Storylines

The Chinook salmon of the Yukon River are on the brink of extinction. This cultural keystone species has  the longest salmon migration in the world, up to 3,200 kilometres. But warming waters caused by climate change, along with other stresses, have decimated their numbers, forcing a seven-year fishing ban. For Indigenous communities in the region, this is not only an environmental tragedy but also a loss for their culture. In her documentary Ghosts in Their Nets, Laura Lynch takes us to Whitehorse, Yukon, where she meets First Nations leaders and advocates who are leading the charge to protect the species and demanding that the irreplaceable Chinook salmon be better taken care of. The doc was produced by Laura Lynch and  Rachel Sanders, with help from Molly Segal, Mathias Wolfsohn, Catherine Rolfsen and Joan Webber with the CBC Audio Documentary Unit / The doc originally aired on What on Earth. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

In July 2024, seven fishermen from around New-Wes-Valley, Newfoundland set out on their fishing boat in search of turbot.  While at sea that day a fire broke out near the engine room, before long the bunkroom was full of smoke. The seven sailors had no choice but to abandon ship and before long they were  sitting in a small life-raft. What followed was a 52-hour ordeal that tested not just their will to survive, but the bonds between them. The situation could not have been more dire, two of the men couldn’t swim, supplies were dwindling and a thick fog hampered rescue efforts.  In this documentary, 52 Hours Lost at Sea, find out what it was like to spend more than two days adrift in the North Atlantic. Produced by Mary-Catherine McIntosh and the Audio documentary unit / the doc originally aired on The Current. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit 

The stories of undocumented people living in the United States are well known, especially since President Donald Trump began a major immigration crackdown. However, there is also a sizable population of undocumented people in Canada. According to the federal government, there could be as many as 500,000 people living here without legal status. Many of them work in jobs that make them like "ghosts" in our society, such as farmwork, cleaning homes, or working late shifts in grocery stores.In this episode of Storylines, a documentary by Lyndsay Duncombe called, Living in the Shadows, that brings us the stories of people living in Canada without legal status. Many of them live in fear of deportation and without access to healthcare. Her documentary reveals the human impact of living in the shadows of Canadian society.Undocumented was produced by Lyndsay Duncombe with help from Liz Hoath and Marnie Luke / originally aired on The Current. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

Early one August morning, the cameras outside Jas Arora's house in Abbotsford, B.C., recorded someone throwing glass bottles at his home. When Jas stepped outside to investigate, he found broken glass and smelled gasoline. He then got a call from a man speaking Punjabi, demanding millions of dollars.Jas is among many South Asian Canadians targeted by people who, the RCMP says, have connections to Indian gangs and the Indian government. They demand millions of dollars over the phone, and have targeted both homes and businesses.  Many of the victims are scared to report what is happening to the police. This week on Storylines is CBC journalist Sohrab Sandhu’s documentary Our House. His doc will delve into the threats and extortion targeting members of the South Asian community in Canada, and what Canadian law enforcement is trying to do about it. Produced by Sohrab Sandhu with help from Liz Hoath / originally aired on The CurrentStorylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

A rogue wave is defined as being at least 2.2 times as high as the average waves which have come before. They are described as coming out of nowhere and their consequences can be deadly. In her documentary, The Wave, Joan Webber chronicles swimmers struck by these potentially deadly maritime phenomena. Though rogue waves themselves are not infrequent, it's considered rare that a person is hit by one. But rare .… is not never.We also bring you another story about the sea titled, When I Came to Canada. It’s Hon Lou’s harrowing account of fleeing Vietnam by boat as a child following the end of the Vietnam war. The Wave was produced by Joan Webber with help from Liz Hoath and originally aired on The Current. When I Came to Canada first aired on Living Out Loud and was produced by Steve Wadhams.Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

In Vancouver's Lower Mainland, a dealer known only as "Jay" sold drugs to teens, making drop-offs right next to their high schools and homes, offering free "goodie bags" of Xanax and other drugs. When Julie Nystrom discovered her 17-year-old daughter was hooked on counterfeit pills from Jay, she went to the police. The cops told her that they needed names, details, so she decided to take matters into her own hands and hired a private investigator. On this episode of Storylines, the documentary Everybody Loves Jay, which tells the story about the lengths one mother went to protect her daughter from a drug dealer.Produced by Enza Uda and Joan Webber / originally aired on The Current. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

In an empty parking lot somewhere in northern California, Andrew Song and Luke Iseman inflate a balloon the size of a small car, full of sulfur dioxide. They will then launch the balloon high up into the stratosphere where it will pop, releasing its sulfur dioxide contents. Song and Iseman are the co-founders of Make Sunsets, a geoengineering startup that sells cooling credits. For a price, you can purchase a bit of the sulfur dioxide they’re pumping into these balloons and launching into the stratosphere, with the belief it will offset the warming effects of CO2. Because if you send enough sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere --- we’re talking a million tonnes a year --- it’ll significantly cool our warming planet. But the idea raises scores of complicated scientific and moral dilemmas. In this documentary, John Chipman goes to California to learn about the potential risks and benefits of solar geoengineering. Reported and produced by John Chipman, with assistance from Joan Webber and Catherine Rolfsen. Mixed by Michelle Parise . It originally aired on What on Earth. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

Despite being our national sport, and that most Canadians agree it should be for everyone, hockey remains surprisingly exclusive, especially when it comes to ice time. For some, the barriers to access the game are significant, and the sport can feel unwelcoming. In his documentary, “Hockey for All,” CBC journalist Douglas Gelevan uncovers how the complex system of ice time allocation often favours elite male players, while pushing others to the margins. Reported by Douglas Gelevan and produced by Michelle Parise / originally aired on The Current

Sethu Ramaswamy grew up in a cultured Indian family and it rubbed off on her. She loved books and ideas. By the age of 10 Sethu had read all of Charles Dickens’ novels, but her emerging interest in books and ideas would have to be put on hold. When she was the same age, she was forced to leave school, get married, and become a mother at 15. As an adult, she raised a family and for the most part, lived in the shadow of her husband — who was a successful journalist in India. But that wasn’t the end of her story. When she was 80-years-old a new chapter in her life opened up. She wrote a book called Autobiography of an Unknown Indian Woman, and it was met with fanfare and acclaim in India. It told the story of a child bride whose husband was both her true love and her captor. On this week’s episode, Sarmish Subramanian brings us the story of her remarkable grandmother. Produced by Sarmishta Subramanian and story edited by Karen Levine. The doc originally aired on The Sunday Edition in 2009. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

Every day, in Hamburg, Germany, Annette Venebrügge wakes up to a single word emailed from her friend Tina Oehmsen-Clark in Toronto. And every evening, she sends one back. No sentences, no stories — just one carefully chosen word, and always in German. What started as a simple pandemic project between two art school friends has grown into an archive of over 3,000 words.In her documentary "One Word," CBC producer Alisa Siegel explores how this linguistic game has transformed a friendship one word at a time. The game is part time capsule, part diary and part art project. Because as Annette says, each word makes her a witness to her friend's existence.Produced by Alisa Siegel and story edited by Joan Webber / originally aired on The Current. Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit