CANADALAND

A new strictly Canadian social media platform is promising a friendlier alternative, but is it too Canadian to succeed?

Gander Social launched on Canada Day with an ambitious plan to “fix” social media with a bot-free, less divisive approach that includes moderation based on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

But, do people really want social media that “makes them smile”?

Host: Julian Abraham
Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Kallan Lyons (Associate Producer and Fact Checking), Caleb Thompson (Mixing and Mastering), Tristan Capacchione (Senior Production Supervisor), Jesse Brown (Editor)
Guest: Kevin Newman

Additional music by Audio Network
Image Credit: Cedric Fauntleroy

Students and new-to-audio reporters: Canadaland is launching another year of our Audio Journalism Fellowship!

If you’re a journalism student or audio storyteller looking to gain some invaluable experience, this is a really unique opportunity. Find out more:
https://www.labs.canadaland.com/

Further reading:
Canadian social-media platform Gander officially launches this week, promising data sovereignty - The Globe and Mail
Investor Outlook: Gander Social expands with Canadian data focus [Bloomberg]
- Arlene Dickinson and Amber Mac sever ties with Gander Social | BetaKit
Luke Lebrun Thread [Bluesky]
Welcome to the Mark Carney major projects sweepstakes - The Globe and Mail
The Biggest Tell That Something Was Written by AI - The Atlantic

Sponsors:
oxio: Head over to canadaland.oxio.ca and use code CANADALAND for your first month free!

Douglas: Douglas is giving our listeners a FREE Sleep Bundle with each mattress purchase. Get the sheets, pillows, mattress and pillow protectors FREE with your Douglas purchase today. Visit douglas.ca/canadaland to claim this offer.

BetterHelp: Visit BetterHelp.com/canadaland today to get 10% off your first month.

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fifty years ago, Alberta had a chance to build one of the greatest sovereign wealth funds in the world. It could have been a trillion-dollar province.

This episode, host Sam traces the full story of the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund: the booms, the busts, and the mistakes made along the way. How did the richest province in Canadian history end up with almost nothing saved?

And now that Mark Carney is trying to build something similar for the whole country, does Ottawa actually know what it's doing, or is it about to make the same mistakes all over again?

Host: Sam Konnert
Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Host/Producer), Noor Azrieh (Host/Producer), Annie Tuba (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Tristan Capacchione (Senior Production Supervisor), Jesse Brown (Editor), Tony Wang (Artwork)
Photo Credit: @ABDanielleSmith

Guests: Trevor Tombe, Keith Brownsey

Background reading:
Alberta government expects $100 payouts to arrive within 2 weeks of applications – Global News
The Canada Strong Fund isn’t a sovereign wealth fund — and that’s OK – Policy Options
Canada’s new sovereign wealth fund is ambitious, but its design raises questions – The Conversation
Alberta's fund a cautionary tale for Carney's national sovereign wealth fund – National Post
Alberta’s oil inheritance is being pilfered (by Albertans) – The Globe and Mail

Sponsors:
Visit fizz.ca to learn more about Fizz mobile and its long list of added-value features, and activate a first plan using the referral code CAN40 to get 40$ off and 10GB of free data.

Douglas is giving our listeners a FREE Sleep Bundle with each mattress purchase. Get the sheets, pillows, mattress and pillow protectors FREE with your Douglas purchase today at douglas.ca/canadaland

See less carts go abandoned and more sales go ‘CHA CHING’ with Shopify and their Shop Pay button. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.ca

Did you know we have a monthly supporter-exclusive show?

Last week, on Off the Record, Sam Konnert asked Jesse Brown all about the state of the company and where we're going in 2026. Also, why did Jesse cave to the union's demands in contract bargaining?

If you want to hear that (or if you want to catch up on all the great episodes of Off The Record you’ve missed!) become a supporter at canadaland.com/join.

If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

Do you know someone who should work at Canadaland? Well, our audio journalism fellowship is back this fall, and applications are open from now til the end of June. We’re looking for a couple of recent grads or working journalists who want to move into the world of audio journalism. Find out more or apply by going to labs.canadaland.com

Make sure you’re up to date on our upcoming events by going to canadaland.com/live!

Can't get enough Canadaland? Follow us @Canadaland_Podcasts on Instagram and @Canadaland_Media on TikTok!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Investigative reporter Laura Robinson and Senator Marilou McPhedran were accused of faking government documents. The RCMP were called in followed quickly by the Senate Ethics Committee.

