Google maps can't map towns

Mayors of rural towns in Outback Queensland are calling on Google Maps to update their services after the Town of Eromanga was plotted 85 kilometres away from its actual location. 

Safety concerns have also been raised about Google Maps suggesting ‘bizarre’ routes that direct tourists off main roads and into bushland. 

Quilpie Shire Council Mayor says that it’s best for visitors to read road signs rather than trusting the web-based GPS service.

 

RMIT fact check Murdoch reach

The RMIT ABC fact checker has looked into the reach of Rupert Murdoch's media empire amid calls by former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for more media diversity.

Roy Morgan polling found that News Corp reached more than twice as many people each week than Nine Entertainment did through its print newspapers.

Brittany Higgins memoir

Brittany Higgins will be publishing a memoir of her experiences working inside Australia's halls of power, with half of the profits going to a rape crisis centre in Canberra which she says was a personal "lifeline" in the wake of her alleged sexual assault. 

A national conversation around sexual assault and power was sparked in February after Miss Higgins came forward with allegations of being raped in Parliament House.  Her memoir is set to be published next year.

 

Myanmarese call to stay in Australia

Labor is pressuring the Morrison government  to allow more than 3000 Myanmarese citizens to stay in Australia once their visas expire.

The push comes after more than 700 civilians are estimated to have been killed in violent crackdowns since the February 1 military coup.

There are more than 3,500 temporary visa holders from Myanmar in Australia, about half of them students.

 

Hank Azaria apologizes

A voice actor who played Apu in The Simpsons has issued a public apology and says he regrets playing the role.

Hank Azaria, a white man, worked on the show for 10 years and voiced a number of characters including Apu, an Indian-American convenience store owner. 

Azaria left the show in 2020 after the character’s representation was heavily criticised for reinforcing potentially harmful racial stereotypes. 

 

QLD restrictions set to ease

Queensland's coronavirus restrictions are set to ease tomorrow from midday with state health officials to confirm the details this morning.

It's likely there will be no legal requirement to wear masks indoors when you are grocery shopping, taking public transport, or in restaurants and pubs when not eating or drinking.

Weddings and funerals will likely be allowed to have 200 guests and 100 people will be allowed in a private residence.

 

Virus detected in PA after cleaning

Covid-19 has been detected in the princess Alexandra hospital ward 5D even after it had received a deep clean.

The hospital was locked down twice in recent months, after two workers in the 5D ward contracted the virus from a positive returned traveller.

Griffith University Infectious diseases expert, Professor Nigel McMillan says “The most likely scenario is that somewhere in the air conditioning there's a failure or an issue”.

 

70% of town Damaged by cyclone

Kalbarri in Western Australia has been described as looking ‘like a war zone’ after it was hit by cyclone Seroja on Sunday. 

The state’s emergency services have reported that 70% of structures in the rural town have been damaged in wake of the category 3 system. 

The cyclone crossed WA’s coast late on Sunday night, producing maximum wind gusts of up to 170km per hour. 

 

One-horned Rhino's now vulnerable

Previously declared endangered one-horned rhinos now have an upgraded population status of ‘vulnerable’. 

This follows a census of Rhino numbers in Nepal this year, where it has been found their numbers have increased from 645 to 752 since 2015. 

Nepal is one of just a few countries where one-horned rhinos are found. Their numbers declined dramatically in the 1970’s due to civil unrest and deforestation but numbers are beginning to increase in recent decades because of conservation efforts.