Last weekend I spoke at the Sydney Writer’s Festival and one of my panels was this fantastic event (recorded and played on ABC Radio’s Sunday Nights yesterday): A Muslim-Christian-Muslim, a Jewish-Atheist and a Scientist-Atheist-Humanist walked into a room… for a conversation with John Cleary of Sunday Nights. Writers Reza Aslan, Antony Loewenstein and Jim Al-Khalili…
Category Interviews
FBI Radio interview feature on privatised immigration detention
The issue of privatised immigration detention in Australia and globally is one subject of my book Profits of Doom. Sydney’s FBI Radio Backchat program produced a strong feature on the issue last weekend and interviewed me about it:
ABCTV Big Ideas on Profits of Doom and vulture capitalism
The following was broadcast today on ABCTV1: Can vulture capitalism be stopped? That’s the question put up by… Antony Loewenstein… in his last book… ”˜Profits of Doom: How vulture capitalism is swallowing the world’. He’s a writer, photographer, blogger, doco-maker and always a provocateur. He’s in conversation here with… Chip Rolley, editor of the ABC’s… The Drum. The focus of…
ABCTV News24's on racial discrimination, politics and Murdoch empire
I appeared on ABCTV News’s24’s The Drum last Thursday talking about changes in the Murdoch empire, the ethics and politics of changing the racial discrimination laws and why unions are in such dire trouble in Australia:
Triple R interview on politics of citizen's arrests
I was interviewed by Melbourne’s Triple R radio this week: On, Michelle Bennett talks to author, journalist and activist Antony Loewenstein about Western hypocricy and “peaceful citizen’s arrests”. In a column he wrote recently [for the Guardian], Loewenstein put forth a discussion-provoking argument for greater accountability of Western leaders, including pushing for a serious enquiry…
3AW Neil Mitchell interview about drugs and decriminalisation
In 2012 I wrote for the Guardian a column about the lunacy of the “war on drugs” and the need to decriminalise or legalise many drugs. Last week I was interviewed by one of Australia’s more popular radio presenters, Neil Mitchell, about these issues and why it’s becoming increasingly mainstream, especially in the US, to…
Triple R interview on Biennale boycott and social responsibility
The issue of the Sydney Biennale receiving financial support from Transfield, a company profiting from running detention centres on Manus Island and Nauru, has troubled many artists and activists (my recent Guardian column examined it). I was interviewed by Triple R‘s Spoke program yesterday about the politics around boycotts, from Australia to Palestine:
SBS News interview on Serco and G4S behaving badly in Australia and Britain
A section of my recent book Profits of Doom examines the pernicious role of British multinationals Serco and G4S. Both companies are currently being investigated for fraud in the UK and SBS TV and Radio interviewed me about both the local and global ramifications of the scandal:
ABCTV News24's The Drum on Sri Lankan abuses, asylum seekers and Kevin Rudd
I appeared last Friday on ABCTV News24’s The Drum and we discussed vast human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, highlighted by the Commonwealth meeting in Colombo, and Australia under Prime Minister Tony Abbott turning a blind eye to Sri Lankan torture and abuse in the name of stopping people getting onto refugee boats. With the…
6PR Radio interview about Profits of Doom and Serco
During my Profits of Doom book tour last week in Western Australia, I was interviewed by one of the major commercial stations, 6PR, and its morning host Paul Murray. It was pleasing to hear robust criticisms of the British multinational Serco:
ABC Radio Perth interview about Profits of Doom and religion/faith
I was interviewed this week by ABC Radio Perth’s Afternoon presenter Russell Woolf about my book Profits of Doom, Israel/Palestine and ethics:
Perth's 6PR radio interview about Profits of Doom
A focus of my book Profits of Doom is mass privatisation in Western Australia, a state undergoing a gross experiment in enriching as many corporations as possible. I was recently interviewed by Tony Serve on Perth’s 6PR radio about these issues:
Aid Watch event on Profits of Doom and politics of development
With the release of my recent book, Profits of Doom, I’ve been doing many public events discussing the issues. This was a great one, organised by the wonderful NGO Aid Watch on 19 August: A major concern with the Australian aid program is that it favours commercial interests in aid delivery. The commercialisation of aid…
ABC Radio National's Religion and Ethics Report interview on Profits of Doom
The ethics of foreign aid is a major issue in my book Profits of Doom. This interview is one of the most thorough of my work and thesis thus far: Prime Minister Tony Abbott has abolished AusAID as a free-standing agency and folded it into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. He has also…
Vice interview about Ben Zygier, Israeli spying and Western acceptance
I was recently interviewed by Lily Jovic for Vice magazine: Last month, Israel struck a 1.2 million dollar deal with the parents of Melbourne-born Mossad agent Ben Zygier, as compensation for his death in prison 3 years ago. The payout seemingly marks the end of the… Prisoner X case, a case which despite having serious national…
3AW Melbourne radio interview on Profits of Doom
3AW is one of Melbourne’s biggest radio stations. I was interviewed by… Alan-Pearsall last weekend on his overnight program about my new book, Profits of Doom, and we mostly discussed privatised detention centres for refugees and war contracting in Afghanistan:
The Wire interview on failed US-backed Middle East talks
The media is once again filled with Middle East “experts” pontificating about the prospects of Obama-led “peace talks” in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine. There’s zero chance of a just outcome. The occupation deepens by the day. I was interviewed by the current affairs show The Wire to discuss the reality on the…
Stanton Library in North Sydney about Profits of Doom
I’m currently on a seemingly never-ending book tour for Profits of Doom and this week I spoke at a packed event at Stanton Library in North Sydney (the audio is here for 24 September). It was a great opportunity to engage with people, many of whom were over 60, on issues that too rarely receive…
The Wire interview on Profits of Doom and poor Serco care
A theme in my book Profits of Doom is the role of multinationals in running Australia’s detention centres for asylum seekers. I was interviewed by The Wire… radio program on these matters:
Eagles Waves Radio interview on For God's Sake
Issues of religious and cultural identity are endlessly discussed in society. My recent book, For God’s Sake, touches on these issues (as does my… Guardian column this week). I recently appeared on Eagle Waves Radio – a small outlet in the heart of Sydney – alongside my co-writers Jane Caro and Simon Smart. We were interviewed…
ABC Radio Triple J's Sunday Night Safran interview on Profits of Doom
This was enjoyable. On Sunday an extended interview with John Safran and Father Bob, hosts of Triple J’s Sunday Night Safran, was aired and we discussed detention centres, Serco, Palestine, Haiti, Afghanistan, private war, BDS, democracy and human rights:
ABC Sunday Nights interview on For God's Sake
My recent book, For God’s Sake, tackles religion, faith and politics. Last Sunday all the contributors were interviewed by ABC Radio’s… Sunday Night: Sunday Nights takes on the world’s biggest religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam and, what some refer to as a kind of religion, Atheism. A recent book, For God’s Sake, features representatives from each of…
ABCTV News 24's The Drum on asylum seekers and Indonesia
I appeared last Friday on ABCTV News 24’s The Drum (video here) talking principally about the reality of asylum seekers and why Australia’s policy towards them is based on cruelty and not compassion. In summary, I’ve long argued that Australia, as a rich nation, is making a choice to punish refugees in remote detention camps…
What price for real security? Melbourne Writer's Festival on Profits of Doom
Today, on 11 September, ABC1 and ABC Big Ideas… screens the following… (and I discuss my recent book Profits of Doom): Personal, economic, geopolitical security – this is the panel discussion from the… Melbourne Writers Festival. Who gets to make the decisions in these arenas? And why are we so damned anxious and insecure in this continuing period…
Voice of Russia interview about Australian election of Tony Abbott
I was interviewed last night by The Voice of Russia about the ascension of Tony Abbott to the Prime Ministership (my previous interview with them was in July on asylum seekers): As Australia conservative leader Tony Abbott has won the national elections by a landslide, bringing an end to a six-year Labor rule, Antony Loewenstein,…
Sydney launch event for Profits of Doom
My new book Profits of Doom was launched by independent journalist Wendy Bacon in Sydney in August at Gleebooks. The audio of this packed event is presented by the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism, where I’m a Research Associate:
Triple R interview on Profits of Doom
It’s rare to get a chance in today’s media climate to have a long conversation about serious issues. This interview, about my new book Profits of Doom, was broadcast on Melbourne’s Triple R Spoke program, and we spoke in depth about the reality of privatised detention centres, privatised war in Afghanistan and challenging the seeming…
Right Now radio interview on Profits of Doom
The human rights group Right Now has strongly covered my new book Profits of Doom. I was interviewed on their radio station on Melbourne 3RRR on vulture capitalism and the dangers of outsourcing asylum seekers to private corporations:
Perth Indymedia interview on Profits of Doom
I was interviewed last night by Perth Indymedia on my new book, Profits of Doom, and we discussed privatised detention centres, privatised war in Afghanistan and Iraq and resistance in the form of the #Occupy movement. Listen here.
ABC Radio Brisbane on Profits of Doom
Last night I was interviewed on ABC Radio Evenings in Brisbane for a long conversation about my new book, Profits of Doom. It was a unique opportunity to discuss the complicity of Rio Tinto in human rights abuses in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, private contractors in Afghanistan and mis-managed detention centres in Australia:
Centre for Public Christianity discusses For God’s Sake
The new book… For God’s Sake… is a discussion between an Atheist, a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim about the big questions of life. CPX invited Jane Caro, Antony Loewenstein and Simon Smart to discuss their reasons for writing the book and to debate some of the questions that are raised in it.
Radio Adelaide interview on Murdoch media and supposed objectivity
Following my recent Guardian column pushing for greater media accountability over voting intentions and bias, I was interviewed yesterday by Radio Adelaide about issues of media transparency:
ABC Adelaide on Profits of Doom and vulture capitalism
Discussing the realities of crony capitalism is rare in the mainstream media. My interview this week with ABC Adelaide… about my book Profits of Doom… gave me the opportunity to talk about private mercenaries in Afghanistan and the attempts by multinational Rio Tinto to re-open its polluting mine in Bougainville in Papua New Guinea:
Open House radio interview over For God’s Sake
Talking at length about religion or lack of religion is a rare thing in the mainstream media. My recent book, For God’s Sake, is an attempt to discuss the role of faith, politics, Palestine, Jesus, Mohammed et al in a respectful though never dull way. Yesterday there was a radio interview on Open House with…
2SER’s The Fourth Estate on calling for far greater media transparency
Following my recent Guardian column suggesting journalists should disclose voting intentions and be far more open about biases and associations, I was interviewed on 2SER’s The Fourth Estate about these matters.
