It was labelled by the influential Australian online website Crikey magazine as being, "an unmissable current affairs program that almost certainly creates more headlines in the next day's newspapers than any other TV show in the country.

The time slot of the program greatly improved the prospective line up of the overseas contributors and enabled the show to interpolate the Australian perspective with relevant, international viewpoints.

Esteemed reporters on the program included Margot O'Neill, John Stewart, Kerry Brewster, Ginny Stein, Jason Om, Jamie Cummins, David Lipson, Barbara Miller, Helen Vatsikopoulos and Matt Wordsworth.

Former presenters included: Kerry O'Brien, Mark Colvin, Maxine McKew, Virginia Trioli, Leigh Sales, Ali Moore, Ticky Fullerton, and Tony Jones.

Reporter Suzanne Smith in 2005 won a Logie Award for "Most Outstanding News Coverage" for her story about sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory.