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The AIH Transcript for April 27, 2017

Hosts: Carol Off and Jeff Douglas

STORIES FROM THIS EPISODE

Prologue

CAROL OFF: Hello, I'm Carol Off.

JEFF DOUGLAS: Good evening, I'm Jeff Douglas. This is As It Happens.

[Music: Theme]

JD: Tonight:

CO: A lousy return on investment. Kevin O'Leary's departure from the conservative leadership race has left some of his supporters feeling betrayed. Including one volunteer who now thinks the businessmen's campaign rhetoric was a bit rich.

JD: The ring cycle. NASA's Cassini spacecraft executes the first of many dives between the planet Saturn and its rings in a mission that has already had a lot of ups and downs.

CO: Let us pray. A mother of a Muslim student in Ontario's Peel District School Board describes her concerns about her child's safety, after a series of anti-Islamic incidents over Friday prayers in school.

JD: Erin on the side of caution. He may not be the flashiest candidate in the race and he doesn't have the support of a shark/dragon. But Erin O'Toole says that he is still the most likely to win the Conservative leadership.

CO: Unreality check. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales tells us about his latest project: a site that will combat fake news by bringing together professional journalists and volunteer fact-checkers.

JD: And… veg issue. Some Christian groups are angry about what one man wore to church last Sunday. But because he was dressed as a giant piece of asparagus, he can really only be judged by a jury of his spears. As It Happens, the Thursday edition. Radio that introduces a stalk character.

[Music: Theme]

Part 1: O’Leary volunteer, Peel school mom, Gus the Asparagus Man

O’Leary volunteer

Guest: GUEST

JD: Just as he ruffled feathers going into the race three months ago, Kevin O’Leary is ruffling them on his way out. As you heard on this program last night from Mr. O'Leary himself, he has decided to step out of the Conservative Party leadership race. The move stunned some political observers who saw the reality TV star as a clear frontrunner. But it also stunned members of his own campaign team. Before yesterday, many of them had no idea their candidate would be dropping out. Earlier today, we reached a campaign volunteer from Kevin O'Leary's team. He has asked we protect his identity as he is currently an employee with the federal government. We reached him in Ottawa.

CO: How did you find out that Kevin O'Leary was pulling out of the race?

GUEST: I got a text message from my friend at work telling me can you believe that O’Leary dropped out? I was completely shocked and I looked up online and I see that was the case. And I emailed one of the directors on the campaign to find out if is true and if she could verify that it was true.

CO: So how come? I mean how much time had you already dedicated to Kevin O'Leary's campaign?

GUEST: I dedicated a number of hours helping out on a campaign. On the conference, phone calls and outreach. So it was a chunk of time.

CO: Did you think that you should have as a volunteer and the fact that you’re giving him your time and your support did you think that he owed it to you to let you know that he was going to do this in advance?

GUEST: To be honest, I think he owed it to stick in the campaign until the very end. To find out the way that we did, felt more like a betrayal than anything else. It shows that he didn't care at all and he kind of lived up to every negative stereotype that was said about him, which is what makes it worse.

CO: What does he live up to? What's the stereotype he lives up to by doing this?

GUEST: All the views that he’s just in it for himself. He’s just callous, arrogant and this is self-promotion.

CO: So I guess you didn't believe all those stereotypes? Did you think Kevin O'Leary when you got involved that he was somebody else?

GUEST: Well, for me, yes he's an abrasive character. But he also plays a character on television. But he had very moderate social policies. Fiscally he was a Conservative, but he would say the silly thing here and there when it came to federal politics. But also one of the big appeals as well he's able to attract a lot of members into the party. I have friends of mine who were never political who messaged me telling me how they were interested in getting involved in the campaign. I think it is healthy that people engage in political discourse.

CO: So you found him you thought he was he was the best candidate for the conservatives, maybe even the best possible prime minister?

GUEST: I think he would have done a good job. He's a moderate who isn’t extreme. He just would say the attention grabbing headline here and there. But I think he would have been a good choice for leadership at the time. And I think you made a good prime minister as well.

CO: Do you think he's shown who he really is now?

GUEST: I think that's exactly what's occurred. And the worst part is I’ve got friends of mine say oh, you know make mistakes. He's not in it for the country or this is just an opportunistic move and it looks like they were proven right.

CO: You had a bet riding on that didn't you? Some money?

GUEST Yeah, I did.

CO: So how much money did you lose betting on O’Leary?

GUEST: A hundred dollars.

CO: Just talk a bit about what he did and didn't do. He must have known he had to win in Quebec because he said to us yesterday, when we interviewed him, he said when he realized that he couldn't take Quebec there's no reason to stay in. Do you think he actually tried to win Quebec? What effort do you think he put into actually winning hearts and minds in that province?

GUEST: He’s been on Quebec television before despite being an Anglophone. People still know who he was. He still got attention there. So this idea that Quebec was completely hopeless. Frankly, the Conservatives have only won the most seats in the most recent election in Quebec anyways as of recent times strikes me as a bit disingenuous and more of a copout.

CO: Do you think he put the effort in to learn French?

GUEST No, I don't really think so. I think there was a little bit initially where there was that intention, but I don't think that really stuck through.

CO: We asked him what he did to try and get support in Quebec and he said that he went there often, he hung out in Montreal, and he’s got businesses there so he knows people. He went to the Orange Julep, which is a hangout for lots of people in parts of Montreal and that didn't seem to do any good. Do you think he could have done more?

GUEST: I think he has done more. I think if he went to the university campuses as he did elsewhere there he would have definitely got a huge crowd, especially McGill and Concordia. At Concordia there’s a lot of these types of very radical campus politics that turned off a lot of moderate students. And I think Quebec City in the other area where the Conservatives actually do very well would have also I think delivered big numbers and big support if he actually made that attempt.

CO: Do you think he was ever really committed to the idea of leading the party?

GUEST: Before I did. But now, the way everything's unraveled, I feel like it was largely a self-promotion, ego-driven campaign. And it’s very disappointing considering that I actually thought otherwise only a couple of months ago.

CO: So do you think that his heart was ever really in it or he was just having some fun?

GUEST: Frankly, as I think about it more and more, I don't think his heart was in it that much. I was at one of his first campaign launches. It was in Ottawa and he seemed very uncomfortable with the crowd. And normally politicians, even if you are uncomfortable, you feign interest. But he kind of just showed discomfort having to you know communicate with the Canadian voters.

