Storylines

On B.C.'s Sunshine Coast, climate change is changing the region in surprising ways, especially considering it’s nestled in a rainforest. In five of the last eight summers, the region has experienced drought and severe water restrictions. In 2022 it got so bad, The Sunshine Coast Regional District declared a local state of emergency. It’s the first time that’s been done in Canada because of drought...

When a Whitehorse resident wrote a letter to the mayor of a little Alaska border town to say she's boycotting the US and that she's "breaking up with America," it captured a feeling many Canadians have right now. But breakups hurt. And this one cuts deep, upending a tradition of connection between these two northern towns. In the small port town of Skagway, about two hours from Whitehorse, lo...

In the countryside across Cambodia, mass graves known as the killing fields, haunt the landscape. They are reminders of the reign of Pol Pot, one of the 20th century's most violent political leaders. He was the leader of the Khmer Rouge. When they seized power they undertook a radical experiment to create a pure Communist utopia. The plan was called "Year Zero." Pol Pot's communist utopia led to t...

In the small Innu community of Sheshatshiu, Labrador, 27 people have died from drug-related causes in just two years — a staggering number for a population of only 2,000. At the centre of this crisis is an alarming surge in cocaine, now deadlier than before. Police and drug experts say the situation on this Innu reserve is a consequence of a booming cocaine trade that’s unleashed high-purity cocai...

As election signs crowd our streets, leaders hold rallies and our airwaves are full of political advertising, we seldom consider the candidates who run knowing they have almost no chance of winning. These are people who put their names on ballots in ridings dominated by political heavyweights or party strongholds.  In the documentary, "The Longshots", CBC producer Joan Webber introduces us to...

Some people struggling with opioid addiction are turning to a powerful psychedelic called ibogaine. The drug is derived from the bark of an African rainforest shrub, and its proponents believe it sends people on a transformative journey that can free them from addiction.  In countries like Mexico, ibogaine use is unregulated, so resort-like clinics are offering what they consider treatment fo...

In Surrey, B.C., a bird renowned for its beauty became the centre of an ugly dispute. In the quiet Sullivan Hights neighbourhood, a group of peafowl divided a community for over a decade.  The story began when Ryan Craig and his wife bought a home and quickly noticed three peacocks roosting nearby. At first they were charmed, but soon became overwhelmed as this population exploded to some 100...

A black-and-white photograph shows 11 young Chinese boys in untucked shirts standing in a row, with a middle-aged Western man in a suit smiling behind them. This image would lead Fang Sheng on a journey to uncover his father's musical past and the identity of the mysterious "Mr. Adler," — a Jewish refugee who fled to Shanghai during World War II to escape the Nazis. In Finding Adler, we follow Fan...

In central Mississippi the poultry industry dominates, with massive processing facilities operating around the clock. Employing tens of thousands of workers, these chicken plants are the economic backbone of the region.  But on August 7, 2019, officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted one of the largest workplace raids in U.S. history, detaining 680 undocumented workers acro...

It’s a little money saving trick Canadians who live near a provincial border know well. They drive to another province to save a bit because products are cheaper there. It’s the kind of thing you’d do without giving it a second thought. However, for Gerard Comeau, driving from New Brunswick to Quebec to buy a case of beer resulted in a ticket and a constitutional challenge that made it all the way...

Over the past near-century, Academy Award categories have come and gone. In the silent film era there was an award for Best Title Writing. You know, the written cards that summarized the “dialogue”? Oscar worthy.  This year’s 96th Academy Awards broadcast saw Oscars handed out in a whopping 23 different categories, from the big wins like Best Picture, to awards for behind-the-scenes expertise...

The Chinook salmon of the Yukon River are on the brink of extinction. This cultural keystone species has  the longest salmon migration in the world, up to 3,200 kilometres. But warming waters caused by climate change, along with other stresses, have decimated their numbers, forcing a seven-year fishing ban.  For Indigenous communities in the region, this is not only an environmental trag...

In July 2024, seven fishermen from around New-Wes-Valley, Newfoundland set out on their fishing boat in search of turbot.   While at sea that day a fire broke out near the engine room, before long the bunkroom was full of smoke. The seven sailors had no choice but to abandon ship and before long they were  sitting in a small life-raft.  What followed was a 52-hour ordeal that t...

