Since 1975, Griffith University has been proudly doing things differently. With more than 55,000 students, its community spans five campuses across South East Queensland, Australia. Ranking in the top 2% of university’s worldwide, Griffith’s teaching and research is focused on addressing the most important social and environmental issues of our time.
Today, experts reveal the tips and tricks spin doctors use to shape the political messages you’re hearing every day - especially during election campaigns.
AAP Image/Mick Tsikas
Sunanda Creagh, The Conversation; Lucinda Beaman, The Conversation, and Dilpreet Kaur, The Conversation
How to spot the work of a political spin doctor this election season
The Conversation, CC BY77.6 MB(download)
There’s a small army of spin doctors behind the scenes of an election campaign, finessing every utterance so it fits with the overall strategy. Today's episode is all about the art of political spin.
Although tiny houses take many forms, most are situated in rural or semi-rural areas.
Jekka Shearer
Tiny houses aren’t for everyone, but most people who live in them are positive about the experience. Yet planning laws still make this way of life harder and less secure than it could be.
Quick, easy – and very, very risky.
The Conversation UK.
Climate change is happening and will intensify in coming decades. Some experts say it’s time for a triage strategy that focuses investments where they are most likely to have an impact.
The early popularity of shared e-scooters suggests they can be a valuable part of the mix of transport options in Brisbane.
Albert Perez/AAP
Researchers looking at Australia’s first trial of e-scooter sharing find the Brisbane public has embraced this mode of transport. They make five recommendations to deal with issues that have emerged.
The irukandji jellyfish, up close.
Source: Lisa Ann Gershwin/AAP
The irukandji jellyfish can be deadly and particularly hard to trace. However, emerging technology offers a solution.
The Hague Convention on child abduction was drafted to deal with fathers abducting their children across borders after losing custody, but it’s applied mainly to mothers fleeing domestic violence.
from shutterstock.com
Under international law, a mother escaping domestic violence with her children to another country is seen as an abductor. She is often ordered to return the child leading to catastrophic consequences.
Puddles in the bed of the Darling River are a sign of an ecosystem in crisis.
Jeremy Buckingham/Flickr
Thousands of Australians contract Ross River virus each year. Mozzies can infect us with their bites, but only after they’ve bitten an infected animal host.
An aerial photo of a 2009 algae bloom in the Murray Darling Basin.
MINISTER PHIL COSTA'S OFFICE/AAP
Three-quarters of insurance executives believe artificial intelligence will revolutionise the industry within a few years. It promises lower premiums, but brings ethical risks too.
Dongguan Street in Dalian reflects both Chinese and colonial history, prompting increasing debate about how to manage this contested heritage.
The West, Russia and Japan all left their marks on China today. Urbanisation too is usurping the old China. This long, mixed heritage and what should be done with it remains contested.
Relationships with China, the Middle East, India and the Pacific will be ones to watch in 2019.
AAP/The Conversation
Satu dari empat anak perempuan di Indonesia menikah sebelum mencapai usia 18. Keputusan MK soal usia minimum pernikahan diharapkan menghentikan praktik pernikahan anak.
Girls who marry early have limited education, health and income-earning opportunities.
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In Indonesia, one in four girls marry before the age of 18. It’s hoped a Constitutional Court ruling will spell the end of child marriages.
Indigenous Australians must be involved in research around provenance and country. Here, representatives of the Willandra Aboriginal Elders visit the Griffith University ancient DNA laboratory.
Renee Chapman
Museums around the world hold remains of Aboriginal people that were often taken without permission and in the absence of accurate records. New DNA methods may help return these items to country.
Hate crimes against LGBTIQ people are continuing, and many are reluctant to report them. But recommendations from a new inquiry could help.
T Chick McClure/Unsplash
A parliamentary inquiry looking at hate crimes against LGBTIQ people could acknowledge injustices in how past cases were handled, and take steps to ensure better reporting mechanisms.
Scalloped hammerhead entangled in a Queensland shark control net at Magnetic Island, Townsville.
Courtesy of Nicole McLachlan
Some media have reported shark numbers at ‘plague proportions’ in Australian waters. But a new analysis suggests the opposite: species such as hammerheads and white sharks have plummeted in number.
The excavations at the Normanton site in 2015.
Shaun Adams
When the remains of Aboriginal people who died more than a century ago were found, the local Aboriginal community wanted to know more about these past lives.
