The Decibel

Your new favourite influencer? She’s AI-generated

06 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Influencer profiles often have recognizable hallmarks: their feeds are highly stylized, filled with aspirational content and product placement. One of...

What’s stopping Canada from building better public transit

05 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There’s a fairly long list of public transit projects that have gone off the rails all across Canada. These projects often end up over budget and fa...

Trade war on hold as Trump threats loom

04 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Hours before historic, damaging tariffs were set to be imposed between Canada and the U.S., the two nations stepped back from the brink.The Globe’s ...

The U.S.–Canada trade war, explained

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The economies of Canada and the United States are on a collision course. On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed off on 25 per cent tariffs to...

This year’s hottest viral trends: norovirus, flu, COVID and RSV

31 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If it seems like everyone you know is sick right now, that’s because respiratory virus season is in full swing. On top of influenza, COVID-19 and RS...

Doug Ford’s big election gamble

30 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ontario is officially in an election campaign. Voters will go to the polls on February 27 – more than a year before they were supposed to cast their...

Foreign interference inquiry finds ‘problematic’ conduct

29 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After an 18-month long public inquiry, the final report on foreign interference in Canada has been released. Justice Marie-Josée Hogue’s seven-volu...

Dispatch from Jerusalem: the ceasefire so far

28 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Phase one of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been in place for just over a week, but so far, it has been incredibly fragile. In the first d...

The Five Eyes: security, spying and surveillance under Trump

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Donald Trump is not a fan of international coalitions. He is also not a fan of intelligence agencies. And yet, the U.S. is the biggest member of the F...

Canadian retail’s security crackdown on violent theft

24 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When we think of shoplifting, we often picture teens getting caught at the mall stealing lip gloss, or people bypassing the scanner at the grocery sel...

How the L.A. wildfires could increase Canadian insurance rates

23 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The wildfires in Los Angeles have caused massive devastation over the past two weeks and may end up being the most expensive natural disaster in U.S. ...

Fallout from the TD Bank money laundering scandal

22 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been over three months since the U.S. Department of Justice announced that TD Bank had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering....

Who will be the next Liberal leader?

21 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Liberal leadership race is on – and its biggest candidates are in. Former deputy prime minister and finance minister Chrystia Freeland, House Le...

How Canada is preparing for day one of the second Trump era

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For months, Donald Trump has threatened economic pain on Canada, with tariffs of up to 25 per cent on imports. This could begin as early as today, whe...

The difficult path ahead for peace in Gaza

17 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The mood in Israel and Gaza turned from celebratory to uncertain in the hours after a ceasefire deal was announced. The day after the deal was made pu...

Machines Like Us: This mother says a chatbot led to her son’s death

16 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In February, 2024, Megan Garcia’s 14-year-old son Sewell took his own life.As she tried to make sense of what happened, Megan discovered that Sewell...

What 2025 holds for your personal finances

15 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you kicked off 2025 making personal finance resolutions, it can be hard to know where to start. That question is made more difficult when factoring...

The women changing the face of Canadian rodeo

14 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cowgirls love the rodeo just as much as cowboys, but for the better part of the past century, there’s only been one event for women — until now. B...

Will alcohol have cancer warnings like cigarettes?

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dry January – when people decide to consume no alcohol – is a common new year resolution for many. But this month, the U.S. Surgeon General gave t...

The rise and fall of Justin Trudeau

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation earlier this week came after months of people calling for him to step down. How he will be remembered wi...

Rebuilding the Liberals after Trudeau

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Beyond picking a new leader, the federal Liberals also need to repair their reputation with voters – while continuing to run the government as Donal...

Trudeau prorogued parliament: Here’s what it means and what’s next

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Trudeau announced his plan to resign on Monday morning, he also shut down Parliament until March 24, giving the Liberal Party time to select a ne...

The end of the Trudeau era

07 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After three federal election wins and just over nine years in office, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation on Monday. Trudeau had b...

How many activities are too many for kids?

06 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to enrolling your kids in extracurricular activities, how many is too many? Is there such a thing as over-scheduling your kids? Parentin...

Who stole half-a-million dollars worth of cheese?

03 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Neal’s Yard Dairy, a cheese distributor in England, has been an essential part of the artisanal cheddar revival in the United Kingdom. In October 20...

Why some are turning to sound baths for relaxation

02 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Life is noisy and stressful for a lot of people. And so sound baths – where a practitioner creates harmonies and chords with singing crystal bowls –...

Climate change, migration and Menaka’s epic birding day

31 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Point Pelee National Park juts out into Lake Erie like a finger, as every spring thousands of birds touch down on it. It’s a key stop along their mi...

Why running is more popular than ever

30 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Distance running, once a relatively niche sport, has exploded in popularity. The trend has been ongoing for at least a decade, but 2024′s running se...

Why won’t Justin Trudeau step down?

27 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Justin Trudeau’s poll numbers have been bad for a while. The Liberals have lost two crucial by-elections and are trailing behind the Conservatives i...

Finding family through the act of baking

24 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Food and family are often front and centre during the holidays. These two ingredients also help make up our identities and cultures.So today, The Deci...

What’s the holiday season without a little tradition?

23 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ranging from childhood phone calls, to serenading strangers, to feasting on the darkest day of the year, we explore how traditions help connect us and...

The real town behind Hallmark’s Christmas movies

20 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At this time of year, there’s nothing better than settling in with a good Christmas movie. When it comes to the made-for-TV variety – usually made...

What’s next for Trudeau and the Liberals after a chaotic 2024

19 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As new details around the feud between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his former deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland emerge, the Liberal caucus...

How Canada’s food inspectors missed a deadly listeria outbreak

18 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In July, there was a recall on two specific brands of plant-based milks, Silk and Great Value, after a listeria outbreak that led to at least 20 illne...

Freeland resigns, upending Trudeau’s government

17 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On Monday morning, Chrystia Freeland announced she was stepping down as finance minister. This came after reports of increasing tensions between her a...

Diagnosing what’s wrong with Canada’s immigration system

16 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Immigration policy indirectly shapes a lot of aspects of Canadian life: the economy, the housing market, the labour force. And in 2024, the federal go...

Syria’s revolution and its impact on global power

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

After 13 years of civil war, the now-former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad fled the country, as his dictatorship unravelled in less than two weeks. ...

How The Globe and Mail covered and influenced Canada’s history

12 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For 180 years, The Globe and Mail has covered the biggest issues and events in Canada. To commemorate its history, editor John Ibbitson and more than ...

The ‘miracle drug’ some dog owners regret using

11 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Librela, a new drug to treat arthritis pain in dogs, was approved for use in Canada in 2021. In some cases, it was described to owners as a “miracle...

Doug Ford’s plan to dismantle homeless encampments

10 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, the Ontario government will be tabling new legislation that promises to give police more powers to arrest people who refuse to leave their ...

What the spread of bird flu signals about another pandemic

09 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In November, Canada’s first case of avian flu in a human was confirmed – a teenager in British Columbia, who remains in critical care and on a ven...

Chaos in South Korea: martial law, impeachment, resignations

06 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Martial law. Impeachment. A treason investigation. All of this has happened within a matter of hours in South Korea.The Globe and Mail’s Asia Corres...

Why millennials are abandoning the Liberals

05 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A November Abacus Data poll found that 38 per cent of millennial voters are planning on voting for the Conservatives, compared with 22 per cent for th...

What the Canada Post strike says about the power of unions

04 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

More than 55,000 members from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers remain on strike and at an impasse with Canada Post, after negotiations broke down....

Toxic culture, systemic spying alleged at Canada Soccer

03 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

An investigation by The Globe and Mail found that spying was an ingrained part of the celebrated women’s national team rocked by scandal at the Pari...

Why is Stephen Harper taking over Alberta’s pension fund manager?

02 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last month, former Prime Minister Stephen Harper re-entered the headlines, after being appointed to chair the board of AIMCo, the Alberta Investment M...

The Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, explained

29 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Israel and Hezbollah – the Iran-backed armed group in Lebanon – reached a ceasefire deal. A day later, both accused the other of violat...

What Trump’s tariff plan means for Canada

28 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

President-elect Donald Trump is making threats that would have dire economic consequences for Canada. Trump said on Monday that he would impose a 25 p...

Ukraine enters the ‘most difficult’ phase of the war

27 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The war in Ukraine has been intensifying after a series of escalations in the last week. And as a result of that, Ukrainian forces are entering the ‘...

Why hackers are targeting water treatment plants

26 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In recent years, cyber attacks have become increasingly frequent and wide-reaching. In 2023, the Toronto Public Library, Canada’s largest-circulatio...

What the GST break means for you

25 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last Thursday, the Liberals announced a multibillion-dollar plan to help improve the cost of living. It includes a 2-month break from GST on dozens of...