CO: So he couldn't even fake it that he was interested

GUEST: I think it's very obvious to many who saw his body language that he was not that interested in actually communicating with people at his events.

CO: Why do you think he dropped out?

GUEST: Frankly, I think he dropped out because he thought he was going to win. And I think he's like well, that's a two year commitment on my part to stay, get a riding, quit my shows and have to wait around until the next election. He’d have to wait two more years and I don't think he’s willing to actually have a serious commitment.

CO: Did he ever hang out with you and the volunteers? Did you ever have a beer with him or have any kind of social engagement?

GUEST: No, no, no, it would be in and out. Fly in, come to the event and leave right after. There wouldn't be any beers after the events or anything like that.

CO: Did you meet him?

GUEST: I met him briefly at his first Ottawa event. And then I helped out at another event at one of the universities in Ottawa, but it was brief and that's how it was for most people.

CO: It sounds like you're fairly stung by this?

GUEST: I was. I was very stung by this. I really did not expect that to happen the way it unraveled like that.

CO: How old are you?

GUEST: 24.

CO: Does this discourage you at all about playing a role in politics?

GUEST: To be honest, I've been in politics since I was 16 and I’ve been on numerous campaigns. A lot of losing campaigns and this is the only one I can honestly say that I regretted supporting someone.

CO: And who are you going to support now?

GUEST: I'm inclined to support Maxime Bernier now.

CO: Well that's what Kevin O'Leary wants you to do.

GUEST: I'm doing it because I want to do it, not because of any recommendation of his.

CO: I appreciate very much you would speak with us.

GUEST: Thank you.

CO: Thank you. Bye bye.

GUEST: Bye bye.

JD: That was a volunteer who worked on Kevin O'Leary's campaign and we spoke to him from Ottawa. We have agreed to protect his identity as he is currently a federal government employee. And there is more on that story on the As It Happens website. That being: www.cbc.ca/aih.

[Music: Piano]

Peel school mom

Guest: Shireen Ahmed

JD: for almost 20 years, Muslim students in Southern Ontario’s Peel District School Board have used school space for Friday prayers. Over the last few months however, an effort to end that practice has been heating up. Pages from the Qu’ran were torn out at a school board meeting. An online post offered a cash reward for videos taken during prayers. And a local Imam who is known to work with the school board says that he has received death threats. Shireen Ahmed's son goes to school in the Peel District and attends the Friday prayers at school. Ms. Ahmed published an op-ed in The Globe and Mail today entitled “My Son Shouldn't Have To Be Afraid During Friday Prayers At School.” We read Shireen Ahmed in Mississauga, Ontario.

CO: Ms. Ahmed, what is it like to know that your child's school board is the target of such vitriol?

SHIREEN AHMED: It's extremely upsetting. I think because we live in a very diverse neighborhood and a very diverse city it's not something I expected and it's something that I'm really uncomfortable with.

CO: Can you describe some of the Islamophobic activity that you've seen in the Peel District over the past months?

SA: Well, I did hear my own son told me that there were a couple of school board meetings where there was a lot of disruption. And there's been a lot of shouting back and forth. There was one instance where a really angry man came and started ripping out pages of our holy book and I found that really appalling.

CO: He bought a copy of the Qu’ran and began to tear pages out of it. That's what happened.

SA: And tore pages out. And what that PDSB did was they collected all the pages very carefully and then contacted local Imams and said what do we do? Because they wanted to respect the book itself, which I really appreciated which bought me a little comfort that they recognized that this was a heinous act.

CO: And we say the PDSB, this is the Peel District School Board. Now your son is in this school system. What is he saying about what he's seeing and hearing about?

SA: My eldest is very well aware. He's not scared, he is becoming angry. Angry in terms of you know I tell him don't go on these anti-Muslim groups. And this really got my attention as well because the person said that they would give a thousand dollars to anybody who had video footage of children during Jumma, which is the Friday prayer congregation on schools.

CO: I just want to flag that one because this is quite significant. This was someone who identified himself, who posted a video on YouTube saying that he's offering a thousand dollar reward for recordings of Muslim students quote, “spewing hate speech during Friday prayers.” And so this has been quite controversial within the school board hasn't it?

SA: Yes it was and it was enough for them to actually email the parents and let them know that we're aware of it. I never thought that somebody would be that misinformed and that ignorant and that hateful to say that I will reward people for basically surveillance. And that's really, really upsetting. He is targeting children. Make no mistake these kids are under 18. I mean there are potential legal ramifications. And this is the part that I find very difficult because we also live in a province where there are Catholic schools. My daughter attends one and they do prayers. They have masses at school like that is also religion, but it just directly points at the fact that calls for no religion in schools is really not calls for no religion. It’s calls for nothing to do with the Islam in schools and that's simply racist and xenophobic.

CO: And I just so people know that in Ontario the separate school system — the Catholic school system — is funded by taxpayers and that the Toronto Catholic District School Board is one of the largest school boards in all of Canada. And one of your children goes to Catholic school, is that right?

SA: She does and I have absolutely no problem with children choosing to pray in school. Like it's all so entrenched in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to be able to have freedom of expression and freedom of religion.

CO: The Friday prayer session the — Jumma — that your son attends. I understand that there has been considerably more security. Can you tell us about that?

SA: Yes. Well, I mean the at this point, the school board is saying that there is no police presence. But I know for a fact that there are always police at high school whether it's for fighting or whatnot. But I also do know that teachers have become much more vigilant. There's no cameras allowed. Probably in response to that call for a submission of hate speech or whatever it was. The other thing is that there's definitely been also more presence at community meetings and school board meetings. Plain clothes officers as well as more hired security.

CO: Have you spoken with your son about security at Jumma?

SA: Well, interestingly enough, he told me that like the police are always on school property. It may not be specifically for this. But when I talk to him about safety, he didn't look to the police for protection.

CO: What do you mean by that?

SA: Well I said well what if somebody comes in and tries to start something? I mean my worst fear is Carol, we're two-three months away from one of the most horrific shootings in Quebec.

CO: The mosque shooting.

SA: So these are conversations I definitely have with my children. And I asked him wouldn’t you feel more safe if you didn't go? And he said no. But he told me that if anyone tried to cause some trouble there'd be 300 of us on them in a second. So he looks to himself and his friends and his fellow congregants for that safety of numbers I guess you could say. And I'm lucky he goes to a school where there is such a large gathering, but what about the students that don't have that?

CO: You mentioned when you bring up the Quebec shooting in the mosque and then think about your kids going to school in this environment. Is that what's in the back of your mind when you're when your son is going to Friday prayers?

SA: Yeah, how can it not be? I mean that was a violation in a completely sacred space and something like that could happen there I mean where can it not happen? To not have a conversation would be irresponsible for me as a parent.

CO: There are those who say that perhaps by having these conversations publicly like the one we're having now, that we are giving publicity to a very small group of people. This man who made this this offensive video and other incidents like that, we're just giving them oxygen and this is what they crave. Do you worry about that?

SA: No, I think because of what they are saying is so hateful and potentially violent. I think it's important to address that and to not shy away from having those difficult conversations. I mean Canada loves to talk about its diversity and its tolerance. And these conversations essentially make people very uncomfortable, but they're important. And as a parent and as a member of the community, I want all children to feel safe.

CO: Ms. Ahmed, I really appreciate speaking with you. Thank you.

SA: Thank you so much for having me, Carol.

CO: Bye bye.

SA: Bye.

JD: We reached Shireen Ahmed in Mississauga, Ontario. And we have posted more about this story on our website: www.cbc.ca/aih.

[Music: Bluegrass]

Gus the Asparagus Man

Guest: Gus the Asparagus Man

JD: This past weekend, at the Worcester Cathedral in Worcestershire, England. Everyone was dressed in their Sunday best. Everyone except one gentleman, whose outfit appeared to be missing something. Like hollandaise sauce. As part of Sunday's special service, asparagus from the community of Evesham was being blessed at the Anglican Church. Seems like a nice gesture, but instead it generated controversy. Not because of the blessing, but because of a man who was part of the procession. A man dressed in a giant green asparagus costume. He is known only as Gus the Asparagus Man. We reached him in Evesham.

CO: Gus, can you tell us why you were dressed as an asparagus spear at church on Sunday?

GUS THE ASPARAGUS MAN: On Sunday we were celebrating the start of the British Asparagus Festival, which is a festival that runs from the 23rd of April through to the 21st of June. And on the 23rd of April on what we call the “launch day” we always have quite a big celebration about it as is the start of the asparagus season. And each year, we take a big round of asparagus to somewhere different. We've been to many places over the years. We've been to Buckingham Palace to take asparagus to the Queen. We've been to Parliament in London and many other times around the country. But this year, as a special celebration this year we have been awarded a special food status for asparagus —a protected food status, which is quite a high award for a vegetable.

CO: So you've been all these places as an asparagus spear. What were you doing at the cathedral on Sunday?

GA: Well, we were at the cathedral on Sunday to give thanksgiving for the asparagus. So for one of the region's most famous products the Vale of Evesham asparagus and it was a wonderful and happy event and everyone who attended did so with great reverence.

CO: And so can you tell us how it went on? What did you actually do? There is a picture of you coming down the aisle of the church.

GA: You’ve obviously seen the picture. Now that was at the start. It was a normal even song service and that was the start where we process down behind the Canon to the altar where he would bless the asparagus. And then after that, we just became part of the congregation.

CO: OK, so what I’m looking at the Canon’s coming down towards the altar. Behind him is somebody carrying a very large bundle.

GA: That is the chairman of the British Asparagus Festival carrying the best of the best asparagus.

CO: And then behind him, I presume it is you?

GA: There’s me and St. George as on Sunday it was St. George's Day here.

CO: So Gus, can you tell us why this became so controversial?

GA: Well, we've actually been to Brussels, so we only heard about it when we were on the way back that this is all sort of put out of proportion because some people seem to be offended by the sight of the asparagus and the big green man. And I think they thought he didn't actually belong there for some reason.

CO: Well they went further than that. A group known as “Christian Concern” said this is an absurd pantomime-type scene that makes a mockery of Christian worship. Another good “Bishop Cranmer Blog”, a theologian Adrian Hilton said it was an infantile pantomime and it brought the Church of England into disrepute. There were those who said it was Monty Python-esque. Quite extreme criticism of I guess you being in this precession. How do you feel about that?

GA: I’m not upset, but a bit disconcerted why there should be such a reaction? Basically all these people that are saying this, they weren't there. That's the problem.

CO: Well, obviously that the Church felt it was worthy of such a service and so why is asparagus so important to your community?

GA: Well, asparagus is a vegetable that has been grown in the Vale of Evesham for many years and it has been quite part of the horticultural heritage of the area.

CO: And how long have you been dressing up as an asparagus spear?

GA: I have been Gus the Asparagus Man since 2008.

CO: You've traveled a great deal as Asparagus man?

GA: I have been all over. It has made my world bigger and now, this week, we have actually been to Brussels to the European Parliament.

CO: And how did people in Brussels respond to you as Gus the Asparagus?

GA: Before we heard about this going on here, when we were in Brussels. It was one of the best trips I've been on. And I was received very warmly in Brussels and amazingly enough, a lot of people knew who I was.

CO: So what are people at your own church at — your cathedral — what are they saying about all this controversy?

GA: There's like two sides to this I think. You get sort of traditionalists who sort of don’t like the change I think. And then you get the more modern outlook where they want to have a little bit of change and something a bit different.

CO: What do you do when you're not being Asparagus Man?

GA: I am a farmer for my day job, believe it or not.

CO: I think that's very believable. Anyway, I've never spoken to Asparagus Man before. Good to talk to you, Gus. Thank you.

GA: That was good. Bye now.

CO: Bye.

JD: That was Gus the Asparagus Man. We reached him in Eveshim, England.

[Music: Electronica]

Sound of the Day: whispering whales

JD: Pst… hey mom, mom. When kids are trying to get your attention, they're persistent. But sometimes they're quiet about it. I mean maybe it's because they want to get your attention without anyone else knowing. Maybe because they don't want a sibling to notice or asking for Gummi Bears. Or maybe because they don't want to be viciously attacked and eaten by an orca. Now that's not really a big risk for human younglings, but it is for humpback whale younglings. If they're separated from their moms by Orca's they're, well they're pretty much a goner. And so they have a vested interest in not yelling things like, “Mom, I'm hungry”, or, “Mom, I'm some distance from you and extremely vulnerable.” Now we don't know much about the behavior of humpback calves. Every year, they migrate thousands of kilometers with their moms and that makes them hard to track. But now, a group of scientists has made an interesting discovery and they've done it using a kind of whale baby monitor. They attached recording devices to eight baby humpbacks and each device only really stays stuck on a whale for about a day at a time. But that was enough to reveal some very interesting things. One: that humpback calves sound nothing like their parents. They just kind of tend to make little grunts and squeaks instead of the beautiful and haunting moans. And two: that humpback calves are extremely quiet: the whale equivalent of whispering like this, our sound of the day.

