Popular trust in the media has been declining fairly consistently over the past decade. In her new book, The Trust Spiral: Why the Media Needs Objectivity, Canadian journalist and podcaster, Tara Henley, explains why. Join her in a conversation with veteran Canadian Press journalist Jim Bronskill about this vital issue for our democracy.

In 'Visitor: My Life in Canada,' Anthony Stewart explores the lack of a recognizable Black anti-racist discourse in Canada and why Canada's lack of expression and commitment to Black anti-racism led him to give up his full professorship at Dalhousie University to move to a small college in the USA.

Join Anthony in conversation with Vershawn Young, Professor of Communication Arts and English, University of Waterloo, and author of 'Your Average Nigga: Performing Race, Literacy, and Masculinity.' Anthony unpacks the differences in the discourses of anti-racism in Canada and USA and the differential effects of those discourses both on himself, as a Black man, and on Black peoples in both countries. 

This conversation occurred on Oct 5, 2021 and was co-sponsored by Edmonton Public Library, Milton Public Library, Thunder Bay Public Library, Toronto Public Library, and Vancouver Public Library.

Whistleblower protection is an essential tool for stopping fraud and wrongdoing in the private sector, as well as the public. While Canadian corporations in some sectors have admirable policies and practices, there is much we can learn from law, policies, and practices elsewhere. 

Panelists:

Moderator:

Wrongdoing in medicine is all too common, with punishment typically reserved for those who speak up about it, writes leading American bioethicist, Carl Elliott, in his new book, The Occasional Human Sacrifice: Medical Experimentation and the Price of Saying No. Join Carl in conversation with Nancy Olivieri, eminent Canadian physician, medical researcher, and whistleblower as they describe the troubling reluctance in medicine to act in the interests of their patients and the public and explore what can be done about it.

In his new book, On Book Banning, Ira Wells begins with his astonishment when the principal in his children’s school wanted to get rid of “all the old books” as being too Eurocentric, too male, too heteronormative. While understanding these concerns, he felt the solution was wrong. In his engaging exploration of censorship and the common goals of censors of all persuasions, Wells looks at the consequences for human development, for art, and for democracy. Join Ira in conversation with Centre for Free Expression Director James L. Turk, at this time when censorship is becoming popular and pervasive. 

This conversation occurred on Feb. 26, 2025 and was co-sponsored by  Edmonton Public Library, PEN Canada, Toronto Public Library, and Vancouver Public Library.

New corporate technologies for mass surveillance and gathering personal data endanger personal privacy as never before. AI can analyze vast amounts of data, making it easier to identify patterns, infer personal characteristics, and exploit information in ways that were previously impossible or prohibitively expensive. The federal government’s answer is a highly controversial new bill [C-36, the Protecting Privacy and Consumer Data Act]. Is it the answer to the problem or will it make matters worse? Does it provide the greater privacy protection Canadians need and deserve?

CFE asked two of Canada’s leading privacy experts to discuss what is needed to protect Canadians privacy, how the new legislation measures up, and what should be done now.

Tamir Israel is Director of the Privacy, Surveillance, and Technology Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association 

Teresa Scassa is the Canada Research Chair in Information Law and Policy at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law and a 2024 winner of the Piccaso Award celebrating privacy leadership around the world.

The Charter of Rights and Freedoms made Canada a constitutional democracy in which unelected courts, not elected legislatures, have the final say about rights and freedoms. Yet Section 33 (the Notwithstanding Clause) was built in to let governments override the courts on certain matters. That clause has been contentious ever since – never more than now when it is increasingly being invoked to deny key democratic freedoms and human rights. Tune in to panel of leading legal experts to explore what’s a stake, what options are possible, and what they would mean for the future of Canada’s democracy.    

Panelists: Eric Adams (Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Alberta),

Moderator: James L. Turk (Director, Centre for Free Expression)

This conversation occurred on December 10, 2025 and was co-sponsored by Centre for Constitutional Studies and PEN Canada.

Governments are increasingly requiring age verification for access to certain online content. In the name of protecting children online, systems for age verification create dangerous new forms of surveillance, censorship, and exclusion. Every system requires users to hand over sensitive personal information linking their offline identity to their online activity — valuable data easily leaked, hacked, or misused.

Join Evan Light in his conversation with David Greene, Senior Counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, about the dangers and what should be done.

This conversation occurred on Feb. 10, 2026 and was co-sponsored by Edmonton Public Library, PEN Canada, Toronto Public Library, and Vancouver Public Library.

When prominent Canadian novelist Lawrence Hill learned his award-winning The Book of Negroes had been banned from classrooms by the London District Catholic School Board because of its use of the N-word, he was deeply troubled.

Join Lawrence Hill in his conversation with author and McGill University Canada Research Chair in Racial Inequality in Democratic Societies, Debra Thompson, exploring censorship and the role of literature in society.

This conversation occurred on Feb. 5, 2025 and was co-sponsored by Edmonton Public Library, PEN Canada, The Writers’ Union of Canada, Toronto Public Library, and Vancouver Public Library.

In striving for balance and neutrality, does the Western mainstream media end up spreading misconceptions, myths and mistruths about the wars and conflicts in the Middle East? What are news consumers in the West missing about the war in Gaza, the turmoil in Lebanon, Syria, Afghanistan and elsewhere? How can we ensure better coverage of the raging conflicts that are shaping our world today? 

Panelists: Hadeel Al-Shalchi (Editor, NPR’s Weekend Edition), Mohamad Bazzi (Director, Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies at New York University), Martin Lukacs (Managing Editor, The Breach), Ari Paul (Journalist, FAIR.org)

Moderator: Julian Sher (Journalist, author & CFE Senior Fellow)

This conversation occurred on October 16, 2025 and was co-sponsored by Canadian Association of Journalists and PEN Canada.