menu_open Columnists
Dennis Altman

Dennis Altman

The Conversation

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

What does Labor actually stand for in the Albanese era?

What does Labor actually stand for in the Albanese era?
yesterday 8

Pearls and Irritations

Dennis Altman

Should Albanese ‘fight Tories’ harder? Or is blandness a safe bet in a fearful, populist world?

Should Albanese ‘fight Tories’ harder? Or is blandness a safe bet in a fearful, populist world?

Sean Kelly’s Quarterly Essay asking what Labor stands for today focuses excessively on the prime minister, ignoring the wider party.

wednesday 20

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

Former Prince Andrew’s biographer predicts ‘lots more to come’, after years charting his vices

Even for those not interested in royal gossip, Andrew Lownie’s joint biography of former Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson is a fascinating – and...

04.11.2025 10

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

How damaging to the royal family is the scandal surrounding Prince Andrew?

The British royals are no strangers to scandals - and they are likely to be able to manage this one.

22.10.2025 4

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

On Israel, Zionism and being Jewish

21.10.2025 10

Pearls and Irritations

Dennis Altman

Our American obsession

09.10.2025 7

Pearls and Irritations

Dennis Altman

The Liberal Party and Israel

08.09.2025 6

Pearls and Irritations

Dennis Altman

The right has filled a void on antisemitism – leaving the Jewish left without a language to talk about it

Left-wing Jewish political journalist Rachel Shabi delivers a nuanced take on antisemitism, legitimate criticism of Israel and the role of race and...

05.08.2025 20

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

The left-behind men who crave pride, battle shame – and voted for Trump

What is the gut-level appeal that saw Trump win two elections? One progressive researcher spent six years in America’s whitest, second-poorest...

07.04.2025 9

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

Trump is interested in joining the Commonwealth. It’s not up to him – or even the king

Donald Trump has suggested the US might be interested in joining the Commonwealth. But would Trump’s America be welcome?

28.03.2025 10

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

Australia and the ICC arrest warrants

If Australia is to have any influence at all in resolving the horrendous carnage now taking place in the Middle East it needs to demonstrate that...

27.11.2024 3

Pearls and Irritations

Dennis Altman

Ta-Nehisi Coates describes what he saw in Palestine as ‘apartheid’, resembling America’s segregated Jim Crow South

In May 2023, renowned Black American writer Ta-Nehisi Coates spent ten days in the West Bank and Israel, where he spent half his time with Breaking...

11.11.2024 4

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

Welcome Charles, King of Great Britain alone

There is a way to achieve a republic by stealth. And one that Charles III might well understand.

17.10.2024 10

Financial Review

Dennis Altman

The ‘new’ antisemitism conflates criticism of Israel with prejudice against Jews. But it’s complicated

Since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel nearly a year ago, and the subsequent ongoing war on Gaza, there have been widespread claims that...

24.09.2024 2

The Conversation

Dennis Altman

Are Americans more attracted to anger or hope? Don Watson reports from the US election trail

In 2016, Don Watson wrote a remarkable Quarterly Essay predicting the success of Trump, when political commentators were largely united in their...

11.09.2024 3

The Conversation

Dennis Altman