SOUNDCLIP

[Sound: Tiny squeaks]

JD: Scientists theorize that the babies aren't asking to be fed. They're just letting their moms know where they are while they travel and they do so quietly because if they did it loudly, they might also let predators, like Killer whales know where they are. So somehow the calves just know that they ought to keep it down. I guess you could call it mutterer’s intuition.

Part 2: Saturn Cassini, WikiTribune: Wales

Saturn Cassini

Guest: Mar Vaquero

JD: Cassini came back. Yesterday, Cassini, the space probe, went silent after NASA sent it plunging between Saturn's rings and the planet's upper atmosphere. No one was certain whether it would ever be heard from again. But then, early this morning, Cassini did reappear and started beaming back images that could change our understanding of the second largest planet in our solar system. Mar Vaquero is a member of Cassini's navigation team. We reached her at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

CO: Ms. Vaquero, what was the feeling of the team when you learned that Cassini had survived this plunge towards Saturn's upper atmosphere?

MAR VAQUERO: I would say the overall feeling was excitement and pride. I was in the Mission Control Room at JPL with the rest of the team and we were very excited once we got there. Things got a little quiet in there and then once we got the signal back from the spacecraft, it was pure excitement.

CO: And what's the signal that you get? What does it sound like?

MV: It's just a graph. We look through data, so it's really a set of points. And when everything is flat and when you get a spike in that flat that means you've received a signal back from a spacecraft and that it is talking to you. So as simple as one point that is not in line with the rest meaning there's life up there and the space is alive and talking to us.

CO: It's not like a ping you get on your cell phone then?

MV: No, not quite. It's amazing how we all can stare at a graph for so long so intently.

CO: And Cassini is sending back pictures. Can you describe what they show?

MV: A picture is really worth more than a thousand words. So if you're able to see some of Saturn's images are just incredible. To me, the most shocking one was there a storm at the North Pole of Saturn that Cassini was able to take. Incredible shots of that region and also other parts of the planet as it went through the ring plane.

CO: And we will post a link to your photos because I agree with you, radio doesn't do justice. What are some of the other things that really impressed you?

MV: The rings. We've never seen the rings from this close and from this distance ever before. During the Saturn orbiting assertion that's the best images that we had until a few months ago, where from that time 2004. Cassini was so fast and it did just one pass of the rings and still we got those amazing shots of the rings. But now we're getting very detailed information about the rings and that's something that really catches my interest.

CO: Now this is the first of several dips into what you call “the gap”. What is “the gap” and why would you take the risk of sending a spaceship there?

MV: When I referred to “the gap” I mean the region between the innermost ring and the planet's atmosphere. Why are we taking the spacecraft there? Well, Cassini is running low on propellant and this is not news to us or a surprise. We knew this moment would come, so about five years ago, or so. The JPL navigation team, the trajectory designers and the project got together and started planning a safe ending for the spacecraft. Multiple options were considered. There's three in particular there were quite appealing. We had the navigation team and trajectory designers had the option to put Cassini on escape trajectory and send it out of the system so we would never return back. But that would take more propellant than we were willing to spend at the time. The second option was to keep Cassini around the system in a stable orbit. However, due to planetary protection requirements that wasn't the ideal option, especially after the discoveries of organic material in some of the moon's orbit around Saturn. So the third option was crashing the spacecraft into the planet and from a science standpoint — a propellant standpoint — it was the best option. In order to do that, to crash the spacecraft into the planet, we had to bring it close to the planet. And that was an amazing opportunity for the science team to take some measurements and images and data of the planet. So we extended the mission for about four months to stay around Saturn and then once we're out of propellant, we'll just bring it into the planet and terminate the mission.

CO: And then you're doing this because of the possibility that there is life on at least one of those moons around Saturn?

MV: The possibility. We can see; we cannot touch. So we can explore the system, but we should not contaminate the system with our spacecraft.

CO: You can't see it or touch it, but you can imagine it.

MV: Exactly, exactly. Until we send the next spacecraft that either lands on one of those moons or actually take samples on the moons.

CO: and is that in the future in your future? In your future?

MV: Yes it is. There's proposals going on at JPL and at NASA that are looking into future missions to Enceladus, Titan and even the planet itself. So 15-20 years from now it is — it could be a possibility.

CO: It's very exciting. Ms. Vaquero, it is great to talk to you. Thank you.

MV: Thank you so much.

CO: Bye bye.

JD: Mar Vaquero is a member of the Cassini space probe’s navigation team. We reached at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

[Music: Orchestral]

Dateline: Archimedes statue

JD: Dateline Ellisfield, England.

[Music: Dateline theme]

JD: You can imagine that a guy who accomplished as much as Archimedes did in his seven-and-a-half decades of life on this planet would be a little frustrated if not a little confounded by it all. You can picture him saying you know you figure out how to determine the area of a circle, how to calculate a sphere's area and volume and the area of a parabola segment. You devise a precise method for approximating the value of pi. Not to mention coming up with the Archimedean spiral, developing the law of exponents, inventing the screw pump. I could go on and on, but no. All everyone ever wants to talk about is at one time you got a little over excited after your eureka moment in the bath and you forgot to put your pants on and you ran out into the street. Well, all I can say is Thank Zeus that Archimedes, one of the great minds of antiquity, is no longer with us to suffer this latest indignity: being thrust once again into the spotlight. Not for his contributions to math and science, no. But because one time he forgot he was naked. The sleepy hamlet of Ellisfield, England is the unlikely epicenter of the latest Archimedean affair. At the edge of the sprawling estate of one Adrian de Ferranti stands a nine-foot homage to Archimedes, notably buff and completely in the buff. Now Mr. de Ferranti’s neighbor, Stephen Gould, recently wrote to his local council demanding that the sculpture be removed. He argued that while it might provide inspiration to some, others might find it well a little offensive. Not to mention, he says that it could distract passing drivers especially at night when it is illuminated. Further in what is surely an unwitting bit of cheek, Mr Gould surmises that the roadside attraction is in violation of town ordinance writing quote, “It was my belief that its erection was in breach of planning control.” And with that, Mr. Gould may have provided the perfect cover to this turgid Archimedean controversy: an exquisite Freudian slip.

