CANADALAND

Is AI slop the ultimate weapon for foreign interference? Or are we spiraling into another internet-fueled moral panic? Last week several AI-generated photos of Mark Carney and Ghislaine Maxwell looking chummy went viral. It was easy to spot the fake, but it raised an important question: should we be worried about AI in this election? Ryan Broderick, author of the Garbage Day newsletter, and host o...

Take your pick: censoring, banning, removing, or “weeding.” However you want to describe it, Canadians are pulling books from library shelves.  The books in question range from The Handmaid's Tale, Gender Queer: A Memoir,  to the works of Dr. Seuss and Roald Dahl.  The drive to rid our shelves, particularly school library shelves, of books comes from both left and right. Both sides censo...

Trudeau rides off into a ‘Sunny Ways’ sunset. As Mark Carney takes over as Prime Minister, Stuart Benson joins to consider Trudeau’s legacy and whether his trade war finale will reshape how he is remembered. Plus, Trudeau’s impact on the media might get overlooked, but it will have lasting effects on the viability of Canadian news outlets.  Click here to complete the Canadaland survey—thank y...

The Liberal’s Carneycopia is betting big on Dad Energy.  Mark Carney wins the Liberal leadership in a landslide,  but is he a saviour or a snoozefest?  Plus, Tesla’s surprising sales spike and BC salmon farming courtroom drama.  Click here to complete the Canadaland survey—thank you! Host: Sam Konnert Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technic...

Canada is deep in the trenches of a trade war with the United States. After U.S. President Trump unpaused the 25% tariffs on all Canadian imports, all hell has broken loose: the federal government has fired back, provincial leaders are firing shots of their own, and more threats have been made - and then walked back - by the White House. All this, while Canadians are caught in the middle. What sen...

When Trudeau prorogued Parliament 26 bills were binned. Bills are the democratic process made concrete and the laws that they can turn into are the end product of the whole political machine. They decide whether you have the right to die by choice. They decide what you can and cannot say. They tell you whether or not you can go back to work or not because you can or cannot afford to send your kid...

Battle lines are being drawn in the Canadian tech industry around a policy initiative that is drawing comparison to Elon Musk’s DOGE.  Plus, updates on tariffs, and The Breakdown podcast’s legal battle.  CORRECTION : In an earlier version of this episode, producer James Nicholson suggests reports of the number of USMCA-compliant goods imported from Canada to the United States are between...

Making Sense of Trump’s Tariffying Tuesday. Douglas Soltys joins to dissect Trump’s trade war chaos, Doug Ford’s tough talk, and Trudeau’s non-tariff options.   Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Editor) Guest: Douglas Soltys   Further Reading on our Website  ...

For the first time since 2021, the Liberals are beating the Conservatives in a recent poll. We’ll find out on March 9th if Carney is officially sticking around for the long haul. And then? He’s going to be the Prime Minister - at least for a little while. Carney-mania is going around - is it real? Or seriously overblown? Is he Canada's Kamala Harris - mild, overhyped, and fated to lose - or a seri...

It's so normal to complain about the CBC that it's hard to imagine that one day, maybe one day soon, there may no longer be a CBC to complain about. The Conservatives are campaigning on defunding it. The Mother Corp. itself can’t seem to figure out which way is up, particularly when it comes to television ratings. Sure, radio still pulls in the numbers, but what is the future of radio itself? So,...

Why not being American is at the core of Canadian identity.  With Canada’s big win at the 4 Nations and SNL’s 50th anniversary, Canada entered the American zeitgeist. But is there more to Canadian identity than hockey, poutine, and not being American?   Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director...

Canadians are furious at CBC’s Cross Country Checkup trainwreck.   Plus, why did CBC’s new mandate sit on Trudeau’s desk for months? National Post’s Rahim Mohamed co-hosts.  We want to hear from you! Tell Jesse your plan to “Unfuck the CBC.”   On Thursday, February 27th, 1pm ET/10am PT, go to www.callinstudio.com/show/canadaland   or call us toll-free at 1 888 401 705...

