Episodes
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On this week’s show, Jez and Bev try to untangle what’s been happening with the Epstein files. The Jeffrey Epstein-related conspiracy rumours US President Donald Trump initially helped stoke are now coming back to bite him. He's facing backlash from his MAGA fanbase as he tries to tamp them down.
We also look at The Salt Path controversy and the trust between authors and readers. Does anyone actually fact-check memoirs?
Jeremy Fernandez and Beverley Wang chat about the stories you're obsessed with, the stuff you've missed and the things that matter. Filling in while Julia Baird is away, is Beverley Wang is ABC’s National Culture correspondent, co-host of Stop Everything and Life Matters on Radio National.
Episodes drop every Wednesday afternoon. We want to hear from you! Join the conversation and email the show at [email protected]
Jez’s pick: AI recycling trucks https://www.centervilleohio.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=146
Bev’s pick: Bev talks about Albo’s song picks for Triple J's Hottest 100 of Australian Songs. Voting closes at 5pm on 17 July.https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/countdown/hottest100
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Even though the verdict has been handed down, thousands of articles and podcasts are still talking about the mushroom case. Jez and Bev chat about the photos, the memes and why we're obsessed with women who kill.
Elon Musk says he's starting a new political party in the US and we look at the Big Beautiful Bill that kicked off the latest Trump-Musk Feud.
Jeremy Fernandez and Beverley Wang chat about the stories you're obsessed with, the stuff you've missed and the things that matter. Jules is away for a few weeks and filling in for her on Not Stupid is the ABC’s National Culture correspondent, co-host of Stop Everything and Life Matters on Radio National, Beverley Wang.
Episodes drop every Wednesday afternoon. We want to hear from you! Join the conversation and email the show at [email protected]
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Missing episodes?
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With a phone in your pocket and the news cycle rolling at a frantic speed, it can be so hard to slow down. Jules and Jez have been thinking about how to look at things more slowly and if it is even possible.
Plus a couple of weeks ago we asked a really weird question: "have you seen a colour that you've just never seen anywhere else?" We got so many emails about colour, from Monet's dining room to Samoan delicacies and puce lollipops.
Julia Baird and Jeremy Fernandez have chat about the stories you're obsessed with, the stuff you've missed and the things that matter. Episodes drop every Wednesday afternoon. We want to hear from you! Join the conversation and email the show at [email protected]
SHOW NOTES
Jeremy's pick : https://mashable.com/article/reddit-cofounder-ai-video-deceased-mom-divides-internet
Julia's pick: https://www.instagram.com/justbeingmelani/?hl=en
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So much has happened over the past week. Despite US President Donald Trump’s attack and intervention, will the ceasefire between Israel and Iran hold? How do the Iranian people feel about the regime?
Jules has been watching The Pitt and thinking about “moral injury” the idea of having to betray your own moral beliefs because of lack of staff or lack of supplies.
Join the conversation and email the show at [email protected]
SHOW NOTES:
Jule’s pick: www.orrca.org.au/census
Jez: https://medium.com/@truthiness/the-quiet-optimism-of-letting-go-d8472aa681ee
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The situation in the Middle East got a lot more precarious this week, with Israel attacking Iran. It says it is trying to halt Iran's nuclear plans, but what does it mean for the region and what will Donald Trump do next?
And you had such great thoughts about the best thing you've seen in a museum. We go down a rabbit hole about cane toad dioramas, family blankets and everything in between.
SHOW NOTES
Jules' pick: https://harvardartmuseums.org/article/pigment-collection-colors-all-aspects-of-the-museums
Jez's pick: https://iview.abc.net.au/show/classic-100-concert-2025
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We've seen cars on fire and riot squads on the streets, so what is going on in California? We take a closer look at the fight between Donald Trump and the Governor of California. And if you could order an object from a museum, what would you want to see or touch? The V&A in London has just opened a new museum where you can do just that.