[Music: Hip-hop]

WikiTribune: Wales

Guest: Jimmy Wales

JD: Wikipedia, no matter how many times teachers have said that crowd-sourced encyclopaedias don't count as a source. You can't help but check it when you need to know what a banana spider is? Or why exactly the Kardashians are famous? And often it's an army of volunteer editors. Well, and they're pretty good. The information is extensive and the facts are linked to citations elsewhere. Well now, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales wants to apply some of that crowd wisdom to combat fake news. Earlier this week, he announced a new site called WikiTribune, which will pair professional journalists with volunteer fact-checkers and editors. We read Jimmy Wales in New York City.

CO: Mr. Wales, why do you think we need WikiTribune?

JIMMY WALES: Well, I think there are some interesting opportunities to bring in genuine community control with professional journalists to do something a little bit different. We've been in an era, particularly in the last couple of years, where the advertising only business model has really driven a lot of very low quality media. And I want to see if we can find some ways to change that.

CO: But isn't it one of the problems with fake news and false news is that a lot of people do come from communities where they want to distort the message or poor or put in fake or biased information. So how do you prevent that?

JW: Sure. Well, I mean I think what this really requires is really thinking hard about what I call community design. It’s thinking about what is the software that allows the best people in the community to rise to the top? I mean one of the problems that we've seen with fake news is that it's not generated by community members, it's generated by what I would say are spammers who are deliberately putting out things that are propaganda or fake. Either because it's highly shareable and they get some ad revenue off of it or they’ve got some other motive. But then it's shared again and again and again through naive communities of people who there's really no warning given to them and so forth. So it isn't really fair to blame communities in general. It’s to say wow, like these systems aren't set up very well.

CO: So just maybe describe what's the difference between the way that WikiTribune would gather news and the way a commercial agency would?

JW: Well, I mean a lot of it is very much the same. Certainly you need to have professional journalists working to do all the things that it's not really possible for even very thoughtful people to do from home. On the other hand, there's a lot that communities can add to the mix and a lot that communities have done online such as Wikipedia that is incredibly valuable. And so the idea is to bring together the best of both worlds. To have journalists who can listen and be really influenced by good people in the community who have ideas for stories and leads and can do fact checking and grammar checking and all that kind of good stuff that communities are so good at.

CO: Well the big agencies have people who go out to the courthouse to get the tape, to collect the testimonies from people, to scrum them, they go into house of parliaments to do the same thing, they go to war zones, and they go all over the place gathering the news and then put that through various filters. Will you have such people?

JW: Yeah, definitely. I mean I think that's really core here. It’s that all those kinds of tasks that as a citizen journalist, I can't do all of those things. At the same time, I think a lot of traditional news organizations are paying people to do things that they really should just open up and let their communities get involved.

CO: I understand one of the key things is that you feel it is not enough transparency and where information comes from. How would you correct that?

JW: So I think one of the things that I’m really emphasizing is what I'm calling “evidence-based journalism” and that is say look, as much as possible and of course, it's not always possible. But as much as possible we should be posting the audio, the video and the transcripts of interviews. We should be posting those documents — the law documents — as much as possible so that you can really build trust with the community and with the public. Some people will be interesting to go and verify and say OK, right well the reporter has said that you know the person said in the interview and I listened to the tape and sure enough that is what they said. And not only is it just what they said, but there was a fair characterization that it wasn't pulled out of context and so forth.

CO: A huge part of what the media do is they use sources that are anonymous or they can't disclose. They have sources that they have to protect. Well you do the same thing?

JW: Yeah, yeah, sometimes it’s necessary. But I also think it's often the case that we've become a bit too reliant on that and it actually becomes a tool that the public to lose trust. You know too often we'll see sources high the administration said well basically they're whistleblowing, they're manipulating the media. I think that's problematic. It is something I think we should push back on harder.

CO: One of the criticisms of Wikipedia, and I know you've been working on this for some time, is that it is susceptible to false information on Wikipedia and biased information. How will you make sure that that doesn't happen within WikiTribune?

JW: Well, I mean I think in general Wikipedia is very robust to false information. Of course there are errors. There's always errors in everything. That's part of the human condition, Wikipedia has got a very good track record of really focusing on trying to link to reliable sources and to you know the community is very vigilant about trying to double and triple check everything. And I'm sure we'll make mistakes, all media outlets do, but we'll do our best.

CO: We did an interview to go with Stanford University, who did a study of students and found that a huge number of them —a majority of them — could not tell the difference between real and fake news. That they had now no ability to discern the difference, so isn't that part of the problem? The idea is that you are producing something because you believe there's a market for people wanting to get accurate information. But at the same time, perhaps what you're up against is that there's a population that doesn't know or care the difference.

JW: Yeah, I mean I think a lot of people do know and a lot of people do care. But I also think, and I've said this for a very long time, one of the most important things that we can do in the educational system is media literacy training. What are the signifiers of the information? How do you check things? And this has become more important than ever because you know when I was a young person, the range of sources available to me was actually fairly narrow. But nowadays, people have access to such incredibly diverse sources and so people really need to be taught this kind of thing.

CO: When does WikiTribune start?

JW: It depends in part on how low the crowd-funding goes. I’ll be hiring journalists as soon as possible. It seems to be going well so far, so hopefully quite soon.

CO: Mr. Wales, thank you.

JW: Yes, thank you very much for having me on.

JD: Jimmy Wales is the co-founder of Wikipedia. He's now launching a news site called WikiTribune. We reached Mr. Wales in New York.

[Music: Cultural]

Bristol Music Hall

JD: In life, Edward Colston made quite a name for himself in his home town of Bristol. Even today, references to him around that city are not easily escaped. And that is largely because in the centuries since his death in 1721, no one showed much interest in escaping his name. It was venerated. It was associated with virtue and good works and thus it was reflected in monuments and buildings, a holiday, even a local delicacy. Traditionally, every 13th of November, which is Colston Day, schoolchildren in Bristol are treated to a Colston bun, a pastry named for a recipe the wealthy merchant man himself concocted. An imposing bronze statue of Edward Colston erected in 1895 stands in the center of town on Colston Avenue. an inscription on its base reads quote, “Erected by citizens of Bristol as a memorial of one of the most virtuous and wise sons of their city.” And then just steps away, on Colston street, you will find Bristol’s famed music venue: Colston Hall. Over the years, it has welcomed the biggest acts in the world: Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Bob Marley, The Beatles, David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, the list goes on and on. However, there is one giant name in music that has remained decidedly off that list and that name is Massive Attack. And that omission seems especially strange once you know that the group hails from Bristol. But not at all strange once you know what the members of Massive Attack have long known about the man for whom the hall is named. Snd namely that Edward Colston, noted the parliamentarian and philanthropist, made his fortune in the slave trade. Things may be about to change however, now that Colston Hall is set for an overhaul. Right down to its name. In explaining the decision, the chief executive the Bristol Music Trust charity said quote, “The name Colston does not reflect the trust's values as a progressive, forward thinking and open arts organization.” Unquote.

