Aug 14, 2026 · 24 min · 9 segments
We're back with The Briefing: Our Take, our weekend hang-out where we loosen our ties and kick off our shoes to take you behind the scenes of the week that was, and what you (and we) made of it. This…
Becoming a sex worker saved my investigative journalism career, and if you tell me that I can't do both of those things at the same time, I say, "In this economy?" I'm Ben Seidel.
You might remember me from such news outlets as ABC News, InDaily, and The Briefing.
What I loved about Ben Seidel's chat was it was like he's found a new way to pay for an old ambition.
... musicians? Because there's a stigma attached to sex work which shouldn't be attached to sex work.
But he's showing, "Hey, it can be done." And what struck me was th- that he also said that, by and large, the feedback's been re- really positive-
So it's a good way that other creatives could see, "Hey, there is a path forward here."
"If I really want to be a writer and I'm spending 60 hours a week stacking shelves at Bunnings," by the time you get home you don't really feel like sitting down at the laptop and working.
Well, look, the context here is that Ben Seidel, whose voice you probably would recognize if you're a long-term listener of The Briefing, he was one of our co-hosts here, and I think it was about a week after his role was made redundant, he booked his first, um, in-person sex work client, and he's now using all that money that he's making from sex work to fund his own independent, um, journalism and independent investigations, and we had him on the pod in the middle of the week to talk about, you know, the big journey that was-
I found it really fascinating 'cause when I first met Ben Seidel, and you're probably the same, Dan, we met Ben Seidel with the button-up shirt, the very serious investigative reporter.
Becoming a sex worker saved my investigative journalism career, and if you tell me that I can't do both of those things at the same time, I say, "In this economy?" I'm Ben Seidel.
You might remember me from such news outlets as ABC News, InDaily, and The Briefing.
What I loved about Ben Seidel's chat was it was like he's found a new way to pay for an old ambition.
... musicians? Because there's a stigma attached to sex work which shouldn't be attached to sex work.
But he's showing, "Hey, it can be done." And what struck me was th- that he also said that, by and large, the feedback's been re- really positive-
So it's a good way that other creatives could see, "Hey, there is a path forward here."
"If I really want to be a writer and I'm spending 60 hours a week stacking shelves at Bunnings," by the time you get home you don't really feel like sitting down at the laptop and working.
Well, look, the context here is that Ben Seidel, whose voice you probably would recognize if you're a long-term listener of The Briefing, he was one of our co-hosts here, and I think it was about a week after his role was made redundant, he booked his first, um, in-person sex work client, and he's now using all that money that he's making from sex work to fund his own independent, um, journalism and independent investigations, and we had him on the pod in the middle of the week to talk about, you know, the big journey that was-
I found it really fascinating 'cause when I first met Ben Seidel, and you're probably the same, Dan, we met Ben Seidel with the button-up shirt, the very serious investigative reporter.
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3 of 6
Journalism’s Fundamental Crisis
Automation can create its own replacement problem.
Own the Mistake
The prime minister's response made matters worse.
An Unconventional Way Forward
One journalist found an unconventional way forward.
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