Four Corners - Season 58 / Year 2025

Families call on governments to act as loved ones fall into extremism. Reporter Avani Dias investigates the growing threat of homegrown extremism, the painful reality of radicalisation and desperate calls for stronger action.

The Comeback King explores Donald Trump's dramatic resurgence following his 2020 election defeat, examining the pivotal moments and strategies that propelled him back to the forefront as a dominant force in U.S. politics.

Four Corners investigative journalist Dan Oakes uncovers the secrets of Australia's black-market tobacco trade in Tobacco Wars.

With illicit cigarettes readily available in cash-only stores and distributed by unmarked vans across the country, this investigation reveals a vast network stretching from Melbourne's suburban tobacconists to international smuggling routes.

Using concealed cameras and exclusive access to law enforcement, the Four Corners team follows the illicit pipeline, exposing the lucrative industry that is fueling violent organised crime while robbing the government of billions in lost revenue.

Tobacco Wars investigates the high-stakes underworld where arson attacks, extortion, and deadly feuds are used to control the illegal cigarette market.

As the government grapples with policy responses and law enforcement agencies struggle to disrupt smuggling syndicates, Tobacco Wars raises urgent questions about the country's ability to curb this thriving illicit trade.

With gripping undercover footage and exclusive insights from key players, Four Corners delivers a must-watch exposé on how Australia's efforts to cut smoking rates have inadvertently fueled a dangerous and violent underworld.

For more than 80 years, the Australian War Memorial has stood as a solemn shrine to those who have served and sacrificed for our country.  

This week, Four Corners reveals how this sacred institution is increasingly entwined with the global arms industry — raising troubling questions about conflicts of interest, corporate influence, and the future of the memorial itself. 

In Sacrifice, Gold Walkley Award-winning journalist Mark Willacy exposes how the war memorial has accepted funding from some of the world's largest weapons manufacturers, despite former insiders condemning the money as "dirty" and inappropriate for an institution dedicated to honouring the human cost of war.

As the war memorial undergoes a $550 million redevelopment — described by critics as an attempt to turn the site into a "Disneyland of war" — this investigation asks whether the expansion ensures the memorial's future or undermines its fundamental purpose.  

This week on Four Corners, a one-hour special reveals the deep failures and systemic issues plaguing Australia's childcare sector.  

With nearly one-and-a-half million children enrolled in childcare across the country, parents trust that their children will be safe and cared for.  

And while the glossy brochures and marketing paint a rosy picture, the reality of the system is far darker, and families are paying the price. 

Reporter Adele Ferguson uncovers shocking cases of child abuse, neglect, and injury, highlighting critical gaps in childcare safety and accountability.  

As the $20 billion industry grows, the focus on financial gain over child welfare has sparked a nationwide call for action.

Advocates warn that without immediate reform, the childcare industry will continue to put profit over children's safety. 

The Yoorrook Justice Commission is making history as Australia's first formal truth-telling inquiry, shedding light on a violent past long buried in the nation's consciousness. 

Bridget Brennan, with the ABC's Indigenous Affairs Team in collaboration with Four Corners, has been documenting the powerful testimonies presented to the groundbreaking commission in Victoria, which expose the deep and ongoing impact of massacres and human rights abuses which began when Australia was colonised. 

Among these stories is the harrowing account of the Warrigal Creek massacre, where, in 1843, dozens of Aboriginal people were shot dead by white settlers in retaliation for the killing of a pastoralist's nephew. 

For Elizabeth Balderstone, the tragic history of Warrigal Creek is not just a historical account - it is a lived reality. She and Gunaikurnai elder Uncle Russell Mullett have come forward to share their story, bringing long-suppressed truths onto the public record.  

"If we are to have a future where we live together with understanding," Uncle Russell said, "we must first be willing to know our history—and accept it." 

The documentary witnesses the gruelling and deeply personal work of the Aboriginal truth commissioners, as they attempt to document the true history of Victoria. 

