The Latest Breaking News from The Conversation

For Detroit homeowners over 65 who overwhelmingly live on fixed incomes, unexpected costs – increases in grocery prices, rising health care premiums or an emergency repair – heighten their risk of financial instability and can even lead to them falling into poverty.

Despite public support in the U.S. for deposing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump is unlikely to find that level of support for fighting an actual war in that country.

The global outcry over the sexualisation and nudification of photographs – including of children – by Grok, the chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, has led to urgent discussions about how such technology should be more strictly regulated.

When indoor air pollution makes the news in western countries, it often feels like a local issue. One week it focuses on wood-burning stoves. Another it is gas cookers or the question of whether people should open their windows more often in winter.

Donald Trump is weighing military action in Iran over the state’s crackdown on protesters. Reports suggest that more than 600 people have been killed since the protests began in late December, with the US president saying the US military is now “looking at some very strong options”.

This afternoon, Adelaide Writers Week was cancelled for 2026 – less than a week after Palestinian-Australian writer Randa Abdel-Fattah was disinvited by the Adelaide Festival board. This came despite the “strongest opposition” from Writers Week director Louise Adler, who resigned this morning. The board has announced its remaining members will…

In late December, Tehran’s bazaar merchants began protesting against Iran’s theocratic rulers over the sharp collapse of the currency.

Three early January national polls have Labor sliding to between 52–53% two party preferred against the Coalition, down from around 55% to Labor before Anika Wells’ expenses scandal and Bondi. These polls are the worst for Labor since they unexpectedly won the May 2025 federal election in a landslide.

Kevin Rudd’s premature departure in March from his post of Australia’s ambassador to the United States is a surprise, but perhaps not as unexpected as it might initially appear.