Part 3: Conservative leadership candidate Erin O’Toole, “The Scream” clouds

Conservative leadership candidate Erin O’Toole

Guest: Erin O’Toole

JD: Erin O'Toole is kind of shifting on the fly. Up until yesterday, the Conservative MP was a second ballot contender for the Conservative leadership. Kevin O'Leary and Maxime Bernier were way out in front and with neither likely to win a majority in the first round. Mr. O'Toole had a shot at uniting that “anyone-but-them” vote in the second. But now, of course, Kevin O'Leary has bowed out to back Mr. Bernier and everything has changed. We reached Erin O’Toole on the train between Quebec City and Montreal.

CO: Mr. O'Toole, when you heard of Kevin O'Leary's departure yesterday you said Elvis has left the building. What does it mean for you?

ERIN O’TOOLE: It means I'm now talking to a lot of people that Elvis signed up. In fact, it was funny at an event when the rumor started trickling out. Two of his paid staff were there who travel with him. He wasn't there. They came over and said they were going to support me and the rumor trickled out that Kevin was going to Maxime. But clearly at the event I was at, the two O'Leary's supporters are now on my team. So I think Kevin is one vote and I think myself and probably other candidates are now trying to get his supporters.

CO: Now what did you think of it when Kevin O’Leary supporters are not going in the direction that he asks them to, which is to go with that Maxime Bernier?

EO: I think he appealed to a range of different people. Some young people, some people that loved his business persona, of course the celebrity factor. There's going to be no monolithic block of O'Leary's supporters. I'm trying to appeal to them to say hey, look I worked in the private sector I've worked on Bay Street. I've got the only plan for young people. I'm an urban GTA MP and Kevin was talking a lot about the city, so I think we will appeal to a lot. We saw that right out of the gate and now we're changing our strategy to make sure we reach out to them directly.

CO: There are those who are saying that the train has left the station and it has Maxime Bernier as the conductor with maybe, maybe Kevin O'Leary as the as the caboose person. But they've left the station and that maybe you can't catch up. So maybe it's better for those who are opposing him to regroup and find who might be the best person to do that?

EO: Well, certainly. I was in Quebec City today to announce my 30th member of parliament supporting my campaign — well above all other candidates. I've got 30 days left and 30 MPs and we've got the most broad support from coast to coast. And my experience in the military and Cabinet as a lawyer, people see that I'm ready to govern ready to be the PM. I don't have to get on the job training and my policies aren't meant to divide like Maxime’s. They can win the next election.

CO: Many are saying that the thing to do is for if you think that you don't want Maxime Bernier to be leading the party then the 12 of you should figure out how best to do that. How do you engineer somebody else to take that position as the leader of the party? And are you having any conversations of that nature with your contenders?

EO: There are some of those conversations Carol. You know in the last month — month-an- a-half already. My campaign's been growing several left, Andrew Scheer's campaign came to mine. We've been growing in support literally by the day. Today another MP in Quebec joined my mission. We have this momentum, so if some of the other candidates want to join the mission as well I welcome them. And we have a lot of policies that I think appeal to a lot of the other candidates in the race who are my friends and colleagues. So I think we're going to have those conversations and I'm going to travel the entire country in the next few weeks from Newfoundland to Yukon and B.C. so along the way I hope to gain the momentum to win.

CO: But it looks like Mr. Bernier, a true-blue Libertarian, has a good chance of taking the leadership of the party. Do you think he can win the next election?

EO: So really Conservative members should realize this is about what leader can keep the team together and win in 2019? There is no Libertarian coalition that Maxime Bernier can bring together. In fact, his management position and several other positions are actually divisive. It would divide our rural base for an issue that no one in urban Canada even talks about. So I think this isn't to run a debating club, which is what sometimes Maxime seems like he's doing. This is about leading all Canadians and my campaign can do that. And increasingly, as we get into the final sort of in the moment make your decision, people are going less for ideology and more for who's the pragmatic leader.

CO: Who do you think is likely to win against Mr. Bernier if somebody else does? Who are the leading contenders? Because it looks like Mr. Scheer has the most support after Mr. Bernier, not you.

EO: Well, I have the most support within our caucus. You know MPs who are in the house every day and beat the Liberals in their own ridings: 30 of them. They've made the decision. Who can beat Trudeau? It’s me. And, in fact, some left Andrew Scheer's campaign. Andrew is a great guy, but he doesn't have the experience necessary to show that he can be prime minister and run a government immediately. I've shown that I can do that. Turning around a different cabinet position when I was given that chance. Private sector work, military time. We need somebody that's ready to lead from day one and I'm that person.

CO: Abacus Data has just put out some numbers that has Mr. Trudeau beating you 65 to 35 when Canadians are asked to pick between you and him. So what makes you think you can do better than that?

EO: Well the good thing about my Planes, Trains and Automobiles campaign is more people get to know me, the more they like me. I joked that Justin Trudeau's birth was in Macleans, mine wasn't and most Canadians wasn't. I have earned where or where I am as an MP and as a veteran through hard work. And my family are middle class, we just don't talk about it. So I think when people see that I’m authentic and real and that I'm about helping them. I'm not about this private island holidays and this sort of celebrity culture. I think they'll realize we need competent leadership not a celebrity type leadership. Because if you look at the economy. If you look at the cuts to the military a lot of these things people didn't vote for when they voted for Mr. Trudeau. So with me, they'll have a real option of getting back on track.

CO: All right, we'll leave it there. Mr. O'Toole, thank you.

EO: Anytime Carol.

CO: Bye bye.

EO: Bye bye.

JD: Erin O’Toole is a Conservative MP and a candidate for the Conservative Party leadership. We reached him on the train between Quebec and Montreal.

[Music: Cultural]

Fox News class action

JD: Bill O'Reilly's ouster from Fox News last week offered us a small window into how women are allegedly treated at that television network. Well, now, a fresh set of legal challenges for Fox. This one from employees of color. This week, a combined total of 13 current and former employees at the network filed lawsuits against the country. They allege years’ worth of quote, “hostile racial discrimination.” Earlier this month, some of the plaintiffs spoke about that discrimination on “Good Morning America” In the examples given they alleged that one manager at Fox, Judith Slater, delivered the lion's share of that abuse. Here are Tabrese Wright and Tichoaona Brown.

SOUNDCLIP

TABRESE WRIGHT: We were in the elevator one day and she came up and she saw me with a bag. And she was like oh, big bag. And I'm like yes. And she's like I'm just like I'm going to take my food home because I didn't finish eating it. I'm going to take it to my kids. She's like oh, you have children? I’m like I have three. All by the same man? And I'm like yes. I was shocked.

TICHOAONA BROWN: She called me down to her office one day and she was actually in a meeting with her accounting team. And she had these words on Post-its and she said Tichoaona, I want you to say this word. And it was mother and then she picked up another one and it was father and ask the fifth all of these words. And I said why do you have me doing this? And she's just like you know black people continuously mispronounce these words and I have a couple of people you know black people on my staff and it's just these words that are always mispronounced in meetings. And she wanted to see if I, as well, mispronounced these words. I want a voice for many years of feeling voiceless. And just to you know let people — black women — who are going through the same thing that are still working at Fox to speak up and to not have it happen any longer.

JD: Tabrese Wright and Tichoaona Brown, speaking on “Good Morning America”. They are two of 13 plaintiffs involved in a class action lawsuit alleging racial discrimination by their employer, Fox News.

[Music: Pop]

“Scream Clouds”

Guest: Svein Fikke

JD: Edvard Munch's painting “The Scream” is known mostly for that disturbed and disturbing figure it depicts: a person clutching their head with an agonized expression. We don't know what provoked that expression, but his horrified face is echoed and magnified by the dramatic and orange-streaked sky above him. Svein Fikke is especially interested in that sky. Mr. Fikke is a meteorologist who recently co-wrote a paper about Munch’s “The Scream”. We reached him in Lorenskog, Norway.

CO: Svein, how did you first get interested in the clouds in Edvard Munch's famous painting of the scream?

SVEIN FIKKE: Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” always fascinated me as it has fascinated most Norwegians I think. Also he used clouds for many motifs. He started this “The Scream” or the first scream, which is called “Despair”, but also this is from my university days. Because smart professor, he took his doctorate on this particular mother of pearl clouds.

CO: just so people know if they haven't got the painting with them or even if they do. Can you describe the clouds in that famous painting?

SF: The clouds are many colors, but they are mostly red and some yellow and green and blue parts. The main impression is red. And as Edvard Munch said, the sky turned a bloodless red. And he said also to his friend the sky was read of blood. No, it was coagulated of blood, he corrected himself.

CO: And he says that he heard a scream from those clouds?

SF: Yeah, well, I think the scream is from is from his mental understanding on this particular situation.

CO: His psyche.

SF: At this particular time, he was out with two of his friends and they left him for other purposes. He was alone and probably in a lower mood. But then, all of a sudden, he looked up at the sky and it was turned red as blood as he described.

CO: It's often been the theory that the clouds had been created by activity from a volcano. Has that always been the theory?

SF: The last version of “The Scream” was painted in 1910. The theory or hypothesis of the volcano came up in 2004 I think.

CO: So it couldn't have been the caused by the volcano activity?

SF: Well, the volcano activity was actually in 1883. So it is possible that the ashes and dust from the volcano eruption could very well prevail in the atmosphere for some years after.

CO: But your theory is what? Explain what you see in those clouds?

SF: I think that they are mother of pearl clouds. They contain the same colours and wave pattern as Munch painted in “The Scream”. S Mother of pearl clouds are a very, very seldom event because they require very particular conditions in the stratosphere 20 to 30 kilometers above the surface of the earth. And then clouds consist of small particles the diameter of the same size of the wavelength of light. That's why they tend to scatter about in such a way that we get all these fantastic colors.

CO: Just describe a bit more what mother of pearl clouds look like?

SF: As I saw them on this particular evening, you see first a cloud with very particular pattern of mother of pearl colors. Then, as the sun sets further below the horizon the colours change in the clouds and also the intensity. When you see this it is a phenomenon that you will never forget. I’m turning 75 and I’ve never seen such clouds before.

CO: What are other people saying in the art world and in the meteorological world about your theory?

SF: From the meteorological world, I got a lot of very positive and support. They understand our arguments. But from the art world, I think they still need some time let this idea mature.

CO: Is it possibly because Edward Munch was a realist painter and that the idea that he painted was a product of his imagination — of his psyche — and the state of mind he was in as you mentioned. Is it not possible that this is something he imagined more than saw?

SF: I think what you refer to now I think that's the prevailing conception. But we will challenge this theory because I think Edvard Munch was also a young man with the reactions and feeling of most other young men. So when he saw this it could surely make a deep impression on him. It's a very peculiar phenomenon and the thing about meteorology and the processes in the atmosphere, you could really be scared.

CO: just before I let you go. Is it possible anywhere in Canada you know where one could possibly see — if you're lucky — mother of pearl clouds?

SF: I'm not sure.

CO: Well, we'll ask our listeners if anyone thinks they have seen it or has a photograph from anywhere where they're listening and see if we have other sightings of these extraordinary clouds. Svein, it's a really fascinating story and I appreciate you talking to us. Thank you.

SF: Thank you so much. If somebody could some pictures that would be great.

CO: Thank you so much.

SF: Thank you.

JD: Svein Fikke is a meteorologist. We reached him in Lorenskog, Norway. And if you'd like to see what Munch’s painting of those clouds looks like, we posted that to our website: www.cbc.ca/aih. And if you have seen those clouds in real life and you do have a photo tweet us @cbcasithappens.

[Music: Beerhall]

Expo 67

Guest: Moshe Safdie

JD: As I'm sure you've noticed because you're a clever group, 2017 is the year that we are celebrating Canada's 1 50th birthday. Tonight, however, we're going to mark that by celebrating an event that began 50 years ago today, to mark our centenary: The official opening of Expo 67 in Montreal. Visitors from all over Canada and all around the world flocked to that city to visit pavilions and other architectural wonders. One of which was Habitat 67. The housing complex featured stacked homes along the St. Lawrence River. It was designed by Israeli Canadian architect Moshe Safdie. A year before the expo opened, Mr. Sfdie spoke with Adrienne Clarkson about Habitat 67. Here's an excerpt.

SOUNDCLIP

MOSHE SAFDIE: Well, we're reproducing at a rather fast rate and everybody wants to live in his own single house on its own lot. We just don't have enough land to do it, so in a way it's just putting houses one on top of the other. Each with its own garden and its own entrance, but within an urban context next to shops schools and so on in a high density.