Voice of Russia interview on asylum seekers and privatisation
Yesterday I received a call out of the blue from a producer in Moscow asking if I’d like to be interviewed by The… Voice of Russia about Australia’s refugee policies. It was conducted live. Let nobody say that Australia’s ever-worsening cruelty isn’t being noticed by the world: A boat carrying Asian refugees to Australia has sunk…
2SER interview on Papua New Guinea and vulture capitalism
The issue of Australia outsourcing troubles to its neighbour Papua New Guinea (PNG) remains in the news after Canberra aims to send all asylum seekers arriving by boat to this poor nation. Let’s not forget that private companies are making huge money from the mess, a topic related to my new book, Profits of Doom.…
South Korean radio interview on transparency in journalism
Last week I published a piece in the Guardian on the necessity of journalists being far more transparent in their dealings and allegiances, including a call for them to declare for whom they vote. It caused a stir. To the point where I was interviewed on South Korea’s Busan English Broadcasting:
Talking For God’s Sake on Weekend Sunrise TV
What an interesting morning. Today all us writers of the For God’s Sake book appeared on Channel 7’s Weekend Sunrise program. It was strange watching this segment back and noticing that under my name on the screen it read, “Jew”. It was a unique opportunity to explain that Judaism and Zionism aren’t the same thing…
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on asylum seekers, Wikileaks and Edward Snowden
I appeared on ABCTV News24’s The Drum on Friday night (video here). We discussed the foul use of vulnerable asylum seekers as a political tool in Australia, claiming those coming from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Sri Lanka or elsewhere are just economic refugees. The facts are the complete opposite. I strongly defended the importance of NSA…
ABC Radio’s The World Today on Edward Snowden and Prism
I was interviewed today for ABC Radio’s The World Today program: ELEANOR HALL: In the Federal Parliament today, The Greens will attempt to get an explanation from the Government about Australia’s involvement in the US PRISM surveillance system. America’s National Security Agency confirmed last week that it is running a clandestine internet surveillance program which…
Radio Live in New Zealand on 10 year anniversary of Iraq war
The ten year anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq will leave the media agenda now. It should not. The country we invaded and occupied remains broken. I was interviewed this morning by New Zealand’s Radio Live about the conflict (starting at 19.52).
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on Iraq, Palestine and media reforms
Last night I appeared on ABC TV’s The Drum (video here) on the 10th anniversary of the 2003 Iraq war. We discussed the appalling legacy of the Iraq invasion, the massive loss of life and continued chaos of the country. Accountability, in the political or media elites, is far and few between. I argued that…
Al Jazeera’s The Listening Post on Prisoner X and Israeli censorship
The media’s role and responsibility in reporting Israel’s Prisoner X is central to understanding why the story reveals much about a journalistic establishment in Western countries that is far too close to government. I was asked by Al Jazeera’s Listening Post for comment about this issue. I appear around 9:53 (previous appearances on the show…
Democracy Now! interview on Prisoner X and Mossad
I was interviewed on Democracy Now! TV last night about the Prisoner X case, Mossad and Israeli/Australian relations: NERMEEN SHAIKH: We begin today’s show looking at a scandal gripping Israel and Australia centered on a man once known simply as “Prisoner X,” who was found dead in a maximum security prison in Israel in 2010.…
Israel’s Channel 10 News on prisoner x, Mossad and Israeli actions
The ongoing global interest in the Prisoner X case has led many media outlets in Australia and Israel to interview me about the story, not least because none of the Zionist organisations are saying a word. Yesterday I was interviewed by Israel’s Channel 10 News: And in Hebrew is a longer interview in Ynet.
ABC Radio’s World Today on Australian Israel lobby blindness
I was interviewed this morning by ABC Radio’s World Today: ELEANOR HALL: Now to the latest from Israel on prisoner X. The Israeli parliament is planning to carry out what it calls an “intensive” inquiry into the death of the Australian-Israeli who was found dead in a secret prison near Tel Aviv in 2010. The…
ABC AM Radio challenging incestuous relationship between Israel and Australia
I was interviewed by ABC AM Radio this morning (which has already generated some hate mail, so thank you Australian Jewry): ELIZABETH JACKSON: The revelation this week by the ABC’s Foreign Correspondent program that Melbourne man Ben Zygier was Israel’s “prisoner X” have thrown light on some of the most secretive workings of the Jewish…
Reuters TV on prisoner x, Mossad spies and Israeli intelligence
Here’s my interview (it was much longer in reality but the magic of editing!) on Reuters TV (via the Guardian) talking about the unhealthily close relationship between Israel, America and Australia and the often illegal and covert activities in which they engage:
The Wire interview on prisoner x, Mossad and Israeli spies
Yesterday I was interviewed by The Wire about the curious case of Australian and Israeli citizen Prisoner X who worked for Mossad and died in an Israeli prison in 2010: