Closer Look

On the latest episode of Inside the Village, we explore the looming labour war between the Ford government and 55,000 of the province’s education workers, including librarians, secretaries and custodians. Paul Gray, an associate professor of labour studies at Brock University, helps us make sense of the Ford government’s back-to-work legislation, the rarely used notwithstanding clause, the rhetori...

On the latest episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott take a closer look at your skyrocketing grocery bill. Mike von Massow, a food economist at the University of Guelph, explains what’s behind the soaring prices, what you can do about it, and the truth behind the Competition Bureau’s latest study on the grocery industry. Bottom line: keep scouring for coupons because there’s not much reli...

On episode 21 of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott talk about the tragic shooting that claimed the lives of two South Simcoe police officers. Our guest is Peter Leon, a retired OPP officer who now works as the communications coordinator for the police service in Barrie, where the funeral for the two constables will take place on Oct. 20. In a wide-ranging interview, Leon talks about the dangers...

Has the time come to finally decriminalize prostitution? That question is now in the hands of a Toronto judge after a landmark constitutional challenge. This week on Inside the Village, Scott and Frisco chat with Jenn Clamen from the Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform. The guys also dissect the collapse of the Blue Jays in game 2 of the wild card game. Join us for episode 20 of Inside the V...

On the latest Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott discuss the long road to reconciliation with Mike Cachagee, a residential school survivor who went on to become a prominent Indigenous rights activist, speaker and community leader. Mike was placed in residential school at the age of 4, attending three different institutions until he turned 17. He talks about the horrors he endured and the childho...

The latest episode of Inside the Village with Frisco and Scott covers all things Royal with one of Canada’s leading commentators on the monarchy: journalist Patricia Treble. We talk about the Queen’s epic funeral, William vs. Harry — and why Charles is NOT the King of England, despite what you might think. Justin Trudeau singing in a hotel lobby? We cover that, too. All in all, this episode is a c...

If you can’t make sense of the Canadian economy these days, you’re not alone. Inflation is soaring, interest rates are rising, yet unemployment rates are historically low. Although no one has a crystal ball, it sure seems like a recession is imminent. This week, Frisco and Scott try to make sense of it all with David Macdonald, a senior economist at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Als...

On episode 16 of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott recap some of the important stories our local reporters covered this week, including the tragic car crash that claimed six young lives in Barrie. Also on the program: Peterborough mayor Diane Therrien, who didn’t mince words when asked to comment on the QAnon supporters who came to town to arrest some police officers. She talks about her Twitte...

Grab a cup of coffee for this one! In the latest episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott ask a simple question: How much is your privacy worth? For Tim Hortons, the answer appears to be a hot beverage and a baked good. That’s what the company is offering to customers in its proposed settlement of multiple class-action lawsuits triggered by revelations that the Hortons app was illegally tra...

In our latest episode, Frisco and Scott revisit some popular guests who stopped by to chat on Up Close & Personal, another interview show from Village Media. Hosted by Scott, Up Close & Personal is a deep-dive series that has welcomed prominent Canadians such as LLoyd Robertson, Ron MacLean and former Premier Kathleen Wynne. Reach out to Frisco and Scott

In the latest episode of Inside the Village, we explore an issue that impacts thousands of people across the province: the soaring cost of rent. Dania Majid, a staff lawyer at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ACTO), joins us to talk about the crisis of skyrocketing rental rates. Also on the podcast: Stanley the Goat isn’t going anywhere. You’ll have to listen to find out the rest of the st...

In our latest episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott try to find out why airports are such a mess these days. Joining them on the journey is Gabor Lukacs, president of the advocacy group Air Passenger Rights. Also on the podcast: the lifeguard shortage plaguing Ontario. Barbara Byers of the Lifesaving Society explains why some community pools and beaches may not be able to open this summe...

In this week's episode of Inside the Village, Scott and Frisco explore the U.S. Supreme Court’s contentious decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, granting individual states the power to ban abortion. Tami Friedman, a history professor at Brock University, talks about the ruling’s potential ripple effects north of the rbordr. Also on the program: The search for Bigfoot. Ryan Willis of the Trent Un...

In this milestone episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott explore an issue that most people don’t even know about: disappearing farmland. According to new numbers released by the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), the province is losing 319 acres of farmland every day—or the equivalent of nine family farms per week. We dig into the problem with OFA president Peggy Brekveld. Also on t...

In the latest episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott explore a unique idea that could help seniors across the country stay out of long-term care: a homecare company owned and operated by the very workers who provide the services. Here to talk about the compelling concept is Danielle Turpin, co-founder of Home Care Worker’s Co-operative Inc., and Dr. Simon Berge, director of the Research C...

The overdose crisis continues to rage across the country, with the latest stats revealing that toxic street drugs kill approximately 20 Canadians every single day. On the latest episode of Inside the Village, we hear from Christine Nayler, a Barrie woman who lost her son, Ryan, to poisonous drugs in 2020. Nayler recently travelled to Ottawa to advocate for Bill C-216, a NDP private member’s bill t...

We’re in the final stretch of the Ontario election campaign, and one thing is certain: Not everyone thinks this podcast is worth their time. When the campaign kicked off, Inside the Village extended an open invitation to the leaders of all four major political parties. Two of them—Andrea Horwath of the NDP and Mike Schreiner of the Green Party—took us up on our offer. You can listen to both in-dep...

The cost of living in Canada continues to soar at the fastest rate in decades, and the sticker shock you’re feeling at the grocery store and the gas pumps is going to get worse before it gets better. On this episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott are joined by Jean-Paul Lam, a former assistant chief economist at the Bank of Canada and now a professor of economics at the University of Wate...

In the latest episode of Inside the Village, Scott and Frisco dig into a political controversy in Sault Ste. Marie, where the provincial Liberals rejected a prominent Indigenous lawyer, Naomi Sayers, as a candidate for the provincial election—in favour of an 18-year-old who doesn’t even live in the city. We hear from Sayers, who has chosen to run as an independent. Also on the show, the war agains...

On this week’s episode of Inside the Village, we take a closer look at another hot-button election issue: climate change. Our guest is Keith Brooks from Environmental Defence, a leading climate advocacy organization. We also head to North Bay to find out why a chain-link fence has angered so many west-end residents. Stu Campaigne of BayToday.ca joins us with the full story. And finally, we go insi...

In the latest episode of Inside the Village, Frisco and Scott explore the ‘See You on the Patio’ controversy in Orillia. Editor Dave Dawson and city councillor Ted Emond join us to discuss. Stewart Reynolds became a social-media hit during the pandemic, thanks to his extremely popular Covid comedy videos. We catch up with @brittlestar to see what he’s been up to, and what’s next. And we take a clo...

The housing market in Ontario is off the charts right now. In the latest episode of Inside the Village, Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith try to get some clarity as to why from Tim Hudak, CEO of the Ontario Real Estate Association. Also, free transportation to polling stations? One Cambridge city councilor is trying to make that happen for all residents of his community—and hopes other cities...

In this debut episode of Inside the Village, Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith dig deeper into the disappearance of Katrina Blagdon, a former Canadian soldier who suddenly vanished in St. Catharines on New Year's Eve. We speak to Katrina's mother and sister to get an update on the massive search effort to find her. Also, as the situation in Ukraine worsens, we speak with an Echo Bay...