15 January – An Australian Sea Shepherd Conservation Society activist, Benjamin Potts, and his British colleague, Giles Lane, are detained on board the Japanese whaling vessel Yushin Maru No. 2 after boarding the ship which was inside the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary near Antarctica.[4]
17 January – An explosion in a wine processing shed at Drayton's Winery in the New South WalesHunter Valley kills two men including winery owner Trevor Drayton, and injures one.[6]
23 January – After 128 years, the final edition of The Bulletin is published. Its demise was announced on 20 January.[7]
13 February – An apology containing the word "sorry" is made by Kevin Rudd to Indigenous Australians for the stolen generation as the first order of business of the new Parliament.[10]
22 February – Parliament descends into chaos with opposition frontbenchers ejected, question time suspended and speakers unable to control the house. A cardboard cut-out of the Prime Minister is bought into the parliament by opposition members angry about sitting time on a Friday.[11]
March
12 March – Adelaide experiences a national record heat wave for an Australian capital city, recording over ten straight days of temperatures over 35 degrees Celsius.[12]
16 March – The South Australian heat wave continues with Adelaide experiencing its 14th straight day of temperatures above 35 degrees.
16 March – The Finding Sydney Foundation announces it has located the wrecks of the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney and the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran, which both sunk after a battle in 1941.[14]
30 April – The Victorian government agrees to implement safety measures for Melbournetaxi drivers, after dozens of taxis blockade the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets following the stabbing of a driver the previous day.[20]
May
1 May – Five people are killed when a runabout collides with a fishing boat on Sydney Harbour.[21]
17 May – Fugitive gangster Tony Mokbel arrives in Australia following his extradition from Greece.[22]
22 May
Revolutionary Australian forum television programme Q&A broadcasts its first episode.[23]
8 August – The Australian Federal Police conduct what is claimed to be the world's biggest ecstasy drugs bust, seizing A$440 million worth of the drug.[34]
6 September – By-elections are held in the federal electorates of Mayo and Lyne, following the resignation of MPs Alexander Downer and Mark Vaile respectively. The Liberal Party retains Mayo, but the National Party loses Lyne to an independent candidate, Rob Oakeshott.
10 October – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd receives a phone call from U.S. PresidentGeorge W. Bush during a dinner party at The Lodge. A subsequent edition of The Australian newspaper reports that during the call, President Bush asked Rudd what the G-20 was. Although the White House and the Prime Minister deny this exchange took place, the Opposition uses the event to question Mr Rudd's discretion.[37]
15 December – Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announces that Australia will cut its greenhouse gas emissions by five per cent of 2000 levels by the year 2020, with an option to reduce by 15 per cent if other developing countries take similar action. The announcement is criticised by the Australian Greens and environmental groups as not going far enough.[39]
23 May – New South Wales Police seize a number of photographs depicting naked children by artist Bill Henson which were to be exhibited the previous day.[42]
5 January – Fox Sports commentator, Clinton Grybas, dies at 32 as a result of falling whilst sleepwalking.
14 January – Nine Network revamps its logo and on-air graphics as a part of a new network re-launch, and after a two-year absence, returns the famous "Nine Balls" logo, except instead of balls, they use discs.
7 February – Veteran television presenter Ray Martin quits the Nine Network after 30 years with the network.[49]
8 February – At 12:00 PM AEDT ABC TV officially became ABC1.[50]
12 February – The Supreme Court of Victoria places an injunction on the broadcast and exhibition of the Nine Network's drama series Underbelly in Victoria, following concerns that the series, which depicts Melbourne's gangland wars, could prejudice an ongoing murder trial.[51]
14 March – A Current Affair broadcasts its 5000th episode and celebrates its 20th anniversary.
7 April – The Nine Network makes the first episodes of the new series Canal Road available for download over the Internet, ahead of its television broadcast on 16 April.[52]
2 June – The Seven Network apologises after airing an episode of the hospital drama All Saints in which it is suggested that a child born of an incestuous relationship is likely to result in the child having Down's syndrome.[55]
7 July – Seven Network starts broadcasting its watermark on all news and current affairs programs.
21 July – The final episode of Big Brother Australia, which was axed by Network Ten the week prior, goes to air. The winner of the final series is 52-year-old grandmother Terri Munro.[56]
25 July – The Nine Network's Nightline news program is broadcast for the last time after 16 years on air.
28 July – TV journalist, This Is Your Life host and also a former host of A Current Affair, Mike Munro announces he is leaving the Nine Network after 22 years, due to budget cuts.
3 August – The Nine Network's Sunday program is broadcast for the last time after 27 years on air.
7 January – The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suspends India's cricket tour of Australia after objecting to a three-match ban on Harbhajan Singh for allegedly calling Australian player Andrew Symonds a "big monkey".[59] The tour suspension is lifted on 9 January after umpire Steve Bucknor is removed from the third test.
7 September – The Melbourne Storm win their third straight minor premiership following the final main round of the 2008 NRL season. Like the previous two years, the win would later be revoked in 2010 following the club's salary cap breach. The Canterbury Bulldogs finish in last position, claiming the wooden spoon.
26 October – Ryan Briscoe takes his Team Penske run Dallara IR5 to victory in the 2008 Nikon Indy 300, becoming in the last running of the event, the first Australian driver to win the Gold Coast Indycar race.
28 December – The yacht Wild Oats XI claims its fourth consecutive line honours win in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. Quest is the race's handicap winner.[72]
^Darby, Andrew: Whale activists 'captured' Archived 18 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Age, 16 January 2008.
^Police Use Pepper Spray on Fans at Australian Open After Racial Slur Allegations Archived 19 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Fox News Channel, 16 January 2008.
^ACP Magazines announces closure of The Bulletin magazine Archived 27 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Bulletin (via ninemsn), 24 January 2008.
^Shanahan, Leo: Paddling protesters challenge dredger Archived 16 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Age, 8 February 2008.
^"A historic first: traditional Indigenous welcome begins Parliament". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 12 February 2008. Archived from the original on 21 August 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
^"Rudd: We say sorry". ABC News Online. ABC. 13 February 2008. Archived from the original on 20 February 2008. Retrieved 13 February 2008.
^"Cardboard Rudd sparks uproar in Parliament". ABC News Online. ABC. 22 February 2008. Archived from the original on 25 February 2008. Retrieved 22 February 2008.
^Record heatwave in SA[dead link], Sky News, 12 March 2008.
^"Club offers apology after NSW MP flags legal action". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 June 2008. Archived from the original on 11 June 2008. Retrieved 19 June 2008.
^Steger, Jason (20 June 2008). "Third book is a charm for author". The Age. Archived from the original on 19 November 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2008.
^Aravind Adiga wins Booker prize Archived 18 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Age, 15 October 2008.
^Smile Australia, you're on Google's candid camera, The Age, 5 August 2008.
^It's an Oscar for Eva, The Age, 26 February 2008.
^Idato, Michael; Bibby, Paul (8 February 2008). "Not the retiring type: Martin quits Nine". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 13 April 2008. Retrieved 8 February 2008.
^Knox, David (8 February 2008). "Welcome ABC1..... bye bye ABC TV!". tvtonight.com.au. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. Retrieved 8 February 2008.
^Underbelly blocked by murder trial judge[dead link], Herald Sun, 12 February 2008.
^Nine downloads series ahead of TV launch[dead link], News Limited, 7 April 2008.