ABC News Daily

Is Trump’s capture of Venezuela's president legal?

After a dramatic US military operation capping off months of escalating tensions, the former president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro is now in a New York prison.With Maduro gone, the Venezuelan military has endorsed the interim presidency of his former Vice President Delcy Rodriguez but Donald Trump has warned she could suffer a fate worse than Maduro if she doesn’t comply with American demands.He’s also signalled other Latin American nations could be next.Today, a local journalist on how Venezuelans are reacting to Maduro's arrest, and a legal expert on what this brazen US military action could mean for international law.Featured:Professor Ben Saul, Challis Chair of International Law at the University of Sydney Tony Frangie Mawad, Venezuelan journalist and political scientistSubscribe to ABC News Daily on the ABC listen app.

2025 Picks: Why we need to move beyond BMI

BMI, or body mass index, has long been used as a simple calculation to determine if someone is underweight, a ‘healthy’ weight or obese.But when it was devised by a Belgian mathematician almost 200 years ago, it was never supposed to be a tool to measure health.Now, researchers are challenging the way obesity is defined and diagnosed. Today, a look at the new approach and why there’s a global push away from BMI.First published 10 February, 2025Featured: Willow Moscarda, Perth studentDr Louise Bauer, Professor of child and adolescent health, University of Sydney

2025 Picks: Do we need laws to stop AI taking your job?

Could artificial intelligence be key to improving Australia’s living standards?A Productivity Commission report suggests the roll out of the technology could inject more than a hundred billion dollars into the economy over the next decade. But there’s a catch. If AI can take over from workers on some tasks, are swathes of humans set to lose their jobs? Today, Toby Walsh, the chief scientist at the AI Institute at the University of New South Wales, on whether it's time for the government to step in. First published 1 September, 2025Featured: Toby Walsh, Chief Scientist at UNSW.ai, the AI Institute of University of New South Wales Sydney

2025 Picks: How China became a green energy superpower

In the month of April, China installed more solar power than Australia ever has. China is also now home to half of the world’s wind power and half of the world’s electric cars.Despite this, China remains the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.So, is it a climate hero or villain and how has the Chinese Communist Party managed to roll out green energy tech so quickly?Today, climate reporter Jo Lauder on why China is becoming the world’s first ‘electrostate’. First published 18 August, 2025Featured: Jo Lauder, ABC climate reporter

2025 Picks: The productivity problem with car washing

Why have so many hand car wash services replaced automatic machines?It has to do with immigration policies and there are implications for Australia’s productivity which is among the worst in the developed world. Economists insist boosting productivity is the only way to improve our living standards, but could delivering higher wages first actually help to fix the problem?Today, chief business correspondent Ian Verrender on the key factors left off the agenda at the economic round table in Canberra - population and property. First published 21 August, 2025Featured: Ian Verrender, ABC Chief Business Correspondent