The Decibel

Nov 20 2024 600 ep. 20 mins 2.7k

The Decibel Podcast artwork

Context is everything. Join us Monday to Friday for a Canadian daily news podcast from The Globe and Mail. Explore a story shaping our world, in conversation with reporters, experts, and the people at the centre of the news.

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Canada’s role in working towards a two-state solution

Nov 20 2024 19 mins

In the midst of the Israel-Hamas war, the idea of lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians seems farther away than it has been in a long time. But there are still people working to create the conditions for a two-state solution; among those are Canadian troops, working in the West Bank in a mission called Operation Proteus. Claire Porter Robbins is a freelance journalist an

The Newfoundland town that seized its own church

Nov 19 2024 17 mins

In the small Newfoundland community of Portugal Cove south, the town church is considered its lifeblood, a community hub and historical touchstone, all rolled into one. But at the end of August, parishioners were told their church would be sold off to help the Roman Catholic Church pay a $104 million settlement. And when locals learned they couldn’t stop the sale, they took matt

How remote work changed our grooming habits

Nov 18 2024 22 mins

When the pandemic hit, nearly 40 per cent of Canada’s workforce went remote. More than four years later, that number has dropped by more than half. In a moment when bosses push for a return to the office – and workers cling to hybrid schedules – we’re learning just how much remote work has changed our habits, routines … and personal hygiene. Globe reporter Zosia Bielsk

The Decibel presents: Lately

Nov 15 2024 32 mins

The Decibel presents ‘Lately’, a Globe and Mail podcast taking on shifts in business, tech and economy with newsmakers and thinkers. In this episode, award-winning journalist Luc Rinaldi takes us behind the curtain of Big Tobacco’s machinations to report on how an industry built on addiction is looking to reinvent itself for the wellness age. His cover story on the topic app

Toronto’s Taylor Swift Era

Nov 14 2024 23 mins

After nearly two years of touring across five continents, Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is coming to Canada. Thursday is the first of six dates in Toronto, and the tour will wrap up with three dates in Vancouver in December. When the Eras Tour rolls through town, money tends to follow; fans and concert-goers spend on merch, hotels, restaurants… and of course, tickets. Tickets make f

Alberta vs. Texas: how two oil giants are taking on clean energy

Nov 13 2024 23 mins

Alberta and Texas have a lot in common. Both have independent western cultures, great country music, and each lead their countries in oil production. And over the past decade, they’ve both been the unlikely hosts to the multibillion-dollar renewable energy boom – with swaths of the Texas and Alberta energy grids going green. But while Texas becomes a leader, Alberta is changin

The complexities of gender in the U.S. election

Nov 12 2024 22 mins

Before Nov. 5, many pollsters predicted that there would be a huge gender gap in the U.S. election vote, with women overwhelmingly supporting Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and men voting for the Republican choice, Donald Trump. That didn’t quite happen. Fifty three per cent of female voters supported Harris, and 46 per cent voted for Trump. In 2020, 55 per cent of women sup

Murray Sinclair, as remembered by his friend Tanya Talaga

Nov 11 2024 24 mins

Murray Sinclair died last week at the age of 73. As a trail-blazing judge, senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, he spent his life revealing the truth about Canada’s relationship with Indigenous people. Globe columnist Tanya Talaga was a friend of Sinclair’s, and often turned to him for guidance and mentorship. She joins us to reflect on his legacy and

How Trump’s pet-eating lie became emblematic of the election

Nov 08 2024 24 mins

Donald Trump’s path to victory hinged on seven swing states. He won five decisively, and is leading in the final two. Republicans now control the Senate, are on track to control the House, and for the first time since 2004, a Republican president won the popular vote, too. Immigration was one of the key issues among Trump voters — 37 per cent saw it as the most important issue

The new ‘Rosé All Day’? Stressed moms are microdosing mushrooms

Nov 07 2024 22 mins

The U.S. Surgeon General recently issued a health advisory saying that 48 per cent of parents with kids under 18 are completely overwhelmed by their stress. Most of those stressed out parents are moms – and some of those moms are turning to microdosing psilocybin to cope. Amberly McAteer is a Toronto-based writer and former editor in The Globe and Mail’s Opinion section. She l