The Current

CBC

Three stories to expand your worldview, delivered daily. Matt Galloway cuts through a sea of choice to bring you stories that transcend the news cycle. Conversations with big thinkers, household names, and people living the news. An antidote to algorithms that cater to what you already know — and a meeting place for diverse perspectives. In its 20 years, the Current has become a go-to place for stories that shape and entertain us. Released daily, Monday to Friday.

The Current is produced in Toronto, Ontario, Canada — and has recently recorded live shows about the Canadian election in Surrey and Burnaby BC. And shows to come in Oshawa and the 905, Red Deer, Alberta, Quebec City and Halifax.

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137 episodes
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English

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Today · 34 min
Princess Diana book not about ‘settling scores’: Charles Spencer
Almost 30 years after the death of Princess Diana, her brother Charles Spencer has written a new memoir about her life, her struggles, and the Royal institutions that played a role in both. He sits down with Matt Galloway to discuss the book Swan Song: Diana, my sister, and her legacy.
Today · 19 min
Florida property tax plan takes aim at snowbirds
Canadians who own homes in Florida are wrestling with a proposed property tax increase as Governor DeSantis looks to eliminate taxes for Floridians, offloading the costs to homeowners who don't live in the US.
Friday · 33 min
What keeps Retired Gen. Wayne Eyre up at night?
Retired General Wayne Eyre sits down with Matt Galloway to reflect on the forty-year military career he chronicles in his new memoir, Into the Breach: A Soldier’s Journey, from his time in Afghanistan, to handling the military's misconduct crisis as chief of the defence staff, to the culture changes and threats facing Canada today.
Friday · 10 min
Jax Irwin’s “best wrong number” she’s ever called
Jax Irwin is a Toronto broadcaster, originally from Nova Scotia, and she calls herself a phone enthusiast. Last month, we spoke to her on this program. Paul Matthews in Brigus, Newfoundland, heard the interview. About a week later, his phone rang. It was Jax - making a special call that day with the cast of Netflix’s new series "Below." A series filmed in Newfoundland.  We talk to them about the importance of chatting with strangers.
Friday · 24 min
The hidden costs of fish feed
A global investigation exposes the hidden costs of the fish meal industry, the food that's made to feed farmed seafood. Investigative journalist and director of The Outlaw Ocean Project, Ian Urbina, talks about the stench, the pollution and civil unrest driven by the booming fish feed industry.
Thursday · 21 min
What could possibly go wrong with Meta's Muse?
Meta's personal AI agent Muse is now one of Canada's most downloaded apps, and has attracted millions of users since it was first launched in September. It acts as a personal assistant and can help with things like paying bills and ordering food, but it relies on a lot of your personal information. We speak with the Wall Street Journal's personal tech columnist, Nicole Nguyen, who has tried the app and tells us why she finds it both incredible and terrifying at the same time.
Thursday · 13 min
An indefinite pause on the expansion of MAiD
The federal government says it's not going to go ahead with an expansion of medical assistance in dying for people whose only medical condition is a mental illness. Advocates say people with mental illness are being discriminated against, and opponents say there are too many unresolved questions about whether a mental illness is treatable. The Globe and Mail's Stephanie Levitz explains the political context, the timing of the announcements, and how the Opposition is responding.
Thursday · 11 min
How about them ‘Sunpunch’ apples?
After 25 years in development, there is a new apple hitting grocery stores near you. We'll hear from Amritpal Singh, a scientist at Summerland Research and Development Centre and creator of the Sunpunch apple, on why he makes new fruit and why it takes so long.
Thursday · 19 min
We talk about consent. So why isn't it working?
The ‘Cornell 7’ incident has people talking about sexual assault. Some are asking why cases like this keep happening, even after years of education on consent. Two counsellors who talk to boys and young men about sexual violence and toxic masculinity tell us what's working and what stands in the way.
Wednesday · 7 min
Why are students in France protesting?
More than 250,000 students, teachers and parents are protesting across France over the conditions in the country’s high schools. Some demonstrations have turned violent, with police using tear gas and water canisters against protesters. Sophie Pedder, Paris Bureau Chief at the Economist, talks about what students are calling for.
Wednesday · 24 min
How the beaver became the official symbol of Canada
Do you know the story of how the beaver became an official symbol of Canada in 1975? Hint: it involved a real live beaver peeing on a CBC radio host during an anti-American campaign to "Keep the beaver Canadian!" We bring you the remarkable tale — and look at how it relates to the moment we're in right now politically with the US. Plus, a trip to the Utah desert, where our national symbol has become a conservation hero. We speak with Nate Norman, director of the Beaver Ecology & Relocatio
Wednesday · 12 min
US resident charged in helping Tumbler Ridge shooter
CBC’s senior reporter Caroline Barghout takes us through the arrest of a 30-year-old US resident from Seattle who has been charged in connection with the Tumbler Ridge shooting. The FBI says James Cody Bryant allegedly provided advice, sent money and offered to live stream the event.
Wednesday · 23 min
When violence begets violence
Ken Wyder grew up in privilege, as part of the prominent Vancouver family, the Bentalls. But he also grew up subject to his father's violent outburst and unpredictable rage. In his new memoir, Kill Not the Butterfly, he draws a straight line between those experiences, and his own problems with anger, infidelity and violence.
Tuesday · 19 min
Quebec elects the separatist PQ
Parti Quebecois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon will be Quebec's new premier.The Parti Quebecois have won a minority government with just under 30 per cent of the vote, after promising not to hold a referendum on independence until after President Donald Trump leaves the White House. What does the PQ win mean for national unity and the future of the province? Two political columnists, Le Soleil's Valérie Gaudreau, and Le Devoir's Emilie Nicolas weigh in.
Tuesday · 13 min
The Premier League scandal rocking England and beyond
After a high profile cheating scandal there are calls for Manchester City, one of the most successful football clubs in the world, to get relegated from the Premier League. The Athletic’s senior news reporter Matt Slater talks about how the potential ramifications from the scandal go beyond sport.
Tuesday · 12 min
How worried should you be about the plague?
A possible plague-related death in Russia has prompted officials to place hundreds of people under medical observation and multiple health care facilities under quarantine. Local reports suggest a worker at an anti-plague research facility died late last week coming into contact with the pneumonic plague pathogen from a test tube at the lab, but the cause of death has not been confirmed by Russian authorities. The story has sparked international concern about how these deadly diseases are han
Tuesday · 24 min
Cassie Campbell-Pascall on her fight for a place on the ice
From the time Cassie Campbell-Pascall was a little girl she had to fight to be included in the game of hockey. Since then, she's been a trailblazer for girls and women in the sport, a World Champion, a gold medal Olympic captain, the first female broadcaster to call the play-by-play in an NHL game, and a fierce advocate for the new pro league, the PWHL. She talks about it all, plus her own personal struggle with infertility, in a new memoir, Just a Girl.
October 5 · 8 min
Would you buy a $60 loaf of bread?
Turns out a lot of New Yorkers will. A bakery opened in NYC stocking one product — a $60 loaf of rye bread, served by the slice or by the loaf. As influencers flock to try the now infamous loaf, we look at whether the price tag fits the product, and what bread says about our relationship with wealth in the midst of a cost of living crisis.
October 5 · 16 min
Are Ontario’s new 110 km/h speed limits dangerous?
Ontario increased the speed limit on several highways to 110 kilometers per hour. The province says the new speed limit will help people get to their destinations faster and that the changes are safe. Stephanie Cowle, Parachute Canada’s Director, Knowledge Translation tells us about  the dangers and risks. And Laura Cavanagh, Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences at Seneca Polytechnic explains what pushes people to speed.
October 5 · 19 min
Could Democrats win big in the U.S. midterms?
In just over a month, voters in America will head to the polls in the U.S. midterms. The elections will decide if US President Donald Trump will remain free to pursue his agenda, or whether he’ll face checks from a new Congress as the Democrats try to flip both the House and the Senate.  Josh Wingrove, Senior White House reporter with Bloomberg News and Barbara Sprunt, Congressional Correspondent with NPR, talk through which races to watch and what’s at stake.

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