary journey.
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6 Oct 2026 · 4 min
What the Coalition's immigration plan means for students and bridging visas
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has announced the Coalition's migration policy, which he says is the biggest cut to immigration in the history of the country. Under the plan, net overseas migration would fall to 100,000 a year for the first two years, rising to 160,000 by year four, compared with Labor's target of 225,000 a year by mid-2028. How does it compare to One Nation's plan and who is being targeted for cuts?
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6 Oct 2026 · 3 min
How Jeffrey Archer went from young MP to bankrupt to bestselling novelist
British author and former MP Jeffrey Archer has died at home aged 86, on the eve of the release of his final novel, Adam and Eve. He became an MP at 29, was bankrupted, turned to writing novels, and was jailed for perjury in 2001 over his 1987 libel case against the Daily Star. So how will Jeffrey Archer be remembered?
About ABC News Top Stories
ABC News Top Stories delivers the biggest breaking news and headlines from Australia and around the world, updated throughout the day. Get fast, trusted coverage of politics, business, extreme weather, and major national events from the ABC's newsroom direct to your podcast feed. Whether you're c
ABC News Top Stories is a English news podcast from ABC Australia. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
- Publisher
- ABC Australia
- Language
- English
- Category
- News
- New episodes
- Several times a day
- Typical length
- 4 min
- Latest episode
- 13 Oct 2026
- Feed
- RSS — paste into any podcast app
- Apple Podcasts
- podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1668721389
- Rights
- Copyright 2026, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All right reserved.
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