An experiment in Ontario to improve access to family doctors

22 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

There’s an experiment underway in Kingston, Ont. The regional health care team is starting to assign people without a doctor to nearby clinics based...

The fandom of Taylor Swift

21 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Taylor Swift starts the second week of her Eras tour in Toronto today. And since the record-breaking tour landed in the city, it’s been the site of ...

Canada’s role in working towards a two-state solution

20 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In the midst of the Israel-Hamas war, the idea of lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians seems farther away than it has been in a long time. ...

The Newfoundland town that seized its own church

19 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In the small Newfoundland community of Portugal Cove south, the town church is considered its lifeblood, a community hub and historical touchstone, al...

How remote work changed our grooming habits

18 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When the pandemic hit, nearly 40 per cent of Canada’s workforce went remote. More than four years later, that number has dropped by more than half.I...

The Decibel presents: Lately

15 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Decibel presents ‘Lately’, a Globe and Mail podcast taking on shifts in business, tech and economy with newsmakers and thinkers.In this episod...

Toronto’s Taylor Swift Era

14 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

After nearly two years of touring across five continents, Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is coming to Canada. Thursday is the first of six dates in Toront...

Alberta vs. Texas: how two oil giants are taking on clean energy

13 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Alberta and Texas have a lot in common. Both have independent western cultures, great country music, and each lead their countries in oil production.A...

The complexities of gender in the U.S. election

12 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Before Nov. 5, many pollsters predicted that there would be a huge gender gap in the U.S. election vote, with women overwhelmingly supporting Democrat...

Murray Sinclair, as remembered by his friend Tanya Talaga

11 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Murray Sinclair died last week at the age of 73. As a trail-blazing judge, senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, he spent his ...

How Trump’s pet-eating lie became emblematic of the election

08 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Donald Trump’s path to victory hinged on seven swing states. He won five decisively, and is leading in the final two. Republicans now control the Se...

The new ‘Rosé All Day’? Stressed moms are microdosing mushrooms

07 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The U.S. Surgeon General recently issued a health advisory saying that 48 per cent of parents with kids under 18 are completely overwhelmed by their s...

Inside The Globe’s U.S. election night coverage

06 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The United States have never seen an election like this before. It began as a rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, but after Biden’s debate p...

The fight over clean energy jobs in a crucial U.S. swing state

05 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Inflation Reduction Act was passed after a contentious fight in the U.S. Congress, narrowly passing along partisan lines. The bill committed almos...

A standoff in Parliament and the latest on Trudeau’s future

04 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For more than a month, the government has not been able to pass any legislation. The House of Commons has been at a standstill, as they debate whether...

The story of a secret mission to save more than 1,500 Afghans

01 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Farouq Samim cried as the Taliban swept back into power in 2021. While he was safe in Ottawa, many members of his family were stranded – and at ...

Floods, storms, rising sea levels — why do we build on the coast?

31 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In 2019, Nova Scotia’s then-Liberal government passed the Coastal Protection Act — legislation that would have brought in regulations around build...

Behind Canada’s explosive allegations against India

30 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On October 14, the RCMP shared explosive allegations linking Indian government officials to homicides, extortions and coercion committed against Canad...

Riding the Greyhound through America’s swing states

29 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The U.S. election is a week away, and tensions are running high. Polls show Harris and Trump as more or less deadlocked. America’s Electoral College...

‘We could have acted earlier’: Canada’s Immigration Minister

28 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a major reduction in the number of permanent residents the country will admit over the next three...

How to make a true crime podcast

25 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

14 years ago, a young woman disappeared in Edmonton... two years later, police released a chilling recording from the final moments of her life. Ever ...

What a Trump re-election could mean for Canada’s economy

24 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said he will impose 10 to 20 per cent tariffs on everything the U.S. imports. This would include, i...

Why the AFN rejected a $47.8-billion child welfare deal

23 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, the Assembly of First Nations voted to reject a $47.8-billion child welfare deal with the federal government. The agreement would have fund...

How the Parliament Hill shooting changed Canada

22 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On October 22, 2014, a man named Michael Zehaf-Bibeau entered Parliament Hill, killing Canadian soldier Nathan Cirillo and catching security off guard...

Jupiter’s ocean moon, stranded astronauts and a special asteroid

21 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Ivan Semeniuk is The Globe’s science reporter and today on the show he takes us on a tour of our solar system – and beyond! We start with the news...

