It's expensive, complex and dangerous. But it's one of the most important things we do
Newspaper editors are usually light sleepers.
If I wake during the night, it takes all my willpower to resist a quick check of the news headlines. Usually, I admit defeat. My hand darts out from under the covers and, with a few well-practised thumb presses, conjures the homepages of publications on the other side of the world.
In recent weeks, there has been no such resistance. Overcome by the desire to keep abreast of developments in the Middle East, I found myself reading voraciously at times of the day usually reserved for bakers and burglars.
The significance of the Israel-Iran war and the world's response was not lost on The Age's subscribers or the newsroom, which sprang into action to bring you live blogs and news on significant developments in this rapidly evolving story.
We also helped subscribers understand and interpret events with expert analysis from our partner newsrooms around the world and Melbourne-based experts such as Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who gave Age readers the benefit of her considerable expertise on Iran and shared insights based on her first-hand experience as a prisoner of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Former correspondent and now environment editor Nick O'Malley was invaluable too, unpacking the events that led to the outbreak of war between the two nations.
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On the other side of the world, when most of us were sleeping (and some of us were reading), our overnight teams and foreign correspondents hustled to make sure you woke to the most up-to-date and insightful accounts of what was going on in the world and what it meant. Our North America correspondent, Michael Koziol, in particular, provided reams of essential reading on Donald Trump and the United States' involvement in the conflict, culminating in a presidential boilover on Wednesday.
Foreign affairs correspondent Matthew Knott and photographer Kate Geraghty are on the ground in Israel, where on Wednesday they reported from Beersheba. Stay tuned for some powerful reporting from them tomorrow morning when they examine the domestic political situation in that country. Matt and Kate have also reported from the West Bank and Lebanon in recent months. Access to Iran and Gaza remains difficult for Australian journalists.
We know that in times of global uncertainty, people come to The Age for a reasoned account of events and for the help of trusted journalists and commentators to understand it all. Our data shows world news remains one of the most important topics for our subscribers. Victorians, it is clear to me, care deeply about what happens around the world.
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ABC News
34 minutes ago
- ABC News
Israeli strike kills 18 in central Gaza amid turmoil over food distribution
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Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Major super boost for 200,000 Aussies
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The Age
2 hours ago
- The Age
Chalmers hits China-linked companies with landmark lawsuit over crucial military minerals
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