ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on July 23, 2025.
Hard labour conditions of online moderators directly affect how well the internet is policed – new study
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tania Chatterjee, Joint PhD Candidate at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, The University of Queensland Getty Images/GCShutter Big tech platforms often present content moderation as a seamless, tech‑driven system. But human labour, often outsourced to countries such as India and the Philippines, plays a pivotal role in
Ghosted by a friend? 4 expert tips on how to handle the hurt
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Megan Willis, Associate Professor, School of Behavioural and Health Sciences, Australian Catholic University martin-dm/Getty When we talk about “ghosting”, we usually think it relates to dating. But what happens when you’ve been ghosted by someone you’ve known for years – your childhood best friend, a parent, a
Labor’s new bill would cut HELP loans by 20%. But it also risks locking some graduates into a ‘debt treadmill’
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Norton, Professor of Higher Education Policy, Monash University The Albanese government’s 20% cut to student debt is the first bill introduced to the new federal parliament. It is clever politics. In the government’s first term, the 3 million Australians with a student debt turned high indexation
ICJ climate crisis ruling: Will world’s top court back Pacific-led call to hold governments accountable?
By Jamie Tahana in The Hague for RNZ Pacific In 2019, a group of law students at the University of the South Pacific, frustrated at the slow pace with which the world’s governments were moving to address the climate crisis, had an idea — they would take the world’s governments to court. They arranged a
‘Maybe this is the last minutes you are living’: how the war is impacting young Ukrainians
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ashley Humphrey, Lecturer in Social Sciences, Monash University Now into its fourth year, the war that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has taken a devastating toll. An estimated 60,000 to 100,0000 Ukrainian lives have been lost and more than 10 million citizens displaced, and entire cities have
Auckland is NZ’s ‘primate city’ but its potential remains caged in by poor planning and vision
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Welch, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images The recent report comparing Auckland to nine international peer cities delivered an uncomfortable truth: our largest city is falling behind, hampered by car dependency, low-density housing and “weak economic performance”. The Deloitte
Climate disasters are pushing people into homelessness – but there’s a lot we can do about it
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Heffernan, Lecturer in Anthropology, Australian National University Almost half of all Australian properties are at risk of bushfire, while 17,500 face risk of coastal erosion. By 2030, more than 3 million will face riverine flood risk. Meanwhile, housing demand continues to outpace supply. With climate-related disasters
UK bans Gaza protest group – could the same thing happen in Australia?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shannon Bosch, Associate Professor (Law), Edith Cowan University More than 100 people were arrested in the United Kingdom on the weekend for supporting Palestine Action, a protest group that opposes Britain’s support of Israel. Palestine Action was recently proscribed as a terrorist organisation, placing it in the
The incredible impact of Ozzy Osbourne, from Black Sabbath to Ozzfest to 30 years of retirement tours
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lachlan Goold, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Music, University of the Sunshine Coast Ozzy Osbourne photographed in London in 1991. Martyn Goodacre/Getty Images Ozzy Osbourne, the “prince of darkness” and godfather of heavy metal, has died aged 76, just weeks after he reunited with Black Sabbath bandmates for
Could the latest ‘interstellar comet’ be an alien probe? Why spotting cosmic visitors is harder than you think
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Webb, Lecturer, Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Swinburne University of Technology Comet 3I/ATLAS International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/K. Meech/Jen Miller/Mahdi Zamani, CC BY On July 1, astronomers spotted an unusual high-speed object zooming towards the Sun. Dubbed 3I/ATLAS, the surprising space traveller had one very special quality: its
Should Australia lower the voting age to 16 like the UK? We asked 5 experts
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Pandanus Petter, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, School of Politics and International Relations, Australian National University The government in the UK is introducing legislation into parliament to lower the voting age to 16. If passed, the new age rules will be in place for the next general election, expected
Doctors shouldn’t be allowed to object to medical care if it harms their patients
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julian Savulescu, Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, The University of Melbourne HRAUN/Getty A young woman needs an abortion and the reasons, while urgent, are not medical. A United States Navy
Ultra fast fashion could be taxed to oblivion in France. Could Australia follow suit?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rowena Maguire, Professor of Law and Director of the Centre of Justice, Queensland University of Technology Ryan McVay/Getty For centuries, clothes were hard to produce and expensive. People wore them as long as possible. But manufacturing advances have steadily driven down the cost of production. These days,
Central bank independence and credibility matters. Here’s why
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Simon, Adjunct Fellow in Economics, Macquarie University Olga Kashubin/Shutterstock In the United States, President Donald Trump has been pressuring the chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, to slash interest rates. This is partly to ease the interest payments on the ballooning US government debt.
Kneecap’s stance on Gaza extends a long history of the Irish supporting other oppressed peoples
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ciara Smart, PhD Graduand in Australasian Irish History, University of Tasmania Love them or hate them, there’s no doubt Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap are having a moment. Their music – delivered in a powerful fusion of English and Irish – is known for its gritty lyrics about
Do countries have a duty to prevent climate harm? The world’s highest court is about to answer this crucial question
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nathan Cooper, Associate Professor of Law, University of Waikato Getty Images The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will issue a highly anticipated advisory opinion overnight to clarify state obligations related to climate change. It will answer two urgent questions: what are the obligations of states under international
Gaza not a religious issue – it’s a massive violation of international law, say accord critics
Asia Pacific Report Groups that have declined to join the government-sponsored “harmony accord” signed yesterday by some Muslim and Jewish groups, say that the proposed new council is “misaligned” with its aims. The signed accord was presented at Government House in Auckland. About 70 people attended, including representatives of the New Zealand Jewish Council, His
Flying the flags for Palestine – NZ protesters take message to Devonport
The Devonport Flagstaff About 200 people marched in Devonport last Saturday in support of Palestine. Pro-Palestine flags and placards were draped on the band rotunda at Windsor Reserve as speakers, including Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick and the people power manager of Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand Margaret Taylor, a Devonport local, encouraged the crowd
View from The Hill: How much can Jim Chalmers get out of the economic reform roundtable?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra We’re now less than a month away from the start of the Albanese government’s “economic reform” (aka “productivity”) roundtable, but it has become quite hard to get a fix on exactly what this gathering will amount to. The guest list
Israeli settlers beat to death 2 Palestinians in latest lynchings
BEARING WITNESS: By Cole Martin in occupied West Bank Two young Palestinians were beaten to death on their land by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank on Friday. A funeral was held on Sunday for Sayfollah “Saif” Mussalet, 20, and Muhammad Shalabi, 23, who were brutally killed by a large group of settlers in
