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Welcome back; let\u2019s roll. <\/span><\/p>\n World Press Freedom Day on Wednesday was marked by the release of the <\/span>annual World Press Freedom Index<\/span><\/a>, which shows a <\/span>worsening global situation<\/span><\/a>. (<\/span>Here\u2019s a run-down<\/span><\/a> on the state-of-play in Asia.) Getting ahead of the curve, <\/span>Sky<\/span><\/i>\u2019s David Speers last week delivered a keynote at the Press Freedom Australia dinner. His topic, naturally, was fake news. Speaking to the Australian context, Speer implored journos to go <\/span>\u2018back to basics\u2019 and treasure the trust readers place in them<\/span><\/a>. He also had a few choice words on transparency, singling out the oft camera-shy Defence establishment as the worst example in government. \u2018When was the last time you saw the Chief of Defence do an interview?\u2019, Speers asked. Well, we\u2019ll have just that here on <\/span>The Strategist<\/span><\/i> next Wednesday!<\/span><\/p>\n An excellent longread from pollster extraordinaire Nate Silver<\/span><\/a> encourages the media to come to grips with the extent to which Hillary Clinton\u2019s race to the Oval Office was damaged by FBI Director James Comey\u2019s October letter to Congress. The tenth article in<\/span> a series that hopes to unpack the truth<\/span><\/a> behind the biggest political upset of 2016, Silver says that while the letter wasn\u2019t the be-all and end-all of the election results, that the press is still in denial about the fact that the move likely cost Clinton the presidency. Ouch. Comey, of course, this week said the thought of having affected the election outcome makes him \u2018mildly nauseous\u2019, testimony which was <\/span>dissected in <\/span>The New Yorker<\/span><\/i><\/a> and <\/span>demolished in <\/span>The NYT<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Here\u2019s China from a few different angles: first, a <\/span>must-read riposte<\/span><\/a> to a <\/span>recent lecture<\/span><\/a> delivered by Hugh White (who had a <\/span>rejoinder of his own<\/span><\/a>). Second, <\/span>Foreign Policy<\/span><\/i>\u2019s just-released list of the <\/span>50 power players in the US and China<\/span><\/a> who are driving the bilateral relationship. Third, a special report recently in <\/span>The Economist <\/span><\/i>on Beijing\u2019s actions and ambitions in Asia is <\/span>worth spending some time with<\/span><\/a>. And finally, a corker from <\/span>The New York Times<\/span><\/i>: <\/span>Is China the World\u2019s New Colonial Power?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n To mark their 20th anniversary, Asia Society Australia are unfolding a collection of 20 essays on Asia and Australia. While <\/span>Disruptive Asia<\/span><\/a> will receive an official launch in Sydney and Melbourne next month, David Epstein kicked things off in the <\/span>Fin <\/span><\/i>today by <\/span>tracking the trend to find Australia\u2019s place in Asia<\/span><\/a>. (Check out his full chapter <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.) Asia Society Australia are encouraging everyone play along at home by jumping onto Twitter to contribute under the <\/span>#DisruptiveAsia<\/span><\/a> hashtag and by subscribing to their <\/span>newsletter<\/span><\/a>. With 19 more analytical gems to come down the line, this series is one to watch.<\/span><\/p>\n And although we\u2019re a day late\u2014something something next year\u2014May the Fourth be with you, dear readers. Take a second to look at this re-upped<\/span> piece from <\/span>FiveThirtyEight<\/span><\/i><\/a> which charts the relative power of Imperial Forces from the beginning of <\/span>Rogue One<\/span><\/i> to the conclusion of <\/span>Return of the Jedi<\/span><\/i>\u2014and shows the aspiring galactic war strategist why you shouldn\u2019t start a ground war on Endor.<\/span><\/p>\n Podcast<\/b><\/p>\n With the big vote taking place this weekend France has been all over the airwaves. Two podcasts stand out this week,<\/span> the first from \u2018On Point\u2019<\/span><\/a> (46 mins), featuring Sophie Pedder\u2014<\/span>The Economist<\/span><\/i>\u2019s Paris bureau chief\u2014and New America CEO Anne-Marie Slaughter. The pair discuss the rise of nationalism and how it affects an increasingly interconnected world. Next up,<\/span> on the CSIS Podcast<\/span><\/a> (13 mins), Europe program director Heather Conley holds a magnifying glass to round one of the elections, and forecasts what\u2019s next for the European nation. <\/span><\/p>\n Videos<\/b><\/p>\n Japanophiles can get their fix with a heft of events that have been happening stateside this week. Sasakawa USA pulled together a manel of heavyweights to dive into <\/span>Asia policy in the time of Abe and Trump<\/span><\/a> (72 mins). Another bunch of dudes had been out in force across town at CSIS the day before, where three esteemed Japanese lawmakers, ably aided by Mike Green, spoke of <\/span>Japan\u2019s strategy for the Trump administration<\/span><\/a> (86 mins). CSIS also hosted a solid panel (and femme-tastic antidote) looking at <\/span>US\u2013Japan cyber cooperation and cybersecurity in advance of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics<\/span><\/a> (90 mins).<\/span><\/p>\n Footage has emerged<\/span><\/a> (2 mins) this week of the F-35A Lightning IIs taking on the famous Mach Loop Low Flying Area during their first overseas training deployment to Europe. The Mach Loop LFA is a series of valleys in western Wales, and is a go-to training spot for fast jets learning to manoeuvre at low altitudes. (If you\u2019re interested, check out<\/span> this footage of a A400M Atlas tactical airlifter<\/span><\/a> and some<\/span> American F-22s<\/span><\/a> strutting their stuff in the Loop).<\/span><\/p>\n Events\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n Canberra: The Annual Civil Society Report Card has played an integral role in grading the government\u2019s progress in implementing the National Action Plan on\u00a0<\/span>Women, Peace and Security since its inception in 2012. The fourth Report Card will be launched<\/span> here in the capital next Thursday<\/span><\/a>, get along to make your voice heard. (For some background reading, don\u2019t look past a <\/span>recent ASPI Strategic Insights paper <\/span><\/a>which examines the WPS agenda and Australia\u2019s implementation role.)<\/span><\/p>\n