Front page news for Monday, 30th March, 2026   Fuel crisis war-gamed as prices bite National cabinet is meeting to stress-test “worst-case” fuel-supply scenarios, with options reportedly ranging from keeping service stations operating to demand-reduction measures and even rationing, as Middle East tensions threaten supply. The story has major cost-of-living and political implications, with economists warning against blanket handouts and some states weighing targeted contingencies instead. Covered by: Herald Sun, Australian Financial Review, The Advertiser, Daily Telegraph, Courier Mail, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age. North Korean IT “workers” accused of infiltrating Australian firms Investigations allege North Korean operatives have posed as remote IT contractors to gain access to companies, including in Australia, and funnel earnings back to the regime’s weapons programs. It sharpens the national security focus on corporate cyber vetting, ide

David Swan and The Guardian have taken home the Gold Lizzies for Best Journalist and Best Coverage at the 24th Annual Samsung Australian IT Journalism Awards on Friday evening.   Swan’s Best Journalist win was his second Gold Lizzie in three years. It also capped a successful night for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald’s Technology Editor, who won Best Security Journalist, Best Telecommunications Journalist and Cass Warneminde Best News Journalist earlier in the evening.  The Guardian’s Best Coverage award was one of two awards won by the masthead on the evening, winning Best Consumer Technology Coverage earlier in the evening. The winning entries featured the work of Technology Reporter Josh Taylor and Senior Correspondent Sarah Martin.  Esteemed Editor and Journalist, Helen Meredith was this year’s deserving recipient of the Pioneer of IT Award, following a remarkable 40-year-plus journalism career. Former AFR Sections Editor Beverley Head

Image edited by Dinesh Raj M   For the longest time, the Indian media industry's relationship with AI has been something like a monsoon romance full of promise, plenty of heat, but ultimately driven by whoever had the budget to experiment. Platforms did it. Agencies did it. Studios dipped their toes in and called it transformation. The rest of the industry watched, took notes and hoped someone would eventually explain what Vertex AI actually meant for their deadlines. That someone, it turns out, is the government. On March 23, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting quietly did something that deserves far more attention than it received: it partnered with Google to launch a structured, two-phase AI skilling programme targeting 15,000 professionals in the creative and media sectors animators, VFX artists, journalists, content creators completely free of charge, routed through the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies in New Delhi. "Help creators build cap

Image of the Day Bharat Mandapam seen under dark clouds on Thursday evening. Picture by Raj K Raj - Hindustan Times   1962 war route transformed into tourist halt in North-East Coffee steams and tea steeps wh-ere convoys once rolled. On a 1962 war relic that carried soldiers into uncertainty on India’s far edge in the North-East, visitors now pause and look out. A bridge between the past and the present. Perched over Nyamjang Chu river in remote Zemithang village, a decommissioned Bailey bridge has been upcycled into Border Brew Cafe — a striking blend of military history and grassroots enterprise barely 20km from the Chinese border in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh. History runs deeper here. Zemithang marked the entry point for the 14th Dalai Lama in 1959 as he fled Tibet, a prelude to tensions that spiralled into war three years later, reports Rajib Dutta and Joken Ete for The Times of India.  J&K’s first postwoman clocks 30 years on foot Ulfat Bano col

As AI tools rapidly enter Indian newsrooms, editorial cartoonists and illustrators are pushing back against the idea that machines can replace human creativity. While AI may offer speed and cost advantages, many believe it falls short in delivering the originality and depth that define their craft. Sudheernadh, Chairman of the Kerala Cartoon Academy, admits he is not deeply familiar with the technology but has observed its growing use. “There are mainstream newspapers publishing illustrations using AI and seeking assistance from cartoonists. However, this trend will not last long, not beyond a year. Today, a reader can easily identify an AI-generated work versus an artist-created one,” he says. He argues that while AI may appear financially viable for media organisations due to its ability to handle multiple tasks, it lacks the emotional and intellectual depth required in editorial cartooning. “AI can do illustrations, but the depth and emotions needed in a cartoon are someth

Nintendo-focused gaming website Vooks is doing more traffic than ever, but Founder and Managing Editor Daniel Vuckovic was left in the unfortunate position of that increasing popularity only serving to drive the site into the red. That led Vuckovic to throw out Vook’s old site design, and introduce a new, lighter, streamlined template, which also works better for the expanding cohort of mobile users. “We've crept slowly higher up our hosting tiers as traffic has ballooned, especially with the Switch 2 launch last year,” Vooks founder Daniel Vuckovic told Influencing.  “Our site gets great traffic, but it shouldn't be this heavy on the server. So I eventually had to decide to throw everything out and start again.” Vooks first sported the redesign recently which was three months in the making. “I did a mock-up of that in Figma and thought, I'll get to it eventually. But with the collapse in ad revenue and affiliate income, meani

Influencing last night had the pleasure of attending Sling & Stone's House Party event at its HQ in Surry Hills.  Please see some of the photos from the evening, and thank you to Sling & Stone for a great night.