Casey Affleck steps down as Oscar Announcer amid sexual harassment claims

2018 Oscar Announcer, Casey Affleck, has withdrawn from presenting at the ceremony amid sexual harassment claims.

The #MeToo campaign has created heightened scrutiny around allegations against Affleck which first surfaced in 2010, during the production of I’m Not There.

A spokeswoman for the academy says that Affleck’s decision will allow them to ‘keep the focus on the show and on the great work of this year’.

Plastic helps spread of disease-carrying microbes

Coral reefs are at risk of disease-carrying microbes using plastic to spread and colonise, a new study has found.

The risk of coral being infected with a disease known as White Syndrome increases from 4 per cent to 89 per cent when it makes contact with oceanic plastic pollution, according to a paper from the journal Science.

Asia-Pacific hosts 9 of the 10 worst plastic polluters in the world, researchers believe due to poor waste management.

Johnathan Thurston wants to discuss changing Australia Day date

Rugby league star, Johnathan Thurston says Australians need to be better informed why Indigenous Australians are upset with the date of Australia Day.

Mr Thurston insisted governments prioritise Indigenous issues, particularly the Australia Day date issue, after failures to meet targets for Close the Gap, a government-led Indigenous health campaign aimed at improving health and life-expectancy.