The team also follows along as the Commission investigates the catastrophic legacy of a former Prime Minister. 

Truth/Yoorrook is a fearless, definitive documentary which examines how we as a nation reckon with our colonial past and take critical steps towards truth, healing and justice.

A decade-long investigation has uncovered explosive new evidence suggesting that corrupt former NSW Crime Commission assistant director Mark Standen's criminality was far more extensive than the public was led to believe.  

While Standen was jailed for a single drug importation, he is the most senior crime fighter in the country ever to be convicted for such an offence. 

And now sources and official documents indicate he protected criminals, sabotaged investigations, and is believed to have helped facilitate multiple imports of illegal drugs. 

Investigative reporter Janine Cohen has been following Standen's case for 14 years, uncovering new details that challenge the official narrative. 

Now, in his first ever on-camera interview, Standen insists he is innocent — but law enforcement colleagues and others who knew him tell a different story.  

As calls grow for a deeper inquiry, Four Corners exposes the full extent of a betrayal that shook Australia's justice system. 

This week Four Corners unpacks the rise of Xi Jinping, China's most dominant leader since Mao Zedong, and the global consequences of his rule. 

With rare access and deep reporting, Frontline correspondent Martin Smith investigates Xi's path to power, his ideological vision, and how he has reshaped China's relationship with the world. 

Once dismissed as a compromise leader, Xi Jinping seized total control through a ruthless anti-corruption campaign, silencing dissent and tightening the Party's grip.

His "China Dream" envisions a dominant China—militarily, technologically, and on the world stage. 

But Xi's grip is being tested.  

Economic instability, mass protests, and international pushback challenge his vision for a resurgent China.  

As tensions over Taiwan escalate and China's future grows uncertain, The Power of Xi reveals the stakes of his rule—for China, the U.S., and the world. 

BBC Journalist Richard Bilton travels the globe meeting brilliant scientists racing to turn the tide on climate change – people whose ideas could reshape the world.

From volcano labs in Iceland, to disappearing glaciers in Switzerland and to sun-reflecting clouds in Australia, he finds bold experiments aimed not just at cutting emissions but removing carbon from the atmosphere.  

The film, Can Climate Scientists Save the World? zeroes in on Australia's Great Barrier Reef, where researchers are working to protect coral with technology as delicate as it is daring.  

This is a story of urgent action, hope, and a global effort to future-proof our earth.  

Inside a dangerous terror network in Australia — the man who infiltrated it speaks out.

One year after the Wakeley church stabbing shocked Australia, a former secret agent who infiltrated the country's jihadist underworld unmasks himself.

In an extraordinary Four Corners exclusive, the former ASIO agent reveals to investigative reporter Sean Rubinsztein-Dunlop how a resurgent Islamic State (IS) network is radicalising Australian teens and plotting violence.

He exposes the network's links to a global web of terrorist leaders.

The agent spent years inside extremist circles, helping authorities thwart attacks and stop IS terrorists.

Now, with teenage terrorism and hate crimes on the rise in Australia and around the world, he's stepping out of the shadows to sound the alarm.

Travelling on the campaign buses of our political leaders gives you a curious insight into Australian democracy.

They almost never meet anyone who hasn't been carefully vetted beforehand. Journalists have no idea where they're going until they arrive at a location.

Everything is tightly scripted and choreographed to deliver the leaders' messages to a weary and distracted public.

We joined this political mystery tour to get an insight into this high-stakes theatre, but more importantly to try to get answers to the questions that matter to Australians:

What can be done to address housing affordability? Is there relief from rising cost of living? What does a chaotic and uncertain world mean for Australia?

We also spoke to those who've seen up close how Peter Dutton and Anthony Albanese operate, and who've followed their campaigns' highs and lows.

We do a deep dive into their histories and reveal new details that have never come to light.

With less than a week to go, Four Corners takes you beyond the talking points and the spin, to examine the leadership records of Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton. And their plans for the nation if they win.