PICKS
Jeremy's Pick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APyn8Otui_w
Jules' Pick: https://www.vam.ac.uk/east/storehouse/visit?srsltid=AfmBOorh7m_NcTjeHFxFhgxISlhgXAxkwDUpr0cimL6lykqAIsXDFMYa
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Greens Senator Dorinda Cox has switched from the Greens to the Labor Party, so is it okay for a politician to change their mind?
Is switching parties ok? Or what about changing you mind on issues? And Jules has been fascinated with the case of Lucy Letby, the British nurse convicted of killing babies while working in a neonatal ward.
It is also our birthday, so we celebrate Not Stupid turning one...with cake.
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News out of Gaza has gone from bad to worse with acute food shortages and growing concern of a famine. So are attitudes from Israel's Western allies starting to change? And will a change in attitude lead to concrete action? And last week we were talking about poison pen letters and we've heard lots of great stories. We go through our favourites. Plus a little treat from our Sydney live show.
SHOW NOTES
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova profile https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/interactive/2023/chris-evert-martina-navratilova-cancer/?itid=lk_interstitial_manual_11
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Joe Biden is back in the news with a cancer diagnosis, but there’s also a new book out looking at his alleged cognitive decline. So what do you need to disclose and why, if you are in public office? And in Australia the Coalition is consciously uncoupling, so Jules and Jez take a look at the messy split.
Buy tickets to our Sydney live show here:
https://www.swf.org.au/program/season-2025/not-stupid-live-with-julia-baird-and-jeremy-fernandez
PICKS
Jez's pick: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-16/magna-carta-copy-confirmed-to-be-original/105301724
Jules' pick: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/quiet-village-street-hit-mysterious-31585577
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Jules and Jez are talking reinvention this week because there are new leaders everywhere. There's a new Pope in the Vatican and he is American, so what does he make of Donald Trump? And the Australian Liberal Party has its first female leader in Sussan Ley. Also the recipes you share, the ones you keep to yourselves and the ones you can't quite decipher.
PICKS
https://www.aco.com.au/whats-on/2025/bach-beach-boys-beyond
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There's a copyright stoush over caramel slice and Jeremy and Julia have thoughts. Can you own a recipe? And is "Julia Baird's caramel slice" also just "Nagi's Caramel slice"?
And you might have noticed an election on the weekend, it was hard to miss. Labor won in a landslide, so how does the Coalition rebuild and how many women will be involved?
JEREMY'S PICK
https://interestingengineering.com/culture/2000-year-old-rice-brought-to-life
JULIA'S PICK
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/04/swedens-great-moose-migration-live-stream-ends-after-478-hours-viewing
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"Welcome to Country" ceremonies are the latest culture war as we reach the pointy end of the Federal Election campaign, so Jules and Jez look at why it has become such a hot button issue this week. And we had so much feedback about using Chat GPT for relationship advice, so Jules and Jez have been asking it their deepest, darkest secrets with mixed results.
JEZ'S PICK
https://www.theguardian.com/media/ng-interactive/2025/apr/27/strange-case-writer-landing-a-lister-interviews-local-magazines
JULES' PICK
https://www.theguardian.com/media/ng-interactive/2025/apr/27/strange-case-writer-landing-a-lister-interviews-local-magazines
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Pope Francis was the most humble Pope in living memory, so has he shaped the future of Catholicism? For some, he was too much and for others, not enough. Jez and Jules chat about his legacy and the future of the Catholic Church. And we asked you about incorrect lyrics or "mondegreens" and you have so many great examples.
SHOW NOTES
Peter Kay's misheard lyrics: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7my5baoCVv8&t=206s
Jeremy's pick of the week: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/love-sex/relationships/a64444507/men-asking-chatgpt-for-dating-advice/
Julia's pick of the week: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/fifty-years-ago-this-irresistible-disco-song-and-dance-craze-swept-the-nation-and-changed-the-music-landscape-180986460/
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Katy Perry went to space with a group of famous women, so was it one giant leap for womankind or just a really weird marketing blunder? We have a lot of thoughts.
And what do we want from our leaders? We are half way through the election campaign and it has got us thinking about what makes a good leader.
