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Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, conspiracy theories around the virus have only become more popular and more complicated. And all kinds of people are pushing them and falling for them, from politicians to celebrities. So today, we’ve got BuzzFeed’s disinformation reporter Jane Lytvnenko back on the show to take us through some of the most popular conspiracy theories and debunk them.

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On Friday, the RCMP released their timeline of the mass shooting in Nova Scotia that left 23 people dead including the gunman, days after reporters had been attempting to figure out what happened. But there are still a lot of gaps in the narrative. And there are a lot of questions being raised about the way the RCMP communicated what they knew to the public, and whether the way they did it ended up costing lives. Today, we’re joined by Global News’ Ottawa bureau chief Mercedes Stephenson to break down everything we know about the worst shooting in Canadian history. 

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You’ve probably seen some version of the post on social media that says if you don’t come out of this quarantine with a new body or a new skill, it was never a lack of time that was getting in your way, it was your lack of discipline. Even in the middle of a pandemic, we’re being pressured to hustle... But is this really the time? Today, we’re joined by Ernest Owens, a journalist based in Philadelphia who recently wrote about this, and Michelle Cederberg, a health and productivity expert based in Calgary.

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With several provinces beginning to talk cautiously about re-opening the economy, the pressure is on to find reliable, rapid tests to determine who is infected with the virus and who has developed immunity to it. Today, we’re joined by Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious diseases expert, who explains what we know about immunity from COVID-19 and the possible unintended consequences that come with testing for it.

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When the first cases of COVID-19 emerged in Wuhan, China, experts blamed one of the city’s wet markets that also sold wildlife. The virus is thought to have jumped from one of the animals being sold there to humans. The Chinese government responded by shutting down wet markets across the country. Now, they’ve started to reopen amid a growing chorus calling for them to be shut down altogether. But experts say these calls for wet market bans are misguided. Today, we’re joined by Zhenzhong Si, a researcher at the University of Waterloo who studies wet markets and food security in China and Aron White, a China specialist at the Environmental Investigation Agency.

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An RCMP officer, a teacher, health care workers, parents and their 17-year-old daughter. These are a few of the people who were killed over the weekend during a 12-hour shooting rampage in Nova Scotia—the worst in Canadian history. Today, Global News’ Alex Quon takes us through what happened and the questions that are still unanswered about the horrific incident.

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Canada is still weeks away from easing economic restrictions due to COVID-19, but some European countries that are further along in their outbreaks are slowly letting businesses open up and sending kids back to school. They’re all trying to strike the balance between the need for economic action and public health. Today, Global’s Europe correspondent Redmond Shannon is back on the show to take us through the different approaches European countries are taking, and what lessons Canada might learn from them.

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A lot of us have been completely consumed by the news around COVID-19 and panic-scrolling through social media all day and night. At the same time, a lot of us have also been trying to read more books because of all the free time we have in isolation, and because reading is just good for you. So today, Vox’s book critic Constance Grady is back on the show to give book recommendations for whatever mental state you might find yourself in. Welcome to our quarantine book club. 

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Around half of the COVID-19 deaths in Canada have happened at long-term care homes across the country. Health experts have long warned that the conditions in these facilities make them highly vulnerable to rapid spread of infectious diseases. Today, we’re joined by Global News’ Morganne Campbell and Mike de Souza to talk about their investigations into COVID-19 outbreaks at care homes and how things got so bad.

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Videoconferencing apps have suddenly become a major part of our day-to-day lives because of COVID-19… and Zoom has become extremely popular for everything from work meetings to workout classes. But as the app’s user base has exploded, there have been more and more questions raised about whether it’s secure. Today, we’re joined by Bill Marczak, a senior research fellow at Citizen Lab, a technology and human rights research group at the University of Toronto. He’s going to take us through everything you need to know about Zoom. 

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