Rnz: Afternoons With Jesse Mulligan

It's Freaky Friday time! Each Friday we speak to a listener about a scary, coincidental or otherwise unexplainable experience they've had. If you have one of your own do reach out to us, 2101 is the text number or email afternoons@rnz.co.nz. Today's story is a little less spooky and a bit more existential. Mary from Upper Hutt joins Jesse.

It's Father's Day on Sunday, so what better time to chat about fatherhood. Healthy parents are key to a child's development .. but it's not always easy becoming a new mum or a new dad. A research team in Christchurch has spoken to dads whose babies spent time in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU), to see how they're coping. It's for their NICU Dads study which is about to launch. Dr Suzy Hodgson leads the Fatherhood Research Team at Ara Institute of Canterbury.

What are your rights when it comes to neighbourhood disputes? If a neighbour was throws rock through your lounge window for instance - as reported this week - this would be a police matter. But what about other, less cut and dry issues .. like hostile interactions or lewd behaviour .. playing music you don't like very loudly or parking in what you deem to be 'your spot'? Andrew Hubbard is Deputy Chief Executive Officer at the Citizens Advice Bureau NZ is here to help.

Yesterday we spoke about Auckland's roaming dog problem after new statistics show a worrying trend in dog attacks and call outs. Probably most worrying, 228 children under 15 were attacked last year. On the show councillor Daniel Newman said that the most effective way to deal with the over population problem is through de-sexing. But what about on a practical level for those of us walking the streets .. what steps should you take to stay safe if a roaming dog approaches you? Animal behaviourist Mark Vette joined Jesse to discuss what to do.

Time now for Our Changing World, and today we join Claire Concannon as she heads into the Rees Valley to try to spot a takahe. Twice believed to be extinct, now there are over five hundred takahe, and each year more birds are being released into the wild. The Rees is their newest home. Claire's guide is Chrissy Becker-Fifield who works in the Glenorchy field office for the Southern Lakes Sanctuary conservation group.

History with Dr Grant Morris The manhunt continues for the Australian man accused of shooting two police officers in Victoria last week. Dezi Freeman shares views that align with the "sovereign citizen" which deny the authority of state and law.

It's time to solve some of the world's problems now and today Ali Jones joins us to discuss voter turnout and what we can do to improve it. Local body elections are in October, but even more pressing is this weekend's Tamaki Makaurau by-election, and Labour and Te Pati Maori are already expressing concerns about low turnout.

One of the All Blacks' most anticipated test matches of the year will take place at Eden Park this Saturday, as they go up against the Springboks. It's a rivalry almost as old as the game itself, so today on NZ Sporting History, we wanted to look back on some of the great All Blacks V Springboks moments. Veteran sports journalist and broadcaster Phil Gifford chats to Emile.

In our dairy industry expert feature last week there was talk about fermented milks and how alternative dairy seems poised to disrupt our dairy industry. In response, Anna Benny got in touch. Anna is a Southland dairy farmer and food technologist at the University of Otago. She has authored a paper - Milk without moo - which outlines the challenges to the industry which generates $23 billion New Zealand dollars in revenue annually.

A conversation about TikTok in the RNZ newsroom resulted in Senior In Depth journalist Kate Newton conducting an interesting social media experiment. The result is a three-part investigation called Four phones, three weeks which examined the content that was sent to four fictitious teenage TikTok accounts over the course of three weeks. Kate also sought input from teenagers themselves on what they see and how they feel about it, she tells Emile about what she learnt.

Sepsis is a global killer, and at one in five, it causes more deaths than heart attacks or strokes but would you know the warning signs or symptoms? An unchecked immune response to an infection or pathogen, sepsis causes the body to turn on its own tissues and vital organs. Farmer Geoff Lance is one of the lucky ones - he's a sepsis survivor - but he didn't come out unscathed. Geoff has joined forces with Sepsis Trust NZ to raise awareness of the condition during September - which is World Sepsis Month. The nationwide public campaign: 'Be a SEPSIS Superhero: Suspect it, say it, stop it' is part of a broader push for sepsis to be prioritised within our health system.

Auckland is continuing to struggle with a roaming dog problem ... with new Auckland council figures showing a large increase in dogs attacks and call outs over the past year. There's been a 23 percent spike in dogs being impounded and a 48 percent increase in dogs being euthanised compared to the same period last year. Among the most concerning statistics ... 228 children under 15 were attacked last year. Everyone agrees the problem is out of control... but what can be done to get the numbers under control? Manurewa-Papakura Councillor Daniel Newman joins Emile.

In 2007, at just 20 years old, Amanda Knox, was wrongly accused of murdering her roommate while studying abroad in Italy. A zealous Italian prosecutor put her on trial for eight years, and in prison for nearly four . Amanda Knox is reclaiming her story. She's teaming up with Monica Lewinsky as executive producers of a series called The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox. She's also forgiven that Italian prosecutor and she's also written an essay for The Atlantic that explores the healing that can come from facing the worst in humanity while holding on to your own.

Wednesday is Easy Eats day, where we share a recipe that is relatively quick and simple to throw together. Kelly Gibney has a brilliant offering this week - peanut butter and miso chicken drumsticks with sesame rice. Recipe is here: https://www.rnz.co.nz/life/food/recipes/peanut-butter-and-miso-chicken-drumsticks-with-sesame-rice

Meri Murphy and her partner Doug Maclachlan are a pair of octogenarians who have spent the past few years cycling around New Zealand on an electric tandem bike, called "Giselle".

 Marie Stanley is a 72 year-old pensioner struggling with the cost of living and she has a message for younger people about preparing for the future.

A Polish millionaire snatches a hat as a tennis star hands it to a child at the US Open. Two executives are caught having an affair at a Coldplay concert. Public shaming is everywhere. A.J. Daulerio knows all about exposing humiliating secrets and having some of his own secrets put out into the world. He was the editor of the blog Gawker during its most notorious years. Daulerio is now living a very different story, one marked by sobriety, reflection, and second chances. He helps others face shame and embarrassment with honesty and perspective through his newsletter and podcast The Small Bow.

A week on from the shooting of two police officers in Australia's northeast town of Porepunkah, it appears investigators are changing their approach to finding the man believed to be responsible. Brad Foster fills Jesse in on the latest with that case, plus reflects on the Neo-Nazi marches, and discusses Australia's newest regional airline.

All these conversations about people using AI chat bots as therapists got us thinking. We all know relationships are complicated, whether it's matters of the heart, workplace problems, or with friendships. And sometimes, it really helps to get an outside perspective. Today we're trying something new, we've invited a Clinical Psychologist on to discuss some common challenges we all face and how we can navigate them. If you have any issues you'd like addressed email me at afternoons@rnz.co.nz

Working homeless is a phrase that applies to people who are employed but don't have anywhere to live, generally it is a consequence of low wages or other financial instability. It's a topic author Brian Goldstone has investigated for his book "There is no place for us, working and homeless in America" Here to tell us all about it is our book critic Anna Rankin who is joining Jesse from New York as she embarks on her Fullbright scholarship.