Several weeks ago that committee finally handed down their verdict. For years Robinson could say little about the case. But today she brings the whole story to Canadaland. The story of her part in an operation to save the lives of hundreds of Afghan footballers.

Further Reading:
A Canadian senator helped save Afghan women. The immigration department called police on her — The Toronto Star
Did Canada Betray Afghanistan’s Female Soccer Players? — The Walrus
Canadian senator sent documents to Afghan family that weren’t authentic, Ottawa says — The Globe & Mail

Host: Bruce Thorson
Credits: Tristan Capacchione (Senior Production Supervisor), Bruce Thorson (Senior Producer), Chad Galloway (Audio Editing & Production), Jesse Brown (Editor and Publisher)

Fact checking by: Julian Abraham
Additional music by: Audio Network

Sponsors:

Fizz: Visit https://fizz.ca and activate a first plan using the referral code CAN25 to get 40$ off and 10GB of free data.

Article: Article is offering our listeners $50 off your first purchase of $100 or more. To claim, visit https://article.com/canadaland and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.

Shopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at https://shopify.ca

BetterHelp: Visit https://betterHelp.com/canadaland today to get 10% off your first month.

Can’t get enough Canadaland? Follow @Canadaland_Podcasts on Instagram for clips, announcements, explainers and more.

Find out more about the our Audio Journalism Fellowship programme at https://labs.canadaland.com

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You might not be super familiar with the name Corus Entertainment, but you definitely know their work: Global News, Teletoon, YTV, Treehouse, Showcase etc. Since 1987 Corus has dominated Canadian media across TV and radio, but just last month (June 2026) they reported a $36.5-million loss in the third quarter! With yet another Canadian legacy media company, Corus Entertainment, at risk of being taken over by a private company, we’re lamenting the state of ownership across Canadian media, and what it means for the future of bingeable true crime.

Disclosure: At one point, host San Grewal refers to the $500 million deal that the government reached with Google through the Online News Act. Canadaland does receive money through this payout. Details can be found here:

https://cjc-ccj.ca/en/funding-recipients/

Host: San Grewal
Credits: Andrea Varsany (Producer), Kallan Lyons (Associate Producer and Fact Checking), imogen sayers (Mixing and Mastering), Tristan Capacchione (Senior Production Supervisor), Jesse Brown (Publisher)
Guest: Morgan Campbell

Additional music by Audio Network

Further reading:
Quebecor pushes for debt discount as it seeks to acquire Corus Entertainment - Globe and Mail
CORUS ENTERTAINMENT ANNOUNCES RECAPITALIZATION TRANSACTION - Corus Ent
Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2026-103 - CRTC
Corus lenders revisit a well-worn restructuring path - Globe and Mail
Corus reports $36.5-million loss in third quarter as revenue falls - The Globe and Mail
Some analysts are now saying Global’s owner is headed for bankruptcy — can Corus be saved? - Toronto Star
Corus announces recapitalization deal as it seeks relief from its debt burden - Toronto Star

Sponsors:

Douglas: Douglas is giving our listeners a FREE Sleep Bundle with each mattress purchase. Get the sheets, pillows, mattress and pillow protectors FREE with your Douglas purchase today at https://douglas.ca/canadaland

oxio: Head over to https://canadaland.oxio.ca and use code CANADALAND for your first month free!

Squarespace: Check out https://squarespace.com/canadaland for a free trial, and when you’re ready to launch use code canadaland to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

Learn more about our Audio Fellowship programme at https://labs.canadaland.com

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re talking about Canadaland the company the show.

Where is Canadaland going in 2026? CBS, CNN, maybe The Rivoli?

CanCon jokes aside, today Sam sits down with Jesse to talk all about the state of Canadaland. We have a new collective bargaining agreement, we have a new Journalistic Standards and Practices document, we have new hosts coming on board.

And what new shows are we working on?

All this and more. Wait for it.

Host: Sam Konnert
Credits: Tristan Capacchione (Producer), Tony Wang (Executive Producer), Jesse Brown (Publisher)
Guests: Jesse Brown
Photo: Canadaland
Additional music by Audio Network

Find out more about Canadaland’s Audio Journalism Fellowship programme at https://labs.canadaland.com

This show is available exclusively to Canadaland supporters. To become one, go to https://canadaland.com/join/. You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.