Australia

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Facebook Backs Down in Fight Down Under

Social media giant strikes deal with Aussie government

(Newser) - Facebook said on Tuesday it will lift its ban on Australians sharing news after it struck a deal with Australia's government on legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism, the AP reports. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Facebook confirmed that they have agreed on amendments to proposed legislation...

Facebook Blocks Its Own Page in Botched Australia News Ban

PM accuses company of 'unfriending' country

(Newser) - Facebook blocked Australians from sharing news Thursday amid a dispute over a proposed law—but news outlets weren't the only ones who found themselves blocked. The ban affected dozens of pages run by state governments, health authorities, charities, and even Facebook's own page, the Guardian reports. State health...

Australians Blocked From Sharing News on Facebook

While Google strikes a deal

(Newser) - Google is striking deals in Australia to pay for journalism but Facebook is vowing to restrict news sharing as Australian lawmakers consider forcing digital giants into payment agreements, reports the AP . Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. announced a wide-ranging deal with Google Wednesday; major Australian media organization Seven West Media...

PM Responds to Alleged Rape in Australian Parliament

Adviser Brittany Higgins plans to reopen 2019 police complaint against colleague

(Newser) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has apologized to a former adviser who says she was raped in a parliamentary office. In a Monday interview with The Project , Brittany Higgins said she'd been working with Defence Industry Minister Linda Reynolds for a few weeks when she went out for drinks...

Olympic Swimmer Arrested After Cops Find $1.5M in Meth

Scott Miller won silver for Australia in 1996

(Newser) - Australian Olympic swimmer Scott Miller avoided prison time after earlier drug busts—but the latest one could put him away for a long time. The 45-year-old was arrested Tuesday morning after a huge stash of crystal meth was found concealed in candles during raids in Sydney, the Age reports. Police...

Behind the Wheel Amid 6-Car Pileup: This Guy
Behind the Wheel Amid 
6-Car Pileup: This Guy
in case you missed it
Feb 13, 2021 7:00 AM CST

Behind the Wheel Amid 6-Car Pileup: This Guy

Wild koala had quite a day on Monday

(Newser) - A koala marched onto a busy freeway in Australia on Monday, prompting a six-car pileup, before deciding he, too, should get behind the wheel. Photos of the koala gripping a vehicle's steering wheel have now gone viral. They were taken by Nadia Tugwell, who was caught in traffic behind...

'The Game Has Changed. This Thing Is Not the 2020 Virus'

Melbourne, Australia, began its third lockdown on Friday

(Newser) - Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, will begin its third lockdown on Friday due to a rapidly spreading COVID-19 cluster. The five-day lockdown will be enforced across Victoria state to prevent the virus spreading from the state capital, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said. The Australian Open tennis tournament will be allowed...

City of 2M Locked Down After One COVID Case

Infected Perth resident worked in quarantine hotel

(Newser) - The state of Western Australia has recorded just nine deaths from COVID-19 since the pandemic began—and it is taking very tough measures to keep it that way. A strict five-day lockdown in Perth, Australia's fourth-largest city, was brought in Sunday after a single case was detected, reports Reuters...

The Crocodile Clamped Down on His Head. He Fought Back

Man managed to pry creature's jaws off his noggin during a swim in Cairns, Australia

(Newser) - A swim last week in a local lake known for its lurking crocodiles could have ended badly for an Aussie man. Instead, he's now recovering from just minor injuries after one of the reptiles attacked him and he was able to fight it off. First responders tell the Guardian...

Missing Man Found Alive After Nearly 3 Weeks

Australia's Robert Weber survived on dam water and mushrooms

(Newser) - It's a day for surprise rescues . A 58-year-old man who went missing in Australia's bushland almost three weeks ago has been found alive, reports AFP . Robert Weber apparently became hopelessly lost after his car got stuck, but he found his way to a dam and survived for 18...

Google Makes a Big Threat in Australian Dispute

Firm says it will pull search engine from country if it makes tech giants pay for news content

(Newser) - Google on Friday threatened to make its search engine unavailable in Australia if the government went ahead with plans to make tech giants pay for news content. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison quickly hit back, saying, "We don't respond to threats," per the AP . "Australia makes...

Tennis Players Urged to Stop Feeding Mice in Quarantine Hotel

They're in lockdown for 14 days before Australian Open

(Newser) - Lonely tennis players spending 14 days in a quarantine hotel before the Australian Open have apparently been befriending mice—and authorities would like them to stop. After world No. 28 Yulia Putintseva complained that the hotel in Melbourne was infested with mice, Victoria state police minister said players are being...

Players in Strict Quarantine Before Aussie Open in 'Revolt'

Some participants are under more rigid lockdown orders than others due to positive COVID cases

(Newser) - A "growing controversy" is brewing Down Under as the tennis world gears up for the Australian Open. The BBC reports three people have tested positive for COVID—two players and a "nonplaying participant," per Victoria state health officials—and quarantine protocols are frustrating players, while locals are...

US Leg Band Is Pigeon's Saving Grace in Australia

Well, the fact that it was counterfeit, that is

(Newser) - A pigeon in Australia can coo in peace after his marking as an American almost got him killed . The emaciated pigeon, spotted Dec. 26 in Melbourne, was wearing a leg band that identified it as a racing pigeon who'd left Oregon in October. Australian authorities therefore assumed the pigeon—...

Australia to Kill US Pigeon That Made It Across the Pacific

It considers the racing pigeon a quarantine threat

(Newser) - A racing pigeon has survived an extraordinary 8,000-mile Pacific Ocean crossing from the United States to find a new home in Australia. Now authorities consider the bird a quarantine risk and plan to kill it. Kevin Celli-Bird said Thursday he discovered that the exhausted bird that arrived in his...

Fugitive Discovered Hiding Naked in Mangroves

At least Luke Voskresensky got a beer out of it

(Newser) - A naked Australian on the run from police found himself clinging to a tree above a swamp frequented by crocodiles before he was rescued Sunday. Kevin Joiner and Cam Faust were laying crab traps near East Point, not far from the Northern Territory capital of Darwin, when they heard cries...

Scientists Slam 'Flag-Waving' Antarctica Airport Project

It could start a destructive 'construction race'

(Newser) - Australia is planning to build a new airport in Antarctica—but scientists say a project that would involve displacing penguin colonies and using more than 115,000 tons of concrete sets a very bad precedent. Environmental scientists say the project at the Davis research station would add an estimated 40%...

Australia Drops One Word From National Anthem

'Young and free' is now 'one and free'

(Newser) - In Australia, where 2021 arrived earlier than in most of the rest of the world, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a surprise change to the national anthem on New Year's Eve. Morrison said that as of Jan. 1, the second line of "Advance Australia Fair" would change from...

Royal Caribbean Moves to Block Volcano Eruption Suits

On NZ disaster, cruise line says it can only be sued in Australia, not US where it's headquartered

(Newser) - One of the world's largest cruise companies is taking legal action halfway around the world to prevent it from being sued in the US over the deadly volcanic eruption on New Zealand's White Island. Most of the 47 people on the island when it erupted on Dec. 9,...

Father, Son Rescued After Friends Walk 31 Miles for Help

The group got stuck in floodwaters, trio left to get help

(Newser) - Three people went to great lengths to save a father and his 10-year-old son stranded in the Australian outback this week. All five had been driving through northwest Queensland on Sunday when their car became stuck on flooded roads; they spent the night in the vehicle, the BBC reports. The...

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