{"podcast":{"title":"Conversations","slug":"conversations-320217","podcast_index_feed_id":320217,"rss_url":"https://www.abc.net.au/feeds/7711104/podcast.xml","website_url":"https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/conversations/","image_url":"https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/9419a7d446ad3f4620983df5d8d048f1.jpg?src","author":"ABC Australia","episode_count":2000,"summary":"Conversations draws you deeper into the life story of someone you may have heard about, but never met. Journey into their world, joining them on epic adventures to unfamiliar places, back in time to wild moments of history, and into their deepest memories, to be moved by personal stories of resilience and redemption. Hosted by Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski, Conversations is the ABC's most popular long-form interview program. Every day we explore the vast tapestry of human experience, weaving together narratives from history, science, art, and personal storytelling. Conversations Live is coming to the stage! Join Sarah Kanowski and Richard Fidler for an unmissable night of unforgettable stories, behind-the-scenes secrets, and surprise guests. Australia’s most-loved podcast — live, up close, and in the moment. Find out more at the Conversations website.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-24T00:20:44.125501+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217"},"episode":{"title":"A race against time to help my friend dying from mesothelioma","slug":"a-race-against-time-to-help-my-friend-dying-from-mesothelioma","published_at":"2026-06-22T01:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217/a-race-against-time-to-help-my-friend-dying-from-mesothelioma","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217","url":"https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/conversations/james-ologhlin-asbestos-mesothelioma-friendship/106812852","audio_url":"https://mediacore-live-production.akamaized.net/audio/02/lm/Z/df.mp3","summary":"James O'Loghlin had only just reconnected with one of his best and oldest friends, Jum Wallner, when Jum received some terrible news. What began next was a high stakes race with a fatal deadline. The two men had grown up in Canberra, where thousands of homes had been filled with asbestos, which was often carelessly installed and removed. Jum himself had grown up in one of these so-called \"Mr Fluffy\" homes, named after the local company that had installed the carcinogenic insulation. When Jum felt a pain in his side, it wasn't long before the father of two and husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma and given months to live. Jum had discovered that if you got sick from being exposed to asbestos in your workplace you were entitled to compensation, but if it came from your home, you got nothing. So Jum asked his old friend James for some help to petition the powers that be to help asbestos victims like himself and their families. James began a race against time, trying to convince both the ACT and Federal governments to help Jum and others, in the middle of a pandemic, before it was too late. Along the way, James and Jum reconnected deeply as friends who desperately wished they had more time together. The Missing Piece is published by Echo Publishing. More information about the Loose-Fill Asbestos Disease Support Scheme can be found at the ACT Government's website. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores friendship, male friendship, university days, terminal disease, James Hardie, cancer, terminal diagnosis, how to grieve a friend, activism, petition governments, Covid, pandemic, Greg Hunt, Angus Taylor, compensation, accidental activist, dying friends, mourning, funerals, Andrew Barr, ALP, Labor part…","meta_description":"James O'Loghlin had only just reconnected with one of his best and oldest friends, Jum Wallner, when Jum received some terrible news. What began next was…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3118,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/conversations-320217/episodes/a-race-against-time-to-help-my-friend-dying-from-mesothelioma/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217/a-race-against-time-to-help-my-friend-dying-from-mesothelioma.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}