The Big Story

Canadians are using credit cards to pay for purchases more than ever before.Why wouldn't they? Cash has been on the decline and rewards programs are better than ever. But small businesses say these programs are killing them, and it has become almost impossible to understand the complex system of fees that go into these payments. Right now, Ottawa is asking card companies and retailers to come to an agreement, before it has to step in and regulate. But why? How does the system work? Who pays for what? And what do you need to know the next time you whip out a card and chase the points during your holiday shopping?GUEST: Susan Krashinsky Robertson covers the retail industry for the Globe and Mail's Report on Business We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Anytime any government misplaces taxpayer money, it's a bad thing—whether that's wasteful spending, overpaying, mismanaging the budget or losing track in a spreadsheet. But when the government in question presides over a small municipality in rural Manitoba where a) $500,000 is an awful lot of money and b) the government is comprised of neighbours and business owners, friends and enemies, and everyone knows everyone, it can bring all kinds of long-simmering tensions and resentments to the surface.Here's what happened in Westlake-Gladstone when the money vanished.GUEST: J.R. Patterson, writing in The Walrus We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

There has been no shortage of political mudslinging regarding Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's testimony at the Emergencies Act Inquiry last week—but perhaps the most important thing was that he took the stand at all. Beyond the Prime Minister answering questions, Canadians also got looks at emails, text messages, phone calls and all sorts of communications between governments and police services, different levels of leadership, different departments and more. It's important to understand how rare this is—because once we understand that, we can ask the inevitable follow-up questions: Why is it rare? Why should it be rare to see how our governments work behind closed doors? GUEST: David Moscrop, political writer and commentator; author and podcaster We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

It's the "Death Dilemma". When someone we love is at the end of their life, unresponsive in the ICU, our natural instinct when doctors ask us is to tell them to "do everything" to save them. But should it be?How has our changing relationship with the end of life altered the medical system? Do we prioritize quantity of life over quality? Are we costing both our loved ones and the medical system added pain by not just letting them go? And how do we balance that with the desperate need to keep them with us?GUEST: Dr. Blair Bigham, ER physician, author of Death Interrupted We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Right now, Ontario's Landlord and Tenant Board is barely functional. The backlog of eviction challenges, both legal and illegal, is miles long, and currently the board is focused on rent increases. Meanwhile, in landlord Facebook groups, some are asking about penalties for illegal evictions, perhaps planning to simply do that and pay for it later. While tenants, tossed by the hundreds for potentially dubious reasons since the eviction moratorium lifted, have nowhere to go—both literally, and with regards to their challenges.How did it get this bad? What, if anything, is being done to fix it? And what do both renters and landlords need to know about the situation?GUEST: Jack Hauen, reporter, QP Briefing We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Depending on who you ask it will either help Canadian creators level the online playing field, or wreck their business model. The bill is intended to apply Canadian Content rules to online streaming—but it's incredibly complex and difficult to judge how it will work in practice. So what's in the bill? Why are some independent creators critical of it? What does it do in an ideal world, and will it actually work as intended? And what does it mean for the average Canadian who loves to surf YouTube or TikTok?GUEST: Vass Bednar, executive director of the Masters of Public Policy in Digital Society program at McMaster University, author of the Regs 2 Riches newsletter We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

It goes without saying that police services often have their own version of events—which are often revealed in press releases or in conversation with reporters. But with public opinion turning against them as abuses of power are continually revealed, some police forces are going much further than that in an attempt to burnish their image.Should cops write newsletters on Substack with their side of the story? Should they hire crisis communication firms using tax dollars? And even as they do it, does it accomplish anything?GUEST: Julia-Simone Rutgers, writer and reporter based in Winnipeg, inaugural Justice Fund writer-in-residence at The Walrus We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Surgeries for children are being cancelled at paediatric hospitals as staff race to care for a huge surge in kids arriving in the ER, or needing ICU space. This fall it seems like every child is coming down with something. What's going on? Can our children's hospitals handle it? What should parents be doing to keep their kids safe? And if you do need to take a child to the ER, what do you need to know?GUEST: Dr. Katherine Smart, practicing paediatrician, past president of the Canadian Medical Association We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

It's only Team Canada's second time ever in FIFA's crown jewel tournament. They will be looking for their first goal. Making it to Qatar for the World Cup is the culmination of years of hard work, sacrifice and program building from Canada Soccer. For them, and the players and fans, it's a celebration.But this World Cup was ugly before it began, and has become uglier still since it kicked off. In Qatar, same sex relationships are illegal, thousands of migrant workers have died building the stadium where the team will play, and already stories of censorship and bigotry have been reported by journalists on the ground.How much ugliness will fans endure for the beautiful game?GUEST: Donnovan Bennett, Sportsnet (You can find Donnovan's new show, Going Deep, right here) We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

There's still some debate over a possible recession in Canada, but less and less of it every day. If Canada's economy does slide, however, what will be the root causes? What are policymakers doing—and not doing—to prevent it? Where will Canadians feel it worst, and what can we look at right now to judge where we'll be in six months?OH, and how does the whole "recession" thing work, anyways?GUEST: Jim Stanford, economist and director of the Centre for Future Work We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter