Australia's attempts to appeal to reason and have a truly non-partisan coronavirus inquiry appear to have sparked a nationalistic debate between the United States and China, writes Philip Williams.

Research from multiple studies across the world points to evidence that being overweight or obese might also make the impacts of COVID-19 more severe, particularly for those aged under 60.

Coronavirus has been a catalyst for lots of Australians to speak up about their experiences of racism, but what happens when the attention fades away and people are left to deal with lasting psychological trauma?

A neuroscientist explains why we can't think as clearly, why we feel lethargic, why we are less productive and why our attention span has dwindled in isolation. (Hint: all those carbs aren't helping.)

After years of failed self-regulation, the Federal Government has imposed a watchdog on the financial planning sector. But will FASEA be able to stop conflicted payments and poor advice where many others have tried and failed?

Recently, there's been a surge in withdrawals, with people scared of selling in an unstable market as a recession looms and job losses hit. Agents like Rufina have never seen anything like it.

If Vincent Uwimana had not started translating important messages about COVID-19, Congolese refugees may still believe hot water and onions could protect them.

Some think Australia is spending billions in a "wasteful splurge on old-timers who were going to die sometime soon anyway". But it has Australia well placed to cautiously remove coronavirus restrictions while protecting lives, writes political editor Andrew Probyn.

Will you light up the sky with a 10/10 score? Pop on your personal protective equipment (or not) and take a tour of the news this week.

Bright, bold and ethereal — the sight of May's supermoon rising behind world landmarks will take your breath away.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says coronavirus restrictions in the state will not ease any further this week, despite the National Cabinet agreeing on a three-step plan to reopen most of the country by July.

National Cabinet has outlined a three-step plan to relax the restrictions put in place to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Here's what you need to know.

You can visit mum for Mother's Day and fire up the barbecue for a few mates, but you still can't eat at restaurants and it will be some time yet before you can have a beer at the pub.

Playgroups, playgrounds and visits to see grandparents are key staples in the social lives of many young families. So how will missing these things impact your young child's development and what can you do from home?

Although anecdotal evidence and media reports suggest COVID-19 has prompted a spike in racism, there is very little data available that can provide a more detailed picture of what is happening, writes Chin Tan.

From balcony book clubs to re-reading, we asked professional readers how and what they're reading through the lockdown.

The UK Government will reveal the next "very cautious" phase of its plan to deal with the fallout from coronavirus, Brazil registers 10,222 new cases in one day, and Donald Trump says he isn't worried about a spread of the virus in the White House after a Mike Pence aide tests positive.

Chris Buckley spent 76 days in Wuhan during the coronavirus crisis reporting for the New York Times. He now joins an increasingly large group of foreign journalists asked to leave the country he's spent years covering.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says it is too far in the future to speculate on when life will get close to normal in Australia as the country looks to lift restrictions in stages.

The recurring political debate about immigration tends to ignore the demand and employment that new communities create, writes Daniel Ziffer.

As lockdown begins to ease the lesson is to take it gently and recognise we may have entered a new epoch of rolling pandemics, writes Virginia Trioli.

Tasmania's spaghetti soup of road shoulders, painted green lanes, shared-use paths and recreational tracks frustrates cyclists on a daily basis, but with usage on the rise advocates are hoping change is on the way.

Darwin's famous Parap Markets reopen today and it is only six more sleeps until Territorians can order a pint at the pub.

A 92-year-old resident of Newmarch House aged care home in western Sydney dies after contracting coronavirus, as NSW reaches a record high in testing rates.

Roy Horn, one half of the longtime Las Vegas illusionist duo Siegfried & Roy, has died at the age of 75 after suffering complications from coronavirus.

Min Min lights are a mysterious phenomenon that have spooked many people in the outback of Australia. Is there any scientific proof that the lights exist or is it simply an Aboriginal folktale that has been passed down for generations?

Katherine Comparti says "everything you could imagine" went through her mind when she became lost in thick jungle during a holiday to the remote island of Christmas Island off the West Australian coast.

A decision more than two decades ago to stop births at the hospital on Christmas Island has had significant financial and social effects on locals in the years since.

Environmental groups have called for greater transparency about the potential health impacts of Australia's largest onshore liquified natural gas plant as residents say their complaints are ignored.

A boy who stole from a pizza delivery driver and caused $6,000 damage to a vehicle at a construction site was being given cannabis by his family at the time, a court has heard.

A group of scientists is pushing for Exmouth Gulf, next to Ningaloo Reef in remote Western Australia, to be protected from industry saying its biodiversity is of global significance.

While the cash economy is dwindling, small businesses still need somewhere to deposit their coins but where do you take them when your local bank branch closes?

An online petition and Facebook page to negotiate better deals on high-cost airfares for regional West Australians is gaining traction.

Six Malaysian men visit Perth seeking $1.5 million they lost when an alleged Ponzi property scheme masterminded by WA businesswoman Veronica Macpherson collapsed three years ago.

A tiny rainbow-hued lizard which all but disappeared from the wild 10 years ago has been given the run of a brand new home, its very own tropical island off the WA coast, to bring its population back from the brink.

Christmas Island tourists and locals can no longer call for a cab with its sole taxi operator, Chris Carr, saying he was forced to shut shop at the end of June because of a "logistical nightmare".

Truck drivers are calling for an urgent overhaul of roadworks safety in the outback, saying the highways are littered with disused and seemingly forgotten roadworks signs.

Countercultural movements, like Occupy Wall Street, are meant to be future-focussed — revolutionary even. So why do they often fade into commercialism? Are they simply a function of consumer capitalism? If so, what future do they have? And must they always be progressive?

A tale of two media environments: in the US, journalistic freedom is increasingly under threat from demonising rhetoric and the violent personal targeting of reporters; while in Ethiopia, the country’s new leader has opened the gate to press freedom. What can we learn from both experiences?

Police officers in many  western countries now dress like paramilitaries. Special police units are being trained and organised along military lines and issued with military-grade weapons. Is this creeping “militarisation” justified and what are the future implications for the effectiveness of policing in democratic societies?

After more than four decades of dominance, free-market capitalism is facing a challenge. Its rival, the rather blandly named Modern Monetary Theory, promises to return economic planning to a less ideological footing. It’s also keen to strike a blow against the “surplus fetish” that many economists now blame for declining public services and growing inequality.

In this episode, we look ahead to the news and broader media environment in 2020 and pressing issues for local content in a globalised world. We also hear about the need to “decomputerise” in order to decarbonise. 

Critics say that the proliferation of modern, wafer-thin skyscrapers are symbols of rising urban inequality. Also: Are levels of density in our cities making us ill? And what's the impact of short-term letting on urban affordability? 

Countercultural movements, like Occupy Wall Street, are meant to be future-focussed — revolutionary even. So why do they often fade into commercialism? Are they simply a function of consumer capitalism? If so, what future do they have? And must they always be progressive?

UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has issued a dire warning about the state of international cooperation. The long-standing international order, he says, is dividing and that threatens future global stability. So, are his concerns valid? How is the international order likely to change over coming decades? And what practical steps can be taken to reinforce the global rule of law?

Competition is often seen almost as a universal good. But economist Nicholas Gruen says a slavish adherence to making everything a competition is damaging our trust in public institutions. Also, the Belgian community trialling an ancient form of democracy. And if big data is made collectively, would nationalising it help to ensure the benefits are widely distributed?