Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has only been “Chief Twit” of Twitter since Thursday night, but he’s already fired four top executives and dissolved the company’s board. Musk had repeatedly tried to pull out of his $44-billion US deal to acquire Twitter since April, leading to legal action from the company. Now, as Musk and his investors take private ownership of the company, his messages about free speech and lighter moderation have been joined by an assurance to advertisers that Twitter won’t become a “free-for-all hellscape.” Today on Front Burner, Washington Post tech analysis writer Will Oremus details the chaos unfolding inside Twitter as Musk begins his reign, and discusses what the ownership of social media by billionaires such as Musk could mean for our online future.

Sixty years ago, the Cuban missile crisis brought the world the closest it’s ever been to a full-scale nuclear war. The story that’s often told about those 13 days is one of American might triumphing over the USSR — but that’s not what really happened. The true story of that crisis is actually about a relationship between two men who decided to secretly work together, to avert a global disaster. While we’re certainly not in another Cuban missile crisis today, experts believe this is the closest the U.S. and Russia have come to a nuclear conflict since that time. So today, we’re going to tell the story of those 13 days in 1962, and look at whether they may hold lessons for today. Our guest is Andrew Cohen, a professor at the University of Carleton’s school of Journalism and Communication, and the author of several books including Two Days in June: John F. Kennedy and the 48 Hours That Made History.

Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, made a name — and a fortune — for himself making and saying whatever pops into his head. But for nearly a decade the things he says have increasingly become rooted in bigotry, ignorance and hatred. His recent and repeated antisemitic statements emboldened a group of people to throw Nazi salutes and unfurl a banner above a Los Angeles highway that read "Kanye is right about the Jews." His comments also resulted in the termination of his hugely lucrative partnership with Adidas and he was dropped by CAA, one of the world's major agencies. Despite this he remains one of the most influential and deeply embedded cultural figures of the 21st century, a reality that is hard to shake for many people. Today on Front Burner, Elamin Abdelmahmoud, a longtime chronicler of Kanye, senior culture writer at Buzzfeed and host of the CBC podcast Pop Chat joins us to discuss the rap star's long history of saying things he shouldn't, absorbing the consequences and coming back.

After three years without cases, cholera is spreading through Haiti’s poorest neighbourhoods as they struggle for access to clean water. At the same time, nearly five million Haitians are facing acute hunger. Gangs have seized the majority of Haiti’s capital, a critical fuel terminal, and the nation’s politics remain unstable after the assassination of the president in July last year. It’s these compounding crises that have led the unpopular current government to call for international intervention from the US, Canada and the UN – a controversial move in a country with a long history of foreign meddling. Today on Front Burner, independent Haitian journalist Harold Isaac explains how citizens are enduring yet another desperate situation, and why they’re starting to feel like they’re on their own.

Conservative Rishi Sunak has just become the third leader of the U.K. in two months, and he's got a mandate to rule until 2025. But many are questioning the process that led to him, and his predecessor Liz Truss, becoming prime minister in the first place: neither was chosen by British voters in a general election. They voted for a different Conservative MP, Boris Johnson, back in 2019 — before he was pushed out by a series of scandals. And they may not get to choose another prime minister until 2025. This is not an uncommon situation in parliamentary democracies. B.C., Alberta and Manitoba now all have leaders that weren't voted in by the general public. Is this a bad thing? A bug, or a feature? And if it is a problem, what should be done about it? Today, Aaron Wherry, a senior writer with CBC's parliamentary bureau, is here to dive into all of that.

Roberto de Oliveira Alves is a cattle farmer in the Brazilian Amazon. He’s also a staunch supporter of incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro. And like many others in the state of Rondônia his land is being carved out of the Amazon rainforest to make space for ranchers and farmers to expand. With the final round of Brazil’s presidential election coming up, scientists warn that the fate of the Amazon is on the ballot, too. Tens of thousands of illegal fires have already decimated parts of the precious ecosystem, and activists warn if Bolsonaro wins again, even more of the Amazon will go — a loss that could have a devastating impact on climate change. CBC’s International Climate Correspondent Susan Ormiston recently got back from Brazil, and today on Front Burner she explains what’s at stake for the Amazon when the country votes on Sunday.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, history isn't over. Speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, Freeland refuted the post-Soviet idea of "the end of history" — that after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the world was set on a path to unity and stability under free trade and liberal democracy. Freeland said the thinking of the era was "hubris," and that Russia's attacks on Ukraine are a reminder that autocracy and instability have risen once again. Freeland proposed an idea that some — though not her — are calling the "Freeland doctrine." In her vision, Canada would favour trade with countries that share our values, because we've learned that the influence of free trade isn't stopping autocracy. Today, journalist Paul Wells takes us through Freeland's proposal, and discusses whether there will be political will to make these costly choices for liberal trading partners.

On Wednesday night, B.C. NDP leadership candidate Anjali Appadurai was disqualified from the race, clearing the path for the coronation of her competitor, David Eby, who will become the province’s premier. After an investigation, Appadurai was disqualified for allegedly having "engaged in serious improper conduct'' by working with third parties for membership drives on her behalf and for allegedly soliciting ”fraudulent memberships.” Appadurai says her removal was a political hit job and that the NDP was threatened by her team's ability to out-organize her opponent. Today on Front Burner, Appadurai joins us.

Most businesses and consumers expect a recession is on the horizon, according to a survey put out on Monday by the Bank of Canada. Next week, the central bank is expected to hike interest rates — again — to bring down inflation. But continuing to hike interest rates could actually help provoke that feared recession, leaving some wondering what the alternatives are. Jim Stanford is an economist and director of the progressive think-tank the Centre for Future Work. He's also the author of a new report that argues against the Bank of Canada's "one-sided" approach to inflation. Today on Front Burner, he tells Jayme Poisson why he thinks this potential recession is a choice that will hurt regular people, and offers other tactics to ease the sting of inflation.

It's been eight months since convoy protesters took over downtown Ottawa and obstructed trade at U.S. border crossings. And now, over just six weeks, as commissioner of the Emergencies Act inquiry, Justice Paul Rouleau has one job — to get to the truth behind the federal government's unprecedented use of emergency powers that were used to clear anti-vaccine mandate protesters from the capital. Just days into the public hearing, lines have been clearly drawn between those who believe the government was justified in invoking the Emergencies Act, and those who think it was an unnecessary overreach. Today on Front Burner, host of CBC's Power & Politics Vassy Kapelos is here to get us caught up on what's been revealed so far and to explain what we can expect to come from all of this testimony.