Right now, a hulking Soviet-era Russian cargo plane is just parked at Toronto’s Pearson Airport. And Canada is trying to do something nobody has ever done before…pull off a legal heist. Host Noor sits down with IJF reporter Zak Vescera to talk about why that plane matters, and how far we’re willing to go to keep it. And the latest on US accusations of lawfare from the International Criminal Court, coupled with a sanction on Judge Kimberly Prost, who sits on the ICC. And, newly released data on t...
Sep 02, 2025•32 min•Ep. 1221
Three years before the first episode of SNL. Four years before the first episode of SCTV. Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner. Andrea Martin and later Dave Thomas, co-starred in a legendary production of a musical called Godspell at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto. The show that launched the careers of a whole generation of comedians is now the subject of a new doc at TIFF. Appropriately titled, You Had to Be There: How The Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution, Spread Love a...
Sep 01, 2025•26 min•Ep. 1220
Doug Ford, Danielle Smith, and Pierre Poilievre all seem to want to make sure we have the right to beat people up in our homes. Only if they aren’t invited, of course. Following a case out of Lindsay, Ontario, the media is all abuzz with talk about the right to self-defence in the case of home invasions. But we have a right, within reason. So what’s the big deal? And are we avoiding talking about systemic problems? Harrison Lowman from The Hub, breaks it all down with Jesse. Host: Jesse Brown Cr...
Aug 29, 2025•29 min•Ep. 1219
Pierre Poilievre won his byelection and will be returning to Parliament in September. He’s raring to go, and probably drafting a whole bunch of new catchphrases and slogans. He’s back and ready to try and convince conservatives he’s the right man for the job. But, in the media, the picture being painted is a little less clear. One poll shows the party being neck and neck with the Liberals. Another shows a huge disparity. How do we make sense of all of this? Harrison Lowman joins Jesse to break i...
Aug 27, 2025•30 min•Ep. 1218
China’s tariffs on canola seeds would cripple western Canadian farmers. But this tit for tat fight is about more than just canola. Host Noor Azrieh sits down with Vina Nadjibulla who thinks China’s playing us and we shouldn't take the bait. And the latest news on Carney’s elbows on Trump’s tariffs, Canada’s all boys trip to Berlin, and the secrets our allies aren't telling us. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Host/Producer), Caleb T...
Aug 26, 2025•35 min•Ep. 1217
Something wild happened in Nova Scotia during filming of the James Cameron film Titanic. Parts of the blockbuster were filmed in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, and on the last night of filming there, someone did something. Something that caused director James Cameron to question reality itself, something that resulted in the rest of the cast and crew being piled into vans and rushed to a nearby hospital. The cops looked into it, but they never figured out who was responsible. That mystery is now a piec...
Aug 25, 2025•18 min•Ep. 1216
In July, Mark Carney made it clear to public workers that there would be a tightening of the belt. Ministers were told to save 15% from their departmental budgets over the next three years. The deadline to do so is next week, August 28th. What that looks like in practice is pretty bleak. By 2028, it has been estimated that over 57,000 full-time equivalent workers will be laid off. Who will be laid off? And is this type of austerity bad governance? Meanwhile, in Ontario, Doug Ford is mandating a ...
Aug 22, 2025•34 min•Ep. 1215
The Air Canada strike this past weekend affected tens of thousands of Canadians and international travelers. The negotiations have been going on for eight months, the contract renewal was known about for ten years, so how did the Air Canada strike sneak up on Canadians so fast? Why were flight attendants, who are primarily women, not being paid for “ground work” for so long? Is labour coverage so non-existent in Canada that these stories just go unnoticed? Labour reporter Stacy Thomas joins San ...
Aug 20, 2025•29 min•Ep. 1214
Our kids are broke and seriously unemployed. We're in the dog days of summer, and for generations, that marked the end of scooping ice cream at the corner shop, pulling espresso shots at the café, or lifeguarding at the local pool. But for many young Canadians, this isn't the end, cause there was no beginning. This episode, host Noor Azrieh unpacks what happens when young people can't work. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Host/Prod...
Aug 19, 2025•32 min•Ep. 1213
Singh built a bot. It’s a concoction of ChatGPT, Grok, and a handful of other advanced AI systems that might destroy truth-based civil discourse once and for all. Or. What if that same technology could be harnessed to champion the truth? To do what no human could possibly do to refute lies and misinformation? Today we talk to Singh about his creation, DOGEAI. He’s been labelled a MAGA-bot master but he says he’s really a progressive technologist. Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor), Bruce Thorson (Sen...
Aug 18, 2025•38 min•Ep. 1212
TIFF’s whiff and the legacy of Trudeau’s media policies. Carney is reversing course on the Liberal’s approach to media, but can the Canadian media ecosystem exorcise the ghost of Trudeau? Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Editor) Guest: Ronit Novak Additional music by Audio Network Further reading: TIFF pulls document...
Aug 15, 2025•36 min•Ep. 1211
Last year Canadaland launched a new initiative called the Canadalabs Audio Journalism Fellowship programme, where we hired two young reporters to come and produce a story with us and learn from our team. This week, we caught up with past Canadaland fellows to see how they’ve fared. Was their time at Canadaland worth it? And we are talking about that because we have a fresh batch of fellows that will be joining the team very soon! Plus, an update about the future of this show. Host: Sam Konnert C...
Aug 14, 2025•2 min•Ep. 10
Is Evan Solomon a chatbot? Deciphering the Minister of AI’s jargon-filled tech-speak. Canada is going all in on AI, but what is the plan, exactly? Plus, new Trudeau tea and a controversial National Post headline. Clarification: A previous version of this episode implied that Cohere was both Canadian and American-owned. It is the data centre that is American owned. We regret the error. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer)...
Aug 13, 2025•40 min•Ep. 1210
Apparently, the reason you’re broke isn’t just because of your questionable shopping addiction, it’s because Canada has a full-blown productivity crisis… To host Noor Azrieh, that seems dramatic. She says she’s actually quite productive at work. But economists Brian Lewis and Philip Cross say this isn’t about how hard you grind, it’s about how the entire economy turns work into wealth…or, in Canada’s case, doesn’t. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Producer...
Aug 12, 2025•38 min•Ep. 1209
Mark Carney is nation building. To do that, he needs to rebuild the Canadian Armed Forces. Between decades of neglect and the forces’ own goals by way of bad headlines that’s no mean feat. Rebuilding the military, from new recruits to new fighter planes, will take more than promising government money. There’s a pitch that needs to be made to the Canadian public and partnerships to be forged with the private sector for investment. So how will the Prime Minister convince the Canadian public and pr...
Aug 11, 2025•30 min•Ep. 1208
The sentencing of Convoy leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber gets political. Poilievre and other Conservative MPs are outraged about the Crown’s requested sentences for Convoy Leaders. Looking back, was the convoy a violent uprising or an act of political protest? Plus, sunny skies for solar and the battle over Toronto’s hot dog throne. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate Producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Pr...
Aug 08, 2025•35 min•Ep. 1207
It’s not a secret that music makes us feel things, but how does it do it? How do composers create music that makes us happy, sad, confused, emotional, hopeful, scared, and perhaps even make us laugh from time to time? This week on Off The Record, producer Tristan Capacchione chats with his old colleagues and associates about the secrets of music and gives you a bit of insight into how we choose and use music at Canadaland. Host: Sam Konnert Credits: Tristan Capacchione (Writer and Producer), Ton...
Aug 07, 2025•2 min•Ep. 9
Canada can’t cut a deal, but Carney’s political honeymoon continues. Should Carney take some blame for the ongoing trade war? Plus, why real estate developers in BC apparently need foreign money and a misleading image on the New York Times front page causes controversy. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking), max collins (Director of Audio, Mixing and Mastering), Jesse Brown (Editor) Guest: Max Fawcett Further reading This ep...
Aug 06, 2025•30 min•Ep. 1206
The Canadian Armed Forces has an extremism problem, and that story has fallen out of the news cycle way too quickly. Just recently, four men have been arrested in an alleged violent extremist plot to reclaim land near Quebec City. Plus, the CAF is investigating a private Facebook group where active members shared content deemed “abhorrent” by military leadership. Host Noor Azrieh talks to Andy Knight about his explosive report on white supremacy in the military, and whether extremists are being ...
Aug 05, 2025•27 min•Ep. 1205
Canada is now the number one provider of medical assistance in dying in the world per capita. The latest stats, from 2023, show that MAID accounted for almost 5% of all deaths in Canada, or around 15,000 people in that year. And it’s only been legal since 2016. MAID was introduced for patients who were experiencing intolerable suffering, irreversible decline and whose death was foreseeable. Within a few years it was expanded to cover people who are not close to death but who are living with chro...