The Arctic is quickly becoming the center of a geopolitical shitstorm. We’re talking power, resources, and territory at stake. And everyone wants a piece of it. Donald Trump floated taking Greenland and Canada to make his claim. But he’s not the only one. Russia’s making moves. So is China. And Canada? Politicians, left and right, are talking about it. Host Noor Azrieh sits down with Gavin John, a...

Has everybody lost their minds? Are we buying guns and deploying troops and making plans to fend off a U.S. invasion?  Are some of us pre-emptively surrendering, trying to be the first to bend a knee and curry favour with our inevitable orange overlord?  What happened to our steely northern resolve?  We’re supposed to survey the histrionics of our melodramatic American neighbours, and th...

Pierre Poilievre’s patriotic pivot.  At his “Canada First” rally, Pierre Poilievre unveiled his new messaging, but will it be enough to counter his sudden decline in the polls?  Dani Paradis joins to assess the Pierre 3.0 rebrand.  Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Sam Konnert (Fact Checking), max collins (Di...

The $6 million lawsuit that killed an indie Alberta podcast.  Nate Pike’s The Breakdown has been covering allegations of corruption in Danielle Smith’s government until a court order forced him to shut down.  Plus, how Donald Trump Jr. hooked Canada’s premiers up with an $85 000 a month lobbying contract. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor...

Jagmeet Singh has taken a lot of shit: his nice watch, his ambivalence on taking down the Liberals, and of course his polling. But he says he’s not giving up. He says he’s here to win. Sit down with Noor as she goes past the “corporate interest” talking points and grills the leader on all things NDP. Why doesn’t he have a successor? Why won’t he step down? Why is he so fancy for a lefty? Host: Noo...

The documentary Russians at War shows the invasion of Ukraine from the point of view of Moscow's troops. The doc was supposed to screen during the Toronto International Film Festival, but organisers cancelled a screening amid protests and over threats to festival operations and public safety. A large part of the film’s funding came through TVO, Ontario's public broadcaster. The filmmaker is a Russ...

Somebody That I U.S. to Know. Jan Wong joins for a special Valentine’s Day farewell to the Canada-US romance.  Plus, is PornHub ethical?    Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor), Sam Konnert (Fact Checking), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Editor) Guest: Jan Wong Send tips/stories about Girls Gone Wild to hello@courtneykoc...

Is there order to Trump’s tariff chaos? Jan Wong joins to discuss steel and aluminum tariffs, and whether Trump has a plan behind his bullying and bluster.  Plus, whatever happened with the inquiry into foreign interference in our elections?  Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Sam Konnert (Fact Checking), max colli...

The government hired 110,000 workers over the past 10 years, did we get 110,000 times more efficient? It doesn’t look like it, but veteran public servant Michael Wernick breaks it all down for Noor.  And, yes folks, we’re talking about tariffs again, because Donald Trump enacted a 25 percent tariff on all steel and aluminum imports, with NO exceptions. Plus, our nominations for Fentanyl Czar,...

McInnes and Goldstein both started in zines. The underground DIY magazine culture of the 80s and 90s. Zines were homemade photocopied pamphlets about anything and everything. As long as you had paper, glue, staples, maybe a few shitty drawings, and you could sneak access to a photocopier, you could publish your own zine. Nobody went viral, nobody made money, no one was an influencer, but thou...

Poilievre’s slogans can’t compete with “Buy Canadian.”  Trudeau’s speech inspires a groundswell of national unity, while Poilievre watches from the sidelines. The Tyee’s Jen St Denis joins Noor Azrieh for a vibe check on federal politics. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Sam Konnert (Fact Checking), max collins (Direc...

A tariff reprieve and the trade war that wasn’t.  Trump’s tariff threats caused a frenzy of breaking news coverage, but can we really fault Canadian news outlets for reporting Trump’s every move?  Jen St. Denis of the Tyee joins Noor Azrieh to assess the breathless tariff coverage and what we’ve learned so far about covering Trump 2.0.  Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Pr...

On Saturday, President Trump followed through with his promise of 25 percent tariffs on Canadian goods and 10 percent on energy. We clapped back with our own. But late yesterday, after a couple of calls between the two leaders, Trump relented after Trudeau said he outlined Canada’s $1.3 billion border plan and also signed a new intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl. Trump said he’...