7am

In the East Room of the White House, Donald Trump made an extraordinary accusation of election interference: Beijing had illegally obtained the voter files of 220 million Americans.
He also accused US intelligence agencies of hiding the extent of China’s activity.
Later, Trump claimed a Homeland Security review had found around 278,000 non-citizens registered to vote.
Trump’s motivation, critics say, is to sow doubt ahead of the upcoming midterm elections – which he’s already made several attempts to reshape: from redrawing maps, to restricting voting, to firing the entire electoral commission.
Today, staff writer at The Atlantic David A. Graham, on Trump’s campaign to tilt the midterms and what he could still do before, during and after election day.

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Guest: Staff writer at The Atlantic David A. Graham
Photo: Saul LOEB / POOL / AFP
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A blonde woman stands among smiling children holding lollipops. A foundation banner hangs behind them. She announces that a new orphanage has opened in Africa.
But evidence collected during an ABC investigation suggests that the woman in the video isn’t real. Neither are the children or the banner behind them. The scene appears to have been generated using artificial intelligence.
Millions of people have watched an Australian influencer promise food, shelter and hope to children in some of the world's most critical crisis zones.
Now, her foundation is facing questions about its humanitarian claims, the money it solicited, and the damage AI-generated appeals could do to public trust in charities.
Today, ABC News Verify journalist, Matt Martino on the Lily Jay Foundation, and the tangled web behind its humanitarian work.

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Guest: ABC News Verify senior journalist Matt Martino
Photo: @lilyjayofficial via X
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For more than a week, Donald Trump has unleashed strikes against Iran, in a worsening cycle of attacks, including on civilian infrastructure.
Trump has defended the strikes as honouring the deaths of up to three American service members in an Iranian attack. But the real goal is to get the Strait of Hormuz open again – something that looks increasingly unlikely.
So, with the region once again on a knife’s edge, the US appears locked back into an escalating war, unless the interim ceasefire deal can be salvaged.
Today, diplomatic correspondent at NOTUS Akbar Shahid Ahmed on the threat of all-out war, and who is really in charge of what happens next.

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

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Guest: Diplomatic correspondent at NOTUS and author of Crossing the Red Line: Biden, His Advisors, and Israel’s War in Gaza, Akbar Shahid Ahmed
Photo: US Central Command/Reuters
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It’s the other racism inquiry running at the same time as the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion – the inquiry into racism, hate and violence directed at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
But while the royal commission has attracted rolling media coverage and government attention, the Aboriginal racism inquiry has been largely ignored.
The inquiry was triggered by the alleged bombing of an Invasion Day rally – witnesses shining a light on the repeated inaction before, during and after the event as they testified about the fear still hanging over the Indigenous community.
Today, National Indigenous Affairs Editor for NITV & SBS John Paul Janke, on how Australia treats different kinds of racism differently.

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

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Guest: National Indigenous Affairs Editor for NITV & SBS John Paul Janke
Photo: AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi
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After more than two decades at Nine, Karl Stefanovic has left the building.
For years, he was the face of the Today show – surviving ratings slumps, public scandals, internal criticism and a revolving door of female co-hosts.
But after launching his own podcast, and then interviewing far-right British figure Tommy Robinson, Nine finally cut him loose.
Now, people who worked with Stefanovic are speaking out.
Crikey contributor and Fourth Estate host Tina Quinn has spoken to current and former Nine insiders about what he was really like behind the scenes and why the network backed him for so long.
Today, Tina Quinn, on Karl Stefanovic’s rise, his fall from Nine, and whether he can survive without the network that built him.

If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.

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Guest: Host of Fourth Estate on 2SER and Crikey contributor, Tina Quinn
Photo: AAP Image/Tracey Nearmy
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.