Aug 04, 2025•42 min•Ep. 1204
An update on Canada’s approach to Palestine and an in-depth discussion of the Hockey Canada Trial and why the coverage isn’t reckoning with the deeper issues within our national sport. Arshy Mann co-hosts. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Editor) Guest: Arshy Mann Photo: Noor Azrieh Additional music by Audio Network ...
Aug 01, 2025•35 min•Ep. 1203
When working on one of our episodes of the Politics edition about tariffs, senior producer, Aviva Lessard wondered why there are no Canadian car companies. This question felt like too much of a digression for the episode about tariffs, but in doing some research on it, Sam learned that we actually used to have Canadian car companies going all the way back to Confederation in 1867. So buckle up for the bumpy road that Canada's cars have traveled. Producers Aviva and James Nicholson join Sam in th...
Jul 31, 2025•55 sec•Ep. 8
More statements about Israel/Palestine from Carney’s government, but does Canada have the courage to take action? Arshy Mann joins Noor Azrieh to assess Canada’s rhetoric on Gaza. Plus, Netanyahu sits down with Canada’s Nelk Boys. Would Noor or Arshy interview him, if they had the opportunity? Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jes...
Jul 30, 2025•45 min•Ep. 1202
Over 200 candidates, a riding bigger than Switzerland and an immense amount of pressure on the leader of the opposition. To find out who (and what) Pierre is up against, host Sam Konnert travels to the riding to meet the candidates taking him on. Host: Sam Konnert Credits: Sam Konnert (Host/Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Max Collins (Director of Audio) Jesse Brown (Editor), Tony Wang (Artwork) Guests: Bonnie Critchley, Sarah Spanier, Mont...
Jul 29, 2025•35 min•Ep. 1201
For over 40 years Burtynsky’s camera has captured mountain ranges scarred and scooped from mining operations, roiling tar sand tailing ponds, and fractal river systems alight with red industrial sludge. His work is a catalogue of the awesome destructive power at the root of our industrial culture. And yet, Burtynsky’s images are beautiful. That contradiction of beautiful destruction has fuelled the praise and criticism around Burtynsky for decades. Ed Burtynsky’s is probably the biggest deal thi...
Jul 28, 2025•31 min•Ep. 1200
Jordan Peterson sold his Toronto home, but what’s the next move for Canada’s biggest media export? Tracing the arc of Peterson’s ambitions from media-hungry U of T prof to global media personality. J.J. McCullough joins to explain why Peterson is leaving Canada and trying to take over the world. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio and Fact Checker), Je...
Jul 25, 2025•36 min•Ep. 1199
Some of you had simple questions about our office space, and what Victoria's non-profit campus & community radio station does for Canadaland. And some of you wanted to know what happened with former shows and hosts at the company. Plus did Jesse Brown FORCE Noor to work while sick? Today on Off The Record, an “Ask Me Anything” with the Canadaland staff. Host: Sam Konnert Credits: Tristan Capacchione (Producer), Tony Wang (Executive Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Pub...
Jul 24, 2025•2 min•Ep. 7
Why are we reporting on American news when we have more than enough to cover here in Canada? Canadian media has been breathlessly covering Trump, Epstein, Stephen Colbert, and The Wall Street Journal, but all this reporting doesn’t add much to the conversation. Is it time to decouple Canadian news from the US news cycle? Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max coll...
Jul 23, 2025•35 min•Ep. 1198
Canada is obsessed with dairy. It’s quite literally part of our culture…we’re talking soccer medals with the little blue milk logo on them. But someone else is also utterly obsessed with Canadian dairy. Donald Trump. What does Trump want…and why? And if Carney caved on the NATO budget, and on the Digital Services tax - Is he going to cave on Trumps demands on dairy too? Host: Sam Konnert Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Host/Producer), Caleb Thompson...
Jul 22, 2025•26 min•Ep. 1197
It’s now common to get AI generated answers from Google when searching the web. The whole concept of searching Google to find actual websites is almost over. Google does not want you to click on a link and go to a website. Instead, they're giving users as the first thing you see, an AI overview that analyzes hundreds, thousands, (possibly) millions of websites to give you an answer right there on the Google page. Convenient? Yes. User friendly? Yup. Causing news publishers to lose their minds? A...
Jul 21, 2025•33 min•Ep. 1196