The stories of undocumented people living in the United States are well known, especially since President Donald Trump began a major immigration crackdown. However, there is also a sizable population of undocumented people in Canada. According to the federal government, there could be as many as 500,000 people living here without legal status. Many of them work in jobs that make them like "ghosts"...

Early one August morning, the cameras outside Jas Arora's house in Abbotsford, B.C., recorded someone throwing glass bottles at his home. When Jas stepped outside to investigate, he found broken glass and smelled gasoline. He then got a call from a man speaking Punjabi, demanding millions of dollars. Jas is among many South Asian Canadians targeted by people who, the RCMP says, have connections to...

A rogue wave is defined as being at least 2.2 times as high as the average waves which have come before. They are described as coming out of nowhere and their consequences can be deadly.  In her documentary, The Wave, Joan Webber chronicles swimmers struck by these potentially deadly maritime phenomena. Though rogue waves themselves are not infrequent, it's considered rare that a person is hi...

In Vancouver's Lower Mainland, a dealer known only as "Jay" sold drugs to teens, making drop-offs right next to their high schools and homes, offering free "goodie bags" of Xanax and other drugs.  When Julie Nystrom discovered her 17-year-old daughter was hooked on counterfeit pills from Jay, she went to the police. The cops told her that they needed names, details, so she decided to take mat...

In an empty parking lot somewhere in northern California, Andrew Song and Luke Iseman inflate a balloon the size of a small car, full of sulfur dioxide. They will then launch the balloon high up into the stratosphere where it will pop, releasing its sulfur dioxide contents.  Song and Iseman are the co-founders of Make Sunsets, a geoengineering startup that sells cooling credits. For a price,...

Despite being our national sport, and that most Canadians agree it should be for everyone, hockey remains surprisingly exclusive, especially when it comes to ice time. For some, the barriers to access the game are significant, and the sport can feel unwelcoming.  In his documentary, “Hockey for All,” CBC journalist Douglas Gelevan uncovers how the complex system of ice time allocation often f...

Sethu Ramaswamy grew up in a cultured Indian family and it rubbed off on her. She loved books and ideas. By the age of 10 Sethu had read all of Charles Dickens’ novels, but her emerging interest in books and ideas would have to be put on hold.  When she was the same age, she was forced to leave school, get married, and become a mother at 15. As an adult, she raised a family and for...

Every day, in Hamburg, Germany, Annette Venebrügge wakes up to a single word emailed from her friend Tina Oehmsen-Clark in Toronto. And every evening, she sends one back. No sentences, no stories — just one carefully chosen word, and always in German. What started as a simple pandemic project between two art school friends has grown into an archive of over 3,000 words. In her documentary "One Word...

In Washington state, a law known as Ricky’s Law, allows authorities to force people with addiction into treatment. The law is named after Ricky Garcia, whose struggles with drugs and alcohol inspired him and his friend Lauren Davis to push for change. From emergency room visits to suicide attempts, Davis watched as Garcia went through more than 75 emergency visits in just two years. Davis helped s...

They needed certainty. They got chaos. For over a decade, countless people from at least five different countries put their trust in a company offering prenatal paternity tests. It promised clients “99.9% accuracy” — but then routinely, identified the wrong biological fathers. In the six-part investigative podcast Uncover: Bad Results from CBC News, journalists Rachel Houlihan and Jorge Barrera tr...

On this week’s show, an investigation into land, money and power that has gripped the Piapot First Nation in Saskatchewan. For decades, a small group of band members has been leasing huge swaths of land owned by the community and personally pocketing millions in rental fees  When a new band council decided to fix the issue, there was a pushback that included threats and confrontations with fa...

This week on Storylines, the story of Vince Carter, the Toronto Raptors legend who transformed basketball in Canada. From the high of “Vinsanity” to the low of his bitter departure from The Raptors, Carter’s career left a permanent mark on Canadian sports fans.  Carter’s story is told by Adrian Ma, a Toronto journalist and professor. As a kid growing up in Ancaster, Ontario, Adrian spent hour...