The Current
CBC Podcasts & Radio On-Demand
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...
Location:
Canada, ON
Networks:
CBC Podcasts & Radio On-Demand
Description:
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.
Twitter:
@TheCurrentCBC
Language:
English
Contact:
The Current CBC Radio P.O. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6 (877) 287-7366
Email:
thecurrent@cbc.ca
Episodes
Is Canada headed towards a national unity crisis?
5/26/2026
Prime Minister Mark Carney is warning Albertans voting Yes to holding a second referendum on separation is a "dangerous bluff." Our national affairs panel looks at how the ballot question is impacting Alberta and the rest of the country.
Duration:00:19:42
What we can learn from the resilience of trees
5/26/2026
For the past four decades, world renowned biologist Nalini Nadkarni has risked her life studying trees. In 2015, she fell from a 50-foot bigleaf maple tree in the Olympic Peninsula. She tells The Current host Matt Galloway what her recovery from that catastrophic fall taught her about resilience and trees.
Duration:00:24:49
Are there too many A+ students?
5/26/2026
Harvard University recently capped the number of As received by undergraduates in an effort to curb grade inflation. In Canada university admission averages have been climbing for years. There's been a surge in A+ high school students. Do grades still reflect merit? We hear from Christopher DeLuca, professor of educational assessment at Queen’s University, and Darja Barr, a senior instructor in mathematics at the University of Manitoba who has studied the connection between high school grades and achievement in first year university.
Duration:00:23:41
Are antidepressants overprescribed?
5/25/2026
About six million Canadians fill prescriptions for antidepressants. And now, SSRI’s are coming under increasing scrutiny with a push to curb psychiatric drugs in the United States.. We discuss the latest, evidence-based research on depression about what we know - and don’t know - about its causes, and whether the drugs prescribed to treat it are still the best option.
Duration:00:27:11
Why trust in police is eroding
5/25/2026
For police officers, trust is key. But in places like Ottawa, the greater Toronto area, and Winnipeg, investigations into the police are eroding that trust. A look at what's been happening with police and what it could take to get that trust back.
Duration:00:18:17
Farmers vs AI data centres (guess who won?)
5/25/2026
There's an AI data centre boom in Canada. Advocates say they're necessary for Canada's sovereignty and prosperity. Critics say they're noisy and terrible for the environment. In one Alberta community, a group of farmers fought an AI data centre and won. We speak to writer and journalist, Luc Rinaldi, who wrote about this fight and one of the farmers at the heart of it.
Duration:00:24:20
Pentagon ices a longstanding Canada-US defence pact
5/22/2026
The U.S. paused their participation in the US-Canada Permanent Joint Board on Defence this week — something which has been around since 1940. Former Canadian Conservative Leader, Erin O'Toole explains what this was, why this matters and what might come next.
Duration:00:17:44
The smells around you are disappearing
5/22/2026
Many of the Earth's scents are fading away or disappearing altogether because of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss. Journalist Serena Jampel says we'd likely find the loss of memory-evoking smells, like lavender or vanilla, tragic. But some scents under threat, like frankincense, also have deep cultural meaning.
Duration:00:13:25
What the backlash against AI looks like in China
5/22/2026
There's a growing backlash against AI worldwide. In China this is reflected in daily life by the sense of precarity felt by workers. There's a deep unease at the speed of technological disruption that's reflected in culture, online life, and a collective nostalgia — much of which is likely familiar to many people in North America. We talk to journalist Yi-Ling Liu, the author of the book "The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom & Connection on the Chinese Internet" about how people in China are responding to AI — and the parallels between the Chinese and American experience of AI.
Duration:00:24:17
Why are so many people watching videos out loud in public?
5/22/2026
Have you noticed more people scrolling through social media in public, oblivious to those around them, with the volume full blast? It is something that Henry Luzzatto has. He wrote about it for a recent article in Slate called “What Kind of Person Would Dare to Watch TikTok Out Loud on Public Transit? I Can Tell You First Hand.” Henry Luzzatto on why he thinks more people are listening to videos out loud in public.
