{"podcast":{"title":"Melbourne News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now!","slug":"melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838","podcast_index_feed_id":7572838,"rss_url":"https://feeds.fastcast.ai/washington-mystics-the-daily-news-now.xml","website_url":"https://thednn.ai/","image_url":"https://image.fastcast.ai/podcasts/washington-mystics-the-daily-news-now.jpg","author":"The Daily News Now!","episode_count":430,"summary":"Hosted by Corey with the Story, Melbourne News Today delivers fast, focused daily updates on the stories shaping Melbourne—from local news and business to culture, sports, and community developments. Designed for quick, on-the-go listening, each episode brings you up to speed in minutes. Produced by AI for speed, consistency, and global scale, the show is part of The Daily News Now network—bringing local news to every city in the world and keeping communities connected. Melbourne News Today is your daily snapshot of what’s happening in your city. Advertise on DNN: advertise@thednn.ai","last_synced_at":"2026-07-27T08:17:26.487596+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838"},"episode":{"title":"Smoking Declines But Illicit Tobacco Rises | Melbourne News","slug":"smoking-declines-but-illicit-tobacco-rises-melbourne-news","published_at":"2026-07-16T15:25:25+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838/smoking-declines-but-illicit-tobacco-rises-melbourne-news","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838","url":"https://sources.thednn.ai/65aee030b7f334c5","audio_url":"https://api.fastcast.ai/audio/f109fe51-6345-48b4-bfaf-cda546d31d50.mp3","summary":"Australia’s daily smoking rate just hit a new low—down to 5.6%, beating government targets and with over two-thirds of adults never having smoked. But there’s a twist: illicit tobacco use has more than doubled to 34%, fueled by high legal taxes. Experts warn cutting taxes won’t fix it—stronger enforcement is key. Meanwhile, overall nicotine use, including vaping, is falling, though new illegal products like nicotine pouches are gaining ground with youth. The big win? Fewer smokers overall. The real challenge? Taming the black market. Listen in comfort: Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN: advertise@thednn.ai This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting. Report issues to feedback@thednn.ai. View sources & latest updates: https://sources.thednn.ai/65aee030b7f334c5","meta_description":"Australia’s daily smoking rate just hit a new low—down to 5.6%, beating government targets and with over two-thirds of adults never having smoked. But the…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":90,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838/episodes/smoking-declines-but-illicit-tobacco-rises-melbourne-news/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/melbourne-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7572838/smoking-declines-but-illicit-tobacco-rises-melbourne-news.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}