The Decibel
Episodes
Why some doctors are critical of B.C.’s new health care regulations
02 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
April 1 marked the start of a new regime to regulate health care in B.C. – the first overhaul of the system in 30 years. The Globe’s health report...
Artemis II: A Canadian heads to the dark side of the moon
01 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
April 1st marks the earliest possible date that lunar mission Artemis II could lift off. Decades have passed since humans last visited the moon. After...
Can Avi Lewis bring the NDP back to life?
31 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On Sunday, the New Democratic Party elected Avi Lewis as its new leader. He takes the reins of a political party still reeling from losses in last yea...
Prediction trading is coming to Canada
30 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Prediction trading is exploding in popularity, with the industry set to rake in about US$2 billion in revenue this year alone. Companies like Kalshi a...
To ban or not to ban: Canadian teens weigh in on social media
27 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, decisions in two landmark trials in the U.S. found social media companies responsible for harms to youth on their platforms. They follow ye...
How the war in Iran exposes the limits of China’s influence
26 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Since the U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran almost a month ago, the ripple effects of the war have been felt globally. The closure of the Strait of ...
How sweeping cuts could impact Canada’s public sector
25 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The federal government is hoping to make room for the new spending outlined in last year’s budget by making cuts across the public sector. The goal ...
The trouble with enforcing Canadian food labels
24 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Amid threats of annexation and U.S.-imposed tariffs, Canadians are using their dollars to purchase Canadian goods. However, consumer complaints about ...
The landmark case over rights and freedoms at the Supreme Court
23 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today, a case involving Quebec’s use of the notwithstanding clause is going before the Supreme Court of Canada. In the last decade, many provinces h...
How much AI music is in your playlist?
20 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to create music? Would you be able to tell if the sounds you were listening to weren’t made or sung by a human? Artists and suppor...
What war in Iran means for Canadian oil
19 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Since the U.S. and Israel started a war with Iran, the price of oil has spiked. That’s largely because oil tankers are no longer travelling through ...
Why holding government to account in Ontario could get harder
18 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Late last week, the Ontario government announced it would introduce legislation exempting the Premier, cabinet ministers and their offices from respon...
Behind schedule and over budget: Why do we keep building LRTs?
17 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Building cities for the future means building a lot more public transit – and lately, Canadian cities have been planning LRTs, or light rail transit...
An analysis of Mark Carney’s first year as Prime Minister
16 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been one year since Mark Carney became Prime Minister. He was long known as a technocrat, having held the position of central banker for both C...
Why Israel’s war with Iran is spreading to Lebanon
13 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On February 28th, the US and Israel struck Iran – and Iran fired back at military bases and allies in the region. The war has since dominated global...
How the towing industry is linked to police corruption
12 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A wide-scale investigation into police corruption in Ontario – Project South – led to the arrests of 27 people, including seven Toronto Police Ser...
Voices from the Iranian diaspora in Canada
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Members of Canada’s Iranian community have been living through a complex set of emotions since the United States and Israel started a war with Iran ...
Tumbler Ridge shooting highlights B.C.’s mental health deserts
10 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A month has passed since the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., where eight people were killed by 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, who then turned...
Skinny, Inc. Part 3: Body image in the age of Ozempic
09 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The first episode of Skinny Inc. was all about the science behind GLP-1s, and the second episode was about the business, from the pharmaceutical compa...
Why a sleep doctor says we should never change our clocks again
08 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On Sunday, most Canadians lose an hour of sleep as the clocks get turned forward to daylight time. But while most of us have gotten used to the bi-ann...
What Canada needs to learn from Alabama
06 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to one economic indicator, Canada is lagging behind one of the U.S.’s poorest states: Alabama. And while GDP per capita is an imperfec...
After years of hostility, Carney defrosts relations with India
05 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Prime Minister Mark Carney finished his trip to India this week, marking the start of what he says is a new partnership between the two countries. The...
How the war against Iran is choking global energy supply
04 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Since the U.S. and Israel first struck Iran on Saturday, energy prices have been on the rise. Oil prices are up around 13 per cent, and LNG – liquef...
What the U.S.-Israel attacks mean for Iranian leadership
03 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The U.S. and Israel are continuing attacks on Iran for the fourth day. Iran’s leadership has been devastated, hundreds have been killed and retaliat...
Skinny, Inc. Part 2: The big business of Ozempic
02 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
You can listen to the first episode of this three-part series here. GLP-1 medications to treat diabetes, obesity and several other illnesses have expl...
The argument for AI regulation after Tumbler Ridge
27 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Months before the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., earlier this month, the shooter was banned from OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, for violat...
Winners and losers after a year of Trump tariffs
26 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On Tuesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump touted his tariff regime, after a Supreme Court decision that severely limited his ability to impose tar...
Mexico’s uneasy balance of power between cartels and government
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On Tuesday, Canadian airlines began to resume operations in Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. They had been suspended days earlier after the Mexican ar...
The payout and relationship that led to crisis at a pension plan
24 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It began with three executives from the CAAT Pension Plan raising concerns over a $1.6-million vacation payout and a relationship between the CEO and ...
Skinny, Inc. part 1: the Canadian connection to Ozempic
23 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Daniel Drucker’s research helped pave the way for Ozempic, the blockbuster GLP-1 class drug. The endocrinologist has been researching the effect...
Margaret Atwood and Michael Crummey on ‘The Art of the Story’
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A conversation between two acclaimed Canadian authors – Margaret Atwood and Michael Crummey on ‘The Art of the Story’. A live discussion about w...
What would a stronger trade relationship with Mexico look like?
20 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Minister for Canada-U.S. Trade Dominic LeBlanc, led a trade delegation to Mexico. He was joined by government and industry officials, as we...
Carney’s plan to expand Canada’s defence industry
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As part of its plan to remake the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal government earmarked $6.6-billion over five years in the fall budget for its Defe...
What social media for AI bots can tell us about consciousness
18 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Much has been made about a new social media platform called Moltbook, where AI agents are posting and appear to be interacting with each other. Some s...
Why Carney and Ford are talking about a federal election
17 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Globe exclusively reported that Prime Minister Mark Carney and Ontario Premier Doug Ford discussed the possibility of a snap federal election this...
Defying time and biology: the Olympic skater making history
13 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Canadian figure skater Deanna Stellato-Dudek will make history this weekend at the age of 42, as the oldest female figure skater to compete in the Oly...
On the ground in Tumbler Ridge, after the mass shooting
12 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Tuesday’s deadly mass shooting in the community of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, marks the second deadliest school shooting in Canadian history. ...
How police corruption allegations erode trust in justice system
11 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Ontario’s Inspector-General announced it is launching a provincewide review of corruption among police services in the wake of the arrest...
Carney shifts gears on EV and climate policies
10 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The federal government recently announced that it is scrapping the zero emissions vehicle mandate – brought in by the Trudeau government in 2022. Ze...
Ontario pushes to allow retail access to risky investments
09 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Ontario’s securities watchdog is facing pressure from the Ontario government to open up access to high-risk investments, called private asset funds,...
What’s at stake for Canada at the Milan Cortina Winter Games
06 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games begin on Friday. The Olympics are always a time to rally behind your country, but this year cheering on Team Canad...
Voices from inside Alberta’s separatist movement
05 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Canvassers are currently collecting signatures for a petition in Alberta that could trigger a referendum on whether Albertans want to remain a part of...
What happened to $10-a-day child care?
04 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The federal government’s Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program was meant to bring child care fees down to $10 per day and create 284,000...
U.S. and Iran weigh diplomacy as warships head for the Gulf
03 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Over the last few weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened military intervention in Iran – first over the Islamic Republic’s t...
Why road salt causes Canada billions in damage each year
02 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Snow and ice is a fact of life in a long, Canadian winter. So are the millions of tonnes of salt that is used to combat it on roads across the country...
Why your grocery bill is still so high
30 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Inflation in Canada has stabilized, but food inflation is continuing to rise. Food prices rose 5 per cent in 2025, and some items saw much larger incr...
Drug decriminalization is over in B.C. What’s next?
29 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
British Columbia’s drug decriminalization pilot program will end on January 31st. The controversial program was introduced in 2023, but was criticiz...
How Minnesota is fighting ICE on the ground — and in the courts
28 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Some of the 3,000 federal agents in Minnesota are set to leave following the killings of U.S. citizens Renee Nicole Macklin Good and Alex Pretti. ICE ...
Alleged drug kingpin Ryan Wedding arrested
27 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Ryan Wedding, former Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug lord, is pleading not guilty to U.S. federal charges of leading an international...
What you need to know as Parliament resumes
26 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been a busy month abroad for Prime Minister Mark Carney, but now, he’ll have to turn his focus back to domestic issues as Parliament returns ...
Happy Enough: Can psychedelics improve your mental health?
24 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Psychedelics, substances like LSD and psilocybin mushrooms that cause altered states of consciousness, often remind people of hippies in the 1960s. Bu...
How the world changed this week at Davos
23 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump made waves in Davos, Switzerland as both offered competing visions of a new worl...
What Carney’s China trade deal means for EVs in Canada
22 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As part of Canada’s new trade deal with China, 49,000 Chinese-manufactured electric vehicles will be allowed to be sold in the Canadian market this ...
Military models invasion of Canada as Trump threatens Greenland
21 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As U.S. President Donald Trump has continued to ratchet up threats against Greenland, Canada has weighed plans to send soldiers there as part of a NAT...
What Legault’s resignation means for Quebec
20 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, Quebec Premier François Legault announced his resignation amidst plummeting poll numbers, while acknowledging Quebeckers are calling for c...
Why the flu is so bad this year
19 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The flu season hit Canada hard and fast this year, seemingly reaching its peak in late December. But it’s not over yet: one public health official s...
Happy Enough: Why awe makes us happier
17 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when we stop rushing around and pause to take in the vastness of the world around us? In this episode of Happy Enough, we explore awe —...
International law in the Trump era
16 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In less than a year, U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term has re-shaped the international order. From levying tariffs against much of the world...
What Greenland thinks about Trump’s threats of annexation
15 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
For weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to annex Greenland, an autonomous region of Denmark. That led to a meeting on Wednesday between ...
Death toll climbs as Iranians protest against regime
14 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Protests in Iran ramped up over the weekend after the Islamic Republic regime – ruled by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – instituted an internet and phone...
Carney’s high-stakes trip to China
13 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Prime Minister Mark Carney will head to China, marking the first time a Canadian prime minister has gone to China since 2017. Recent intera...
Why gyms have become so fancy and expensive
12 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The new year is upon us and for some of us, that means New Year’s resolutions. These goals often involve improving our fitness, or going to the gym ...
Chrystia Freeland resigns, takes new role with Ukraine
09 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today is Chrystia Freeland’s last day in Canadian politics, but she still plans to work in government – just not this one. On Monday, Ukrainian Pr...
The people pursuing impossible goals
08 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The new year is a time of goal setting. Culturally, there’s pressure to set resolutions that you are meant to achieve in due course. Think: weight l...
Unpacking the U.S. strategy to control the Western hemisphere
07 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Following the U.S. attack on Venezuela, President Donald Trump referenced the Monroe Doctrine – a centuries-old ideology that posits American contro...
What the Venezuelan attack means for Canadian oil
06 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
U.S. President Donald Trump was clear on Saturday when he announced his administration’s plans for the future of Venezuela: “We’re going to have...
U.S. attacks Venezuela, captures President Maduro
05 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On Saturday, Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. military forces in an early morning raid that included attacks on the capital c...
A 2026 forecast for Canadian politics
02 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
After a year that was truly one for the books in Canadian politics — from Trudeau’s resignation to Trump’s trade war, an “elbows up” electio...
Is AI making us dumb?
31 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Most schools are now off for winter break — but this year, some educators are wondering how much their students are learning. A KPMG survey found th...
To save this baby, doctors had to kill part of her brain
30 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Maryam Fatima was born with a condition called hemimegalencephaly, a rare birth defect where one side of the brain is abnormally large. She suffered f...
A mixtape of you: the summer of the Great Canadian Playlist
29 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Canadians have been spending a lot of time thinking about identity and their relationship to Canada. As U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war drag...
Bark! The Herald Angels Sing: how people met their pets
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The winter holidays are a time to cozy up with family – even if those family members are furry and of a different species. For many, dogs and cats a...
Why time feels like it’s speeding up – and how to slow it down
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Many factors of modern life can make time feel like it’s moving faster than it actually is: hustle culture at work, a productivity compulsion at hom...
Why Heated Rivalry has everyone hot and bothered
22 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Canadian television show Heated Rivalry has found major success not just in Canada, but with American audiences, too. The show, a love story betwe...
Canadian military officer charged with leaking government secrets
19 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Canadian counter-intelligence military officer Matthew Robar, is facing charges of espionage. The veteran military officer is accused of sharing infor...
The rise of medical tourism
18 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This travel season, Canadians might be headed away for something other than a vacation.More Canadians are participating in medical tourism, travelling...
Bondi Beach shooting echoes past antisemitic attacks
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The attack on Jewish Australians at Bondi Beach in Sydney has sent shockwaves around the world. To many in Jewish communities, it mirrors previous ant...
Why your loyalty points don’t go as far as they used to
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Loyalty reward programs are everywhere we shop. They’re at coffee shops, retailers, airports and grocery stores. Many of us are connected to our poi...
The multibillion-dollar fight over the McCain Foods fortune
15 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The heirs to Canada’s multi-billion dollar frozen food empire are fighting. New Brunswick’s McCain Foods is the world’s largest French fry maker...
New crime bill addresses violence against women and court delays
12 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Carney’s federal government has introduced its second tough-on-crime bill this fall. The new bill, Bill C-16, focuses on violence against women...
Rise in late-stage prostate cancer raises concerns over testing
11 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Late-stage prostate cancer diagnoses are on the rise in Canada. According to a recent study, between 2010 and 2021, rates of prostate cancer discovere...
The traveller’s guide to Canadian airline disruptions
10 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hours before a strike deadline, Air Transat and the union representing airline pilots reached a tentative agreement. For customers, it comes as relief...
How three Canadian businesses have coped with Trump’s tariffs
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Canadian manufacturing sector has been having a hard time, which has been made worse by U.S. tariffs. The impact of these tariffs varies company t...
The construction industry’s opioid problem
08 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For families, the tragedy of opioids is beyond measure. The opioid epidemic has claimed tens of thousands of lives in Canada and has been recognized a...
The future of Canada’s military and joining Europe’s defence fund
05 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Canada is in the midst of reframing its approach to military spending. The reasons for this are twofold; a commitment to fulfilling NATO spending as p...
The businessman at the heart of Alberta’s health care controversy
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s not unusual for business owners to forge ties with governments, but there are rules around conflicts of interest when it comes to procurement. ...
The case against cleaning before hosting
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With the holidays right around the corner, households are getting ready for company and deep cleans are underway. Even the idea of letting family and ...
Why do so many Canadian roads not have cell service?
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Across Canada, highways and rural roads are studded with cellular ‘dead zones’. In some provinces, coverage gaps span over 30 per cent of major ro...
Why a new Ontario law has renters worried about more evictions
01 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ontario just passed Bill 60, officially named the “Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act.” It’s a big omnibus bill, but it’s garnered the most ...
Carney, Smith agree to pipeline framework, as minister resigns
28 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith have signed an agreement that sets the framework for building a new pipeline, carrying b...
Why Canada lost consensus on immigration — and how to get it back
27 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Canadian consensus on immigration cratered last year. In the fall of 2024, an Environics poll found that for the first time in a quarter century m...
If AI is a bubble, how will it pop?
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Some of the world’s largest tech companies, like OpenAI, Google and Meta, have invested hundreds of billions of dollars into artificial intelligence...
Alleged drug trafficking, murders and an Olympian-turned-fugitive
25 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, the FBI and the RCMP announced 10 new arrests in connection with a $1-billion drug-trafficking ring allegedly run by Canadian former Olympi...
The controversial push to expand private health care in Alberta
24 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
No Canadian province allows doctors to offer care under both private and public systems – but leaked draft legislation obtained by The Globe and Mai...
The bureaucracy slowing down access to life-saving drugs
21 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For cancer patients, every day of treatment is critical. But the best care possible is not always reaching patients quickly. Despite Health Canada app...
Canada courts UAE amid calls to stop its arming of Sudan militia
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Prime Minister Mark Carney is in the United Arab Emirates to try to shore up foreign investment ahead of next week’s G20 summit in South ...
The Epstein scandal and the Canadians who knew him
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, over 20,000 pages of the late Jeffrey Epstein’s emails, texts and other documents were released. In one email, Epstein – the deceased c...
Why beef is so expensive right now
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Beef prices are currently around 23 per cent above their five-year average. And there’s no relief in sight.Kate Helmore is The Globe’s agriculture...
Why a B.C. billionaire’s bid for Hudson’s Bay stores failed
17 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In May, a B.C. billionaire named Weihong (Ruby) Liu made a $69.1-million deal to acquire 28 leases of former Hudson’s Bay stores. Her company, Centr...
What Carney is prioritizing with his new nation-building projects
14 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Prime Minister Mark Carney has unveiled the next set of projects the federal government plans to prioritize in a bid to jumpstart Canada’s economy. ...