JULES' PICK: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/voyager/voyager-1s-pale-blue-dot/
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The HBO TV drama "White Lotus" focuses on a number of very rich and in many ways deeply unpleasant people. So why are we so fascinated by the lives of the super rich? And the US has dominated the global news this week with Donald Trump’s new tariffs, but Jules and Jez are keen to talk about deportations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as ICE. Since Donald Trump returned to the Presidency, tens of thousands of people have been arrested and it's leading to a lot of fear for migrants and for people planning on travelling to the US.
SHOW NOTES
Buy tickets to our live show in Sydney ! https://www.swf.org.au/program/season-2025/not-stupid-live-with-julia-baird-and-jeremy-fernandez
Jules' pick: https://edition.cnn.com/2023/03/30/world/plants-make-sounds-scn
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The election campaign is in full swing, but when it comes to the news you consume, who do you trust? The ALP offered to pay travel expenses so some influencers could go to the Federal Budget lock-up. So did it get the Government favourable coverage? Or find audiences who just aren't listening to the mainstream media? And we've heard from so many teachers about the Netflix show, Adolescence. Lots of them have ideas about how we talk to boys. And because we like to tackle the big topics, Jez has been pondering the meaning of life.
SHOW NOTES
Rebecca Sparrow on Adolescence: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccasparrow72/p/DH3KKfNBnxa/?img_index=2
Tom Holland "Umbrella" Lip Sync Battle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPCJIB1f7jk
JEZ PICK: The Meaning of Life: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/mar/22/what-is-the-meaning-of-life-15-possible-answers-from-a-palliative-care-doctor-a-holocaust-survivor-a-jail-inmate-and-more
JULES PICK: Paddington Bear statue: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/judge-reprimands-thieves-in-bear-statue-heist-your-actions-were-the-antithesis-of-everything-paddington-stands-for-180986337/
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The Netflix drama, Adolescence, has been watched millions of times in the last week and it is raising a lot of questions about masculinity and how we treat boys. So why this series has hit such a nerve?
And Jez was in Canberra for the Federal Budget, so what is the government offering and have we lost the capacity for long term planning?
Buy tickets to our Sydney show here: https://www.swf.org.au/program/season-2025/not-stupid-live-with-julia-baird-and-jeremy-fernandez
SHOW NOTES
Donald Trump portrait removed: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-26/donald-trump-portrait-removed-from-colorado-state-capitol/105096442
George W Bush's portraits https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-26890910
Blobfish is the fish of the year https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l125d0597o
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US President, Donald Trump, is slashing diversity programs in the US, so is DEI over here too? Jules and Jez chat about what might happen in Australia. Also, Elon Musk says he has a prescription for ketamine and it comes at a time when the use of the drug in Australia is at an all time high. And Jules is obsessed with the story of the two astronauts who have spent nine months in space.
Come to our Sydney show! https://www.swf.org.au/program/season-2025/not-stupid-live-with-julia-baird-and-jeremy-fernandez
SHOW NOTES
Astronauts arrive back https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-18/iss-arrival-back-in-us-after-months-stuck-in-space/105064762
Club apologises after sports star found alive https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/clydxyv94k8o
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After being slammed by the tabloids for the best part of decade, Meghan Markle (or is it Sussex?) has emerged with jam and cake and maybe a bit too much perfection. Jules has thoughts. And in the wake of ex-Cyclone Alfred, politicians have been pitching in and helping out. So what do we want from our leaders in a time of crisis?
SHOW NOTES
What we want in a leader https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092656620300787
With Love, Meghan https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-05/with-love-meghan-markle-duchess-sussex-review-netflix/105009410
Grandmother gets X-rated AI message https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l1kpz3w32o
Scottish Elevator https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMS2VnDveP8
Brighton Man breaks record on crutches https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2gkvn0k9vo
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Julia Baird and Jeremy Fernandez have been in Adelaide for their first live show as part of Adelaide Writers' Week. It was a chat about the news, hope, awe and sparkly suits. If you missed it in Adelaide, here is a taste!
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