ADRIENNE CLARKSON: And is each unit self-contained like a house?

MS: Right. Each unit is an independent unit with its own independent walls. It has its own guarden and it has an entrance off the pedestrian street, which extends in the air. A unit is made up of one two or three of these pre-cast units — house — which is depending on the size on this garden area and open to the view in three directions.

AC: How will traffic move into the complex?

MS: There is a car level and parking. And then there’s a pedestrian level, which never crosses it over. Then there are pedestrian streets running horizontally within the project and vertical elevators in three areas here.

AC: Now here there seem to be Plexiglas things. Does this mean that you are protected from the weather as you walk from the elevators to your house?

MS: This is a shelter that keeps the wind and the snow off. And it brings you also to large playgrounds where the young children could play within the structure itself.

AC: Now as I look at it here from this angle, which I suppose, I wouldn’t be able to when it’s built except from a helicopter or an airplane. It seems to me there’s some kind of proportion. Is there a basic unit that you have used?

MS: Yeah, theres a basic repetitive precast unit and this is cast on the ground in the plant which we just saw. And then this is finished on the ground, the bathrooms, kitchens, everything is installed on the ground and then the crane lifts it in one operation into place. It weighs 80 tons and then the house is made up of one, two, or three of these and this measurement is 17 feet by 38.

AC: and there are different floor spaces I suppose for the different sizes of apartments.

MS: There is 15 different cast types for different families. Some with teenage children some with babies and so on with the bedrooms together or separated depending on what the family need.

AC: And I gather from some of them here that they some of them even have about three porches?

MS: Right, overlooking each other. Some looking towards the river and some looking towards the city view.

JD: Architect a Moshe Safdie, speaking with Adrienne Clarkson back in 1966. A year after that interview, Habitat 67 officially opened its doors during of course Expo 67. And in the final days of Expo. CBC host Bob McGregor spoke with the Randall some people who lived in Habitat 67. Here's how they explained living in a stacked housing complex.

SOUNDCLIP

FEMALE VOICE: Well, No I don't think so, except for the shopping.

BOB MCGREGOR: Now there are no shops within miles of here. What happens if you run out of a loaf of bread? What do you do?

FEMALE VOICE: Well, you have to go into Montreal or you can order in.

BM: That entails going through the lineups and getting through the thousands of people.

FEMALE VOICE: And onto the buses into Montreal to buy your loaf of bread or whatever and then all the way back again.

BM: What about visitors coming to see you? They have to buy an expo passport.

FEMALE VOICE: Yes, although most of our friends have come to see expo anyway. So they did have their passport, but they had no trouble getting through the gates with a passport and a car.

BM: Mr. Randall, what about the outside aspects — the outdoor living idea — of Habitat 67. Do you get the feeling that you're not in an apartment project? That you are you're in a house where you can spread out a bit?

MALE VOICE: Definitely. Our apartment being on the main the main floor of Habitat permits us to walk right into our apartment without really ever seeing our neighbors. And I really get the privacy element in this respect that I haven't really met anybody in a giant apartment or at habitat itself because it’s not the same idea of going into an elevator in an ordinary apartment building and running into your neighbor or smelling the cooking smells and so on. It just is a different aspect completely.

JD: inhabitants of Moshe Safdie’s Habitat 67 the Randalls speaking with CBC host Bob McGregor back in 1967. Expo 67 officially opened in Montreal 50 years ago today. Canada Post has announced that it will be honoring Habitat 67 with its own stamp.

[Music: Industrial]

New Media names

JD: Highly paid professionals gather in a meeting room. They write things on white boards. They dissect info-graphics. They say things like the reality of the situation is and here's the take away. And when they adjourn, they leave behind empty coffee cups, fruit plates with just cantaloupe left on them and their company's old brand. I assume that's the process by which the Huffington Post chose its own bold new rebranding, which is not just about revitalisation. It's also about letting the marketing department surface your disruptive ideation by explaining how your new corporate identity amplifies your footprint in the marketplace. By which I mean you have to let someone write portentous gibberish about your new name. For example, before I get to the big reveal about the Huffington Post here's a clip from a 2016 video sent to employees of Tribune Publishing to announce an exciting new brand.

SOUNDCLIP

MALE VOICE: TRONC stands for Tribune Online Content and it also means pooling of resources.

FEMALE VOICE: It's about meeting in the middle having a tech start-up culture meet a Legacy corporate culture and then evolving and changing and that's really the fun part. That's exciting.

FEMLAE VOICE: One of the key ways we're going to harness the power of our journalism is to have a optimization group. This TRONC team will work with all of the local markets to harness the power of our local journalism, feed it into a funnel and then optimize it so that we reach the biggest global audience possible.

JD: That is how rebranding works you over-explain your inexplicable new name. In this case TRONC and you tie it to some giant noble purpose. Bonus points for using the words optimisation and funnel. Here's another example from a powerful video posted earlier this month by the new Atlantic Canada media behemoth calling itself SaltWire.

SOUNDCLIP

FEMALE VOICE: Salt, it's in our ocean waters and runs through our veins. It is capable of adding flavor as it is of drawing out toxins. We can't produce it on our own and without it we lose balance. It's essential to human life. Wire, it’s a connector and a bridge. It can be both flexible and strong, rigid and pliable. Both a conductor and information highway, it has the power to light us up and keep us grounded. It's a tie that binds. Introducing the SaltWire network, the largest independently owned media company in Canada and home to Atlantic Canada's best storytellers, media industry experts and printing specialists.

JD: SaltWire’s brand is simple. It's a flexible, rigid connector bridge that adds flavor, removes toxin and is essential to human life. Not just a thing that somebody hoarsely gasped out in the fourth hour of an endless meeting in a hot boardroom after realizing only deaf was left. But now, the big news in a letter to readers Huffington Post editor-in-chief Lydia Polgreen wrote quote, “We're taking the suggestion of our audience across the globe and formally adopting the shorter name they've called us for years: Huff Post.” Unquote. OK, well first of all that's a bit like Zac Efron telling you that he no longer wants to be called Zachariah. Nobody ever called him Zachariah. Nobody ever used the full name anyway. And second, for whatever reason the shorter name that people call the Huffington Post is “Huff Po” not “Huff Post”. Whatever, call yourself what you want. But pointless rebranding is not the best way to remake a name for yourself.

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April 27, 2017 episode transcript

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