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.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Sep 12, 2025 • 25min
Why can’t the Canadian military recruit enough women?
The military is off its target to have women represent 25% of the armed forces by 2026. We speak to a new recruit who joined the Air Force earlier this year about her experiences as well as Charlotte Duval Lantoine from the Canadian Global Affairs Institute about why women might be cautious about joining up.
Sep 12, 2025 • 20min
Teachers, students grapple with what AI means in highschools
Is asking chatGPT to give you an idea for your high school assignment cheating? Is teaching AI prompts in an English class a good use of time? These are the questions students and teachers are wrestling with as generative AI becomes a part of learning. But without clear guidelines in many school boards across the country, many are left trying to figure it out as they go, begging the question, what is the role of AI at school?
Sep 11, 2025 • 12min
What Does Russia's Incursion Into Poland Mean for NATO?
For the first time since the war in Ukraine began, NATO has shot down Russian drones over its own territory. Nearly 20 drones crossed into Poland, prompting Prime Minister Donald Tusk to warn his country is closer to war than at any time since WW2. Moscow insists it didn't mean to strike Poland, but many experts call the move deliberate and a provocation designed to test the alliance's resolve.
Sep 11, 2025 • 19min
Charlie Kirk, right wing activist shot dead
The prominent conservative activist was shot and killed yesterday, at an event he was hosting at Utah Valley University. The 31 year old had built a massive following on social media, and his group Turning Point USA has been credited with ensuring Donald Trump's return to the White House. What happened, and how political violence continues to escalate across America.
Sep 11, 2025 • 25min
Marsha Lederman, on searching for the “humanitarian middle” after Oct 7
Globe and Mail columnist Marsha Lederman has been writing, trying to understand what happened on October 7, the subsequent war, and its ripple effects through Canadian society. She speaks with Matt Galloway about her new book, October 7th: Searching for the Humanitarian Middle.
Sep 11, 2025 • 13min
Doug Ford hates speed cameras. Do you?
After 16 speed cameras were vandalized in one night in Toronto, Ontario's premier says it's time to get rid of the "tax grab" devices. But Globe and Mail columnist Marcus Gee says they're more needed than ever, as drivers seem to become more reckless.
Sep 10, 2025 • 10min
How energy drinks became the teen drink of choice
The latest wellness-branded must-haves for young people can contain dangerous amounts of caffeine. The drinks are raising concern from experts about the health risks that go with them like anxiety, heart palpitations and trouble sleeping. Now, England is moving to ban energy drinks for people under 16 — should Canada do the same?
Sep 10, 2025 • 15min
Want to break these 70 unclaimed Guinness World Records?
From the tallest dog to the longest fingernails, the heaviest onion to the smallest waist, the Guinness World Records have been cataloguing and celebrating all of life's superlatives for seven decades. We explore the history and persistence of this phenomenon and speak to a restaurant owner chasing the title of longest beef kebab.
Sep 10, 2025 • 20min
Israel strikes Hamas leadership in Qatar and what’s happens next in Gaza City
Hamas says 5 of its members were killed in an attack in Doha that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu says was in retaliation for a deadly shooting at a Jerusalem bus stop on Monday as well as the October 7th attacks. With Hamas leadership in Doha to discuss a ceasefire deal proposed by the U.S before the attack, where do talks stand now? We’ll also hear from Karim Abushbak. His parents and his sisters recently fled the bombing in Gaza City. Now, after months of waiting, the Canadian permanent residents have approval from Ottawa to leave Gaza by September 17 - they just have to make it out alive.
Sep 10, 2025 • 24min
Bioluminescence: The secret language of light
She was the first marine biologist to film a giant squid in its habitat. . Edie Widder is a pioneering marine biologist who believes the light in the dark ocean may actually be a form of communication. She has dedicated her life to understanding the phenomenon known as bioluminescence. And she is one of the few people in the world who has been to the deepest 'twilight zone' of the ocean using tiny submersibles. Matt talks to Widder about her quest to capture the bioluminescence on video along with Tasha Van Zandt, director of a new documentary about Widder's life and work. A Life Illuminated is screening as part of the Toronto International Film Festival.
