Podcast
Front Burner
Hosted by CBC · EN
Front Burner is a daily news podcast that takes you deep into the stories shaping Canada and the world. Each morning, from Monday to Friday, host Jayme Poisson talks with the smartest people covering the biggest stories to help you understand what’s going on.
246episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Can Canada avoid a deepening recession?
Today00:29:38Summary readyCanada has entered a “technical recession,” leading to fingerpointing in the House of Commons and Donald Trump renewing his calls to make Canada the 51st state.Many economists are disputing that this is a recession at all. But whatever you call it, the economy is weak right now. It was weak before the trade war and it’s been made weaker by the tariffs, the threats and the uncertainty.So how deep is this ditch that we are in, and how can we get out?Frances Donald, Senior Vice President & Chief Economist at RBC, joins us.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Wab Kinew takes on separatism and big-tech
Yesterday00:33:09Summary readyManitoba Premier Wab Kinew is planting his federalist flag, wading into the Alberta separatism debate and making the case for a major new nation building project in his province. Today we speak to the former journalist, and first ever First Nations provincial Premier about keeping the country together, the need for stronger tech regulations and Indigenous consultation.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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How the UFC became a stage for Trump
2d ago00:34:48Summary readyAt Donald Trump’s election victory event in 2024, he was flanked on stage by a collection of family, senior staff, and Ultimate Fighting Championship president and CEO, Dana White. The UFC has, in many ways, functioned as the sporting arm of the MAGA movement. Fighters and the organization itself have pledged incredible support to Trump, and the President has become a ringside fixture at fights. This union is set to culminate later this month with a cage fight scheduled to be held on the White House south lawn. Luke Thomas is an MMA journalist and host of the Morning Kombat podcast. He joins the show to talk about the upcoming White House fight, Trump’s decades-long presence in the world of combat sports and how the UFC - once maligned as a bloodsport - became one of the most important cultural institutions in the conservative movement.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Does a ‘peace deal’ fuel Middle Eastern war?
3d ago00:31:30Summary readyNegotiations for an end to the war in Iran took a baffling turn last Monday when U.S. President Donlad Trump declared via social media that he would be willing to end the war in exchange for a number of countries in the Middle East and South Asia joining the Abraham Accords.The Accords are a series of diplomatic agreements that normalized relations between Israel and some Arab states. They were originally touted as a Trump foreign policy victory, and a step towards a more peaceful Middle East. But six years on, the region has descended into widescale war.Today we’re speaking with Matt Duss. He is the Executive Vice President at the Center for International Policy. He was also a foreign policy advisor to Bernie Sanders from 2017-2022. He’s co-written a piece for Foreign Policy that argues that the Abraham Accords laid the groundwork for this new era of violence in the Middle East.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Weekend Listen: Artificial Intimacy
5d ago00:37:02Summary readyWhat happens when a human becomes intimately enmeshed with a chatbot? From people who’ve married their bots or who grieve their loved ones with the help of AI, host Victoria Hetherington (author of The Friend Machine) dives into the stories of the people who have invited these digital avatars into their hearts, minds, and even beds. And asks what do we gain and what do we stand to lose? Our intimacy, our resilience, even our grasp on reality? This latest season of Understood looks at who made the decisions that allowed chatbots to move way beyond digital assistants and into the most intimate parts of our lives.Understood takes you deep inside the seismic shifts reshaping our world right now. From online porn and crypto chaos to the rise of tech oligarchs, deepfake AI, and the broken promises of the internet.More episodes of Understood are available wherever you get your podcasts, and here: https://link.mgln.ai/AIxFB
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Politics! Surveillance backlash, separatism drama
6d ago00:31:33Summary readyCBC parliamentary reporters Aaron Wherry and Catharine Tunney are back to talk about the big political stories of the week including: Prime Minister Mark Carney losing high-profile MP Steven Guilbeault over climate policies, digital surveillance blowback from Bill C-22, and how Carney will handle Alberta separatism.Correction (June 1, 2026): A previous version of this episode said part of Bill C-22 would give authorities warrantless access to basic subscriber information. In fact, the threshold for authorities to obtain the information has been lowered, but would require authorization from a court.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Trump and the politics of corruption
1w ago00:37:34Summary readyThere’s an old adage from the days of the Watergate scandal: “follow the money.” And in Donald Trump’s second term as President of the United States, these words remain incredibly relevant.From foreign investments, to real estate, cryptocurrency, personal stock trades, taxpayer settlement funds, personal gifts, and presidential pardons the news environment has been flooded with reports about the ways in which critics say Donald Trump is using the Presidency to profit personally. Zack Beauchamp is Senior Correspondent with VOX. He joins the show to discuss the flood of corruption allegations surrounding Trump, the politics of self enrichment, and the ethical loopholes that make much of it possible.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Alberta’s referendum on a referendum
1w ago00:33:08Summary readyWestern Premiers gathered in Kananskis, Alberta this week to discuss shared issues like trade, defense and energy projects. But another topic overshadowed the meetings: Alberta separatism. Late last week, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced the province will hold a referendum on the prospect of independence in the fall. But rather than a straight question about leaving Canada, the referendum will ask Albertans whether they support another referendum on seceding. The question has both separatists and federalists upset.Kathleen Petty, host of the CBC podcast West of Centre, and Jason Markusoff, writer and producer with CBC in Alberta, join us to talk through the fallout. What does this mean for the country, for Albertans and for Smith herself?For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Why aren’t Canada and the U.S. officially talking trade?
1w ago00:29:47Summary readyAs we inch closer to the July 1st CUSMA review deadline, there still aren’t any formal trade talks between Canada and the U.S. planned. The government says there are informal talks happening at different levels. Other recent developments aren’t great. U.S. officials have blasted a substantial hike in what big streamers have to pay into Canadian content, and they’ve suspended a joint defense board that’s been around for 80 years. This week as talks between the U.S. and Mexico begin, Canada is excluded. Our returning guest is Eric Miller, the president of Rideau Potomac Strategy Group and a fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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Will the U.S. invade Cuba?
1w ago00:32:48Summary readyIn a major escalation of its months long “maximum pressure” campaign, the United States announced it has indicted Raúl Castro, former president of Cuba, over the downing of two planes flown by a group of Cuban exiles targeting the regime in 1996.It was a move officials within the Trump administration had been signalling would happen after the director of the CIA met with Cuban officials in Havana. We speak to Peter Kornbluh, an author and senior analyst at the National Security Archive specializing in Cuba, about whether this signals a Venezuela-style strike on the country.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts
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