Duration:00:12:37
A new frontier in autism research
5/21/2026
A new study out of SickKids is opening a window into how scientists understand autism. Researchers have identified a previously overlooked gene linked specifically to the social interaction and repetitive behavioural traits associated with autism, a discovery they say could help improve genetic testing and eventually lead to more targeted therapies. Dr. Stephen Scherer, senior scientist and chief of research at SickKids, discusses what makes this finding so significant.
Duration:00:12:41
Late night says goodbye to Stephen Colbert
5/21/2026
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is ending after more than a decade on air. Colbert was known for his jabs at global politics and US President Donald Trump, as well as light-hearted humour sprinkled between conversations about grief and his faith. Matt Galloway speaks with Sophia McClennen, the author of the book “Colbert’s America: Satire and Democracy” and “Trump was a Joke: How Satire Made Sense of a President Who Didn’t.”
Duration:00:12:30
FIFA World Cup costing Canadians $1B
5/21/2026
New estimates from the federal budget watchdog show that the Canadian government will spend more than a billion dollars to host the World Cup in Toronto and Vancouver. We hear from businesses, sports fans and experts about whether the public money spent will actually give Canadians a fair return.
Duration:00:19:46
Montreal has hits peak hockey
5/21/2026
The PWHL Victoire won the Walter Cup, the Habs are in the NHL Eastern Conference finals, and Montreal has Hockey fever! Sport columnist and Montrealer Meeker Guerrier on the sport that’s taken over his city.
Duration:00:11:51
Canadians are facing a debt crisis
5/20/2026
In the first three months of this year, more than 37,000 people filed for insolvency in Canada — the highest number of consumer insolvencies since during the financial downturn in 2009. We hear from a Canadian on how he fixed his own personal financial crisis.
Duration:00:19:21
Why this Ebola is different
5/20/2026
On Sunday, the World Health Organization declared the ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda "a public health emergency of international concern". We speak with infectious disease correspondent, Helen Branswell with Stat News, and Dr. Joanne Liu, a physician and professor at McGIll University's School of Population and Global Health, and former International President Médecins Sans Frontières, who led the international response to the West African Ebola epidemic from 2014-2016.
Duration:00:20:25
Scott Galloway’s operating manual for being a man today
5/20/2026
Podcaster, professor and entrepreneur Scott Galloway believes young men are struggling with feelings of alienation, loneliness, and failure. And that's a danger to all of us, especially when they buy into the dangerous rhetoric they hear online. We talk to him about his book, Notes on Being a Man, what he's learned from his own life, and why this is such a passionate mission for him.
Duration:00:23:48
Dawson City grieves the loss of historic bar
5/19/2026
Dawson City, Yukon’s iconic tavern, the Westminster Hotel, aka “The Pit,” was destroyed in a fire. The building dates back to 1898 and was a beloved community hub. One of the bar's longtime managers Heidi Bliedung, on what The Pit meant to Dawson City and how they will move forward following the fire.
Duration:00:08:49
Do we still need zoos?
5/19/2026
The London Zoo will open a hospital where people can watch vets treat animals — from checkups to post-mortems. Zoo consultant Sarah Spooner says that kind of public engagement helps boost conservation and helps zoos stay relevant. But environmental author Emma Marris says zoos can't justify the harm they do to animals and we've outgrown them, even if we don't realize it yet.
Duration:00:24:00
Tick season is here: what to know
5/19/2026
Scientists are warning Canadians to get ready for a U.S. tick invasion this year. We hear from Patty O'Brien-Carrier from Maine who developed a severe meat allergy after being bitten by a lone star tick and Nicoletta Faraone, the director of the Canadian Tick Research and Innovation Centre, about the ticks to watch out for and how to protect yourself.
Duration:00:20:06