Guardian Australia today announces the launch of Ben Roberts-Smith v the media, a special 5-episode podcast series about the Ben Roberts-Smith defamation trial. The episodes will be available from October 17, and a preview episode is available today.
The podcast delves into the court case of Australia’s most decorated living soldier, who is suing three of the country’s most-trusted newspapers for defamation over articles he says falsely accuse him of war crimes. The series re-enacts key parts of the trial as heard in the federal court of Australia, bringing the legal drama to life.
Ben Roberts-Smith v the media is hosted by Guardian investigative journalist Ben Doherty, a former foreign correspondent covering south-east Asia and South Asia. He has won three Walkley awards for his foreign and immigration reporting, and he reported from Afghanistan, where Roberts-Smith was deployed six times.
Ben Doherty, podcast host and investigative reporter said:
“This special series brings audiences inside the courtroom so they can hear testimonies from both sides, distilled from nearly a hundred days of evidence heard in the court. The evidence has been confronting, violent, sometimes scandalous, and at times barely believable. The result will be consequential whichever way it goes, and we’ll continue following the story for Guardian readers.”
Ben Roberts-Smith v the media will be released via Guardian Australia’s Full Story podcast feed. Full Story averages 1m downloads per month and is one of Australia’s top 5 daily news shows.
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About Guardian Australia:
Launched in May 2013, Guardian Australia is a free premium digital news site in Australia. Guardian Australia is a trusted source of quality Australian news, with a particular focus on politics, the environment and social inequality. Guardian Australia offers national news coverage and has four bureaus, located in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra. Guardian Australia is also part of the Guardian’s 24-hour global news operation, helping to cover breaking international stories in all parts of the world.