Trudeau grilled on foreign interference and Indian expulsions

18 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The hearings for the public inquiry into foreign interference led by Justice Marie-Josée Hogue wrapped up earlier this week with testimony from Prime...

B.C.’s election: a party’s implosion and an unlikely face-off

17 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

British Columbia heads to the polls this Saturday, October 19th. It’s been an election campaign full of surprises — from the collapse of one estab...

The rough state of Canada’s emergency care

16 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Emergency rooms across Canada are in a dire state. Wait times in many ERs remain stubbornly high. And in some provinces, the full understanding of how...

Behind the gallery wall: the art that museums don’t show you

15 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

If you were to spend an afternoon wandering around an art museum, you’d see hundreds of pieces, if not thousands. But the reality is, what you see o...

Introducing ‘In Her Defence: 50th Street’

11 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Amber Tuccaro was 20 years old when she disappeared in Edmonton in August 2010. She was never seen alive again. But she left an important clue: a chil...

Why Gen Z is lonely and what they’re doing about it

10 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

What does it mean to be connected in the world today? Gen Z – the cohort born between the late 1990s and the early 2010s – has been inundated by s...

Everybody’s a food critic. Is anybody good at it?

09 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At all but a handful of publications, restaurant critics are a relic of bygone days. In their place, the food influencer has risen up in popularity. S...

Life for Palestinians one year after

08 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second part of a two-episode special looking at the rippling effects of a year of war in Israel, the Gaza Strip and Lebanon. In this epis...

One year after Israel’s ‘Black Saturday’

07 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killed nearly 1,200 Israelis and saw 250 people kidnapped. It also sparked one of the largest wars ...

Why won’t Justin Trudeau step down?

04 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Justin Trudeau’s poll numbers have been bad for a while. The Liberals have lost two crucial by-elections and are trailing behind the Conservatives i...

On board a Canadian warship in the Pacific

03 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Canada’s Navy has been expanding its presence in the Pacific, as tensions with China rise, leaving vital trade routes in potential danger. At the sa...

How Israel’s strikes on Lebanon create new frontlines

02 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On Tuesday, Iran fired hundreds of missiles into Israel following weeks of increasing Israeli aggression on Hezbollah. This week, Israel began ground ...

How a little known bank is trying to build big things in Canada

01 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Canada Infrastructure Bank has been around since 2017, and originally it was meant to help build huge infrastructure across the country. In fact, ...

Canada is taking on the Taliban over women’s rights

30 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Canada has joined three other countries in a legal process to hold the Taliban accountable for discriminating against women by enacting increasingly o...

In Her Defence: 50th Street starts tomorrow

29 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Follow In Her Defence: 50th Street to listen to the first two episodes on MondayAmber Tuccaro was 20 years old when she left her infant son with a fri...

A massive cyanide leak and the cost of gold

27 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Back in June, there was a massive accident at the Eagle gold mine in central Yukon, on traditional Na-Cho Nyak Dun territory — 4 million tonnes of c...

How the Conservatives tried (and failed) to trigger an election

26 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On Wednesday, a Conservative non-confidence motion was voted down by the other parties in the House of Commons. But it’s just the first of many to c...

The politics of B.C.’s involuntary care

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, days before the British Columbia election was called, Premier David Eby announced a new plan for mental health and addictions care. B.C. al...

The behind-the-scenes look at how Rogers took over Toronto sports

24 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A set of rivals came to an unexpected agreement recently. Rogers Communications Inc. bought BCE Inc.’s 37.5-per-cent stake in Maple Leaf Sports & En...

The rules for buying a house are changing

23 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, the Liberal government announced they’re bringing in new mortgage rules to help first-time buyers get into the market. The changes would ...

‘We are deeply ashamed’: The Canadian Medical Association

20 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On September 18, the Canadian Medical Association issued an apology to Indigenous peoples. The group represents Canadian doctors and President Joss Re...

Gold bars, millions of dollars seized by police...is that legal?

19 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Back in March of this year, authorities in British Columbia filed an “unexplained wealth order” to seize a safety deposit box that belonged to Mic...

By-election tests: The NDP passed. The Liberals failed.

18 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On Monday, voters in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood-Transcona and Montreal’s LaSalle-Émard-Verdun went to the polls. The results saw the Liberals l...

Why AI is no miracle drug

17 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Drug development has always been a long and arduous process, taking years of research and costing millions of dollars. When some biotech companies sta...