Over summer, organised crime cast a terrifying shadow over Australia.

The Jewish community in Sydney was left reeling — shaken by a wave of attacks that culminated in the discovery of a caravan packed with explosives and a list of Jewish sites.

NSW police have maintained that the crimes are connected, that a mastermind has orchestrated more than a dozen attacks.

In the months following the caravan's discovery, a name began to emerge: Sayit Erhan Akca—a figure well-known in Sydney's criminal underworld, currently on the run from Australian authorities.

Reporter Mahmood Fazal travels to the country where Akca is hiding to seek answers about his involvement and to challenge his account, in the hope of piecing together the truth of what really happened.

In his first ever TV interview Akca makes stunning admissions, raising questions about how authorities have responded to this unprecedented wave of crime and hatred.

We love Bunnings — it's where we go for our weekend sausage sizzle and to fulfill our DIY dreams.  

But what if the store Australians trust most is not as benign as it would have us believe?  

Bunnings has quietly become one of Australia's most dominant and profitable retailers, with rivals saying its market power matches Coles and Woolworths combined.   

Yet it faces none of the scrutiny of the big two supermarkets.  

Critics also claim it's a corporate predator systematically picking off independents, shutting down competition and abusing its dominance with suppliers. 

For its part Bunnings insists it's just another competitor in a crowded field.  

Four Corners' Angus Grigg and Emilia Terzon from the ABC business team dig into Bunnings' unchecked dominance, its soaring profits, and whether regulators have turned a blind eye while it reshapes Australian retail.  

This is the untold story of how Bunnings became a national icon — and what we lose when one brand dominates the backyard.  

The Rise and Fall of Terrorgram, a PBS Frontline and ProPublica Production.

They call themselves Terrorgram — a group of "militant accelerationists" who use extreme violence to bring down governments and create new white "ethnostates".

They came together on social media apps like Telegram and created a transnational network resulting in a spree of deadly terror attacks across the globe.

A year-long investigation by PBS and ProPublica unmasks the ringleaders and how they operated.

And it uncovers the failings of authorities to stop them.

The Rise and Fall of Terrorgram shows the consequences of unfettered free speech - having influencers advocate mass murder.

It asks the chilling question: are the arrests of the leaders the end of the Terrorgram or just the beginning?

"Decimated" reported by Patricia Karvelas, produced by Alex McDonald and Joshua Martin for Four Corners, hears from Liberal insiders following the fallout of the Federal Election.

They lost the inner-city seats and now the outer suburbs. Can the Liberal Party ever recover from its historic election loss?

Behind closed doors a battle is raging for the heart and soul of the party.

ABC presenter Patricia Karvelas talks to Liberal insiders as they grapple with the existential crisis of what the Liberal Party stands for and who it represents.

Liberal Party powerbrokers talk to Four Corners candidly and honestly about the contest which will redefine Australian politics.

With the Nationals walking away from the Coalition, the Liberals face the very real prospect that they may never govern again.

The party of Menzies and Howard faces a reckoning: can they rebuild and win back middle Australia or face further losses?

Four Corners charts the inside story of these monumental political shifts.

Doctors and frontline health workers warn they are witnessing the collapse of public mental health care in NSW. Staff say they're being forced to release people who are still seriously unwell because there aren't enough beds.

Former UFC stars say the organisation is built on their pain, not their pay. Some of the biggest names in Australian mixed martial arts say they were pushed to their physical and financial limits while the UFC made over a billion dollars in revenue. In this week's Four Corners, reporter Mahmood Fazal speaks to former fighters who describe a culture of exploitation, secrecy, and lasting damage. Professional fighters share what it's like to be locked into restrictive contracts, take punishing fights, and end up broke or broken after years in the cage.

As the US launches a review into AUKUS, Four Corners examines the future of the $368 billion submarine deal. Reporter Mark Willacy and the Four Corners team travel to Washington, DC to speak with key players inside the Congress and the defence community. One former Trump Defense Secretary says the program is moving too slowly. Now, the Pentagon is reviewing the entire AUKUS deal with fears it might not align with the new administration's "America First" policy. In London, senior UK figures also sound the alarm. They warn of cost blowouts and delays in building the new AUKUS-class nuclear submarine with Australia. Submerged asks the tough questions about what happens to Australia if Donald Trump decides the AUKUS deal doesn't serve America's interests – leaving Australia out of pocket and stranded.

For years, serious abuse allegations followed Sean "Diddy" Combs, so how did his empire continue to grow? With the music mogul now on trial for alleged sex trafficking, Diddy: In Plain Sight pulls back the curtain on the world he built, and the people who helped protect it. Featuring first-hand accounts and never-before-seen footage, the film explores how silence, complicity and power allowed the allegations to stay hidden for so long.

Four Corners dives into the chaos created by Donald Trump's trade policy.

Reported by Steve Cannane, Trading in Chaos investigates how the very people the president set out to help are now being harmed.

From soybean farms in North Carolina to toy warehouses in Texas, from the ports of New York and New Jersey to the rust belt of Pennsylvania, Steve and the Four Corners team have crisscrossed the US to talk to those most affected by the tariffs.

The film captures the confusion, uncertainty and fear generated by Trump's whiplash-inducing tariffs, policies that experts say will increase the cost of living, make the US poorer and the world a less prosperous and secure place.

Australians in their 30s and 40s are facing an alarming surge in cancer diagnoses and researchers are scrambling to understand why. From bowel and breast to liver and kidney, aggressive cancers are hitting younger people; they're often detected late, with devastating outcomes. Dr Norman Swan investigates what's behind the change.

For decades, Iranians have resisted a regime built on fear, repression and religious control.

Rage Against the Regime captures the latest chapter in that struggle through the voices of those who have lived it, exiled dissidents, young protesters and women who dared to speak out.

This is a story filmed in exile, told by Iranians forced to flee their country. Their testimonies reveal the reality of life under constant surveillance, where a wrong word or a visible strand of hair can lead to arrest, torture, or worse. 

The film centers on the protest movement sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini while under police protection. Using powerful first-person accounts and rare footage smuggled out of Iran, it shows how a single act of state violence reignited a movement, bringing thousands into the streets, threatening the regime.

Rage Against the Regime is an unflinching portrait of courage in the face of brutal repression. It is a story about freedom, sacrifice and the cost of speaking out.

For years, a star neurosurgeon operated inside Australia's hospital system despite repeated allegations of sexist and inappropriate behaviour, and a string of legal claims by devastated patients.  

This is the hidden story of the toxic culture that enabled him.  

In this Four Corners investigation, reporter Louise Milligan talks to senior surgeons and hospital insiders who are speaking out for the first time.  

Through powerful testimonies, internal documents, and newly surfaced footage, God Complex reveals a culture of protection, silence and complicity in Australia's most elite medical circles, and the human cost of letting power go unchecked. 

The Australian Taxation Office holds extraordinary power, but who's keeping it in check? 

The ATO is one of the most powerful and secretive institutions in the country, but for years, it's operated without effective scrutiny. 

In this major Four Corners investigation, award-winning financial journalists Neil Chenoweth and Angus Grigg reveal how inaction and flawed systems have allowed more than $50 billion in tax to go uncollected.  

They unpick how a simple scam, supercharged on social media, saw tens of thousands of Australians fraudulently claim at least $2 billion in GST refunds.  

They also show how corporate operators extracted millions more through fake invoices and phantom construction projects, often without triggering even basic checks. 

And they expose how deep cuts, digital automation and a lack of independent oversight has left one of Australia's most powerful institutions wide open to exploitation. 

Born of years of forensic reporting by two of Australia's most respected financial journalists in collaboration with the ABC's investigations team, No Return exposes systemic failures inside one of the nation's most opaque institutions.  

It demonstrates why every taxpayer should demand accountability from the very agency entrusted to uphold it.