Front Burner

Albertans are suffering an unprecedented wildfire season. Tens of thousands have been evacuated out of the path of massive blazes. Across the province, skies are smoky and air quality is poor.

Author John Vaillant is watching it unfold with a terrifying comprehension of the science of these super fires and just how dangerous they can be. He has spent years investigating what happened in 2016 when parts of Fort McMurray burned to the ground. His new book, ‘Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast,’ explains why the fires we battle today are hotter, faster and more destructive than the fires of before.

He joins Alex Panetta for a conversation about the future of fire in our changing climate.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

For a year and a half, almost 50,000 migrants had walked into Canada via Quebec’s Roxham Road to seek asylum.

Then, at midnight on the morning of March 25th, Roxham Road – and the immigration loophole that made it a famous irregular border crossing – effectively closed.

CBC Montreal reporter Verity Stevenson has been speaking to migrants who arrived at Roxham soon after the change, only to suddenly discover their journey would be cut short. Today, she brings us their stories, as well as what she saw in towns south of the U.S. border that are hosting hundreds of asylum seekers rejected from Canada.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

The Daily Bread Food Bank in Toronto had their worst month on record in March: more people used their services than at any other time in their 40-year history. This, at a time when Canada’s unemployment rate is at a near-record low.

The situation is similarly dire at food banks across the country.

So today on Front Burner, producer Imogen Birchard heads out to a food bank in Etobicoke, to find out who’s using the service now and what’s driving them there.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

When it comes to classic video games, there are names everyone’s heard of. There's Mario. Donkey Kong. And of course there’s the Legend of Zelda.

The game made its pixelated debut over thirty-five years ago and, in the decades since, the Zelda series has come to represent the spirit of adventure for millions of gamers. But, six years ago, the influential franchise managed to outdo itself with the release of Breath of the Wild – a game that redefined gaming for the modern age by giving players unparalleled control and creativity.

Today, the long-awaited sequel is out. Lucy James, a senior video producer for Gamespot and Giant Bomb, joins Front Burner to explain the hype of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and the series’ influence on the highest grossing industry in entertainment.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Shortly after George Santos was elected to Congress in 2022, the New York Times found that he had fabricated almost every aspect of his life story – personally and professionally. 

On Wednesday, this once rising star was hit with 13 charges including fraud, money laundering, and theft of public funds. Santos, echoing the words of former President Donald Trump, calls it a "witch hunt." Despite calls for him to resign, he vows to continue to serve in Congress and pledges he will run again in 2024. 

Today, Washington Post national reporter Azi Paybarah joins us to explain Santos' lies, the criminal charges he now faces, and how the American political star-making machine can sometimes attract fraudsters.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

A growing crisis between Canada and China has led to the expulsion of diplomats from both countries, following revelations that a Chinese official reportedly targeted Canadian MP Michael Chong’s family. CBC parliamentary reporter Catharine Tunney joins Front Burner to sort through what happened to Chong, what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his government knew about the 2021 incident, and how the two countries are now handling it.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

The weather turned hot suddenly this year in Alberta and it is already remarkably dry. Wildfires, some burning out of control, have forced people to flee their homes, triggered a provincial state of emergency, and now there’s a request for the military to move in.

CBC Edmonton host and producer Nancy Carlson is no stranger to wildfires in her home province. She covered the 2016 fires that swept Fort McMurray. She was evacuated last week when fires threatened her neighbourhood. Nancy explains what led to this season and how Albertans like her are managing with the threat of what’s already being called an ‘unprecedented’ fire season.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Artificial intelligence is developing at such a rapid pace that leading figures in the field are warning about the mortal threats of losing control.

Among the trio known collectively as the “godfathers of artificial intelligence,” two researchers – both Canadian – are calling out the economic, ethical and existential risks of the tech they pioneered. University of Toronto scientist Geoffrey Hinton recently announced he’d quit his job at Google to speak out, and Yoshua Bengio is calling to pause the development of powerful AI systems like GPT-4.

Today, Bengio joins us to explain the near-term dangers of AI, and what it would take for the tech to be a threat to humanity. Bengio is a professor at Université de Montréal and scientific director at Mila - Quebec AI institute.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

On Saturday, pomp, circumstance and royal wealth will be on display in the official crowning ceremony of King Charles III.

The ceremony’s estimated price tag is 100 million pounds and comes at a time when so many people are struggling to put food on the table. This has led to questions about just how wealthy the royal family is and why they aren’t footing the bill.

Reporter David Pegg has worked with The Guardian on a comprehensive investigative series into the royal finances called Cost of the Crown. Today, he takes us through where the monarchy gets its money, explains the secrecy around the Windsor fortune and breaks down the confusion about what belongs to the royals and what belongs to Britain.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

On Monday at midnight, over 11,000 television and film writers with the Writers’ Guild of America officially went on strike.

The strike has triggered a sense of déjà vu in the TV world, in part because Saturday Night Live and late night talk shows are headed into reruns. But it’s also rekindling memories of the last major work stoppage in Hollywood: the 100 day writers’ strike in 2007 which caused a boom in reality TV and – by some estimates – cost the California economy over $2 billion USD.

Lucas Shaw covers media and entertainment for Bloomberg, and today he’ll explain why writers are striking in an industry changed by streaming, and what parallels exist with other job action happening across the economy.

For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts