The Star

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Channel • 13 Shows

Documentary

Documentary

Weekly series
Investing

Investing

Updated weekly
Automotive

Automotive

Weekly series
Sport

Sport

Updated 11/07/2024
Earth Sciences

Earth Sciences

Updated weekly
Health & Fitness

Health & Fitness

Updated weekly
Business

Business

Series

SEASON 1, EPISODE 1

Internet Addicts Anonymous

When she was 12 years old, Ava Smithing spiralled down a social media rabbit hole that nearly cost her life. A decade later, she discovered she wasn't alone: Big Tech had hijacked childhood and adolescence for an entire generation. In this ten-part investigative podcast, Ava crosses the continent to uncover a hidden digital world. She'll meet teens with millions of followers, young girls wrestling with compulsive porn use, and boys blackmailed by international cybercriminals lurking in their DMs. In the first episode of Left to Their Own Devices, Ava dives into the debate over technology addiction. The condition is absent from the official list of mental health disorders used by psychiatrists, but undeniable to those who live it. Inside an Internet and Technology Addicts Anonymous meeting, she hears firsthand from people who say their lives have been consumed by screens. And, she sits down with psychiatrist Dr. Anna Lembke – author of Dopamine Nation – who's watched her patient' struggles shift from substance abuse to compulsive relationships with social media, gaming, and online content. This podcast isn't a self-help guide to digital wellness. It's a survival story from the front lines of 21st century childhood.

S1, E1

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34 min
SEASON 1 TRAILER

Introducing The Beaten Path, discussing the struggles of Toronto's big three sports teams

Starting Monday, July 8, the Toronto Star's new podcast, "The Beaten Path," hosted by Bruce Arthur and Dave Feschuk, dives deep into the struggles of our city's big three sports teams. Why are they failing when it matters most? What needs to change for real success to occur? Join us as we investigate how we got here and what it will take for change.

S1 Trailer

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25 sec
15/03/2025

Mark Carney's first day

Mark Carney was sworn in as Canada's new Prime Minister Friday morning, after winning the Liberal leadership race in a landslide. He unveiled a new, leaner cabinet but tapped many of outgoing prime minister Justin Trudeau's ministers for key portfolios. Toronto Star Ottawa Bureau Chief Tonda MacCharles and national politics reporters Ryan Tumilty and Mark Ramzy join host Althia Raj to talk about Carney's cabinet picks, his first move as prime minister and what it says about the timing of the next federal election. Also on the show, pollster Alex Kohut of North Poll Strategies breaks down the Liberal leadership race numbers, and what they tell us about some of the challenges and opportunities the Liberal party may face and seize on the campaign trail. This episode of "It's Political" was produced by Althia Raj and Kevin Sexton. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel. Some of the clips this week were sourced from CPAC and Right Side Broadcasting Network.

15/03/2025

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45 min
13/02/2022

30-year-old, crypto-investing lawyer wants to buy a home in Toronto

At 30 years old, Ricky has a full-time job making $100,000 as a lawyer working in Toronto after putting years of work into law school. He is an active investor in cryptocurrency and wants to know if he can afford a home in downtown Toronto. Evelyn Kwong speaks with financial adviser Jason Heath for recommendations. All of our participants have been granted anonymity, and so we'll be using voice actors for their quotes.

13/02/2022

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12 min
10/07/2024

Shanaplan in shambles

Guest: Legendary sports broadcaster Dave Hodge, formerly of TSN and Hockey Night in Canada When Brendan Shanahan took over the helm of the Maple Leafs in 2014, he vowed not to repeat the sins of various predecessors accused of rushing the team-building process. Shanahan insisted he would exercise patience. But after eight post-season runs in which the Maple Leafs have only once advanced beyond the opening round, Shanahan's refusal to give up on the team's core stars is accompanied by the reek of stubborn incompetence. Here Arthur, Feschuk and Hodge try to make sense of Shanahan's approach while pointing out the glaring blind spots that have left the Maple Leafs a long way away from interrupting the longest Stanley Cup drought in the history of the NHL, 57 years and counting. PLUS: Arthur, Feschuk and Hodge discuss the highs and lows of the Shanaplan era. This episode was produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnston and Sean Pattendon What would you like to hear on Toronto Star podcasts? Let us know in this survey and you can enter to win a $100 gift card.

10/07/2024

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1hr 28min
19/11/2021

The 'Three Amigos' summit and the Canada-U.S. relationship

Guest: Edward Keenan, Washington Bureau Chief for the Star It's been five years since the last trilateral summit between Canada, Mexico and the U.S. on trade, co-operation and diplomatic relations. Now this week, U.S. President Joe Biden hosted the first North American leader summit since 2016. It was nicknamed the 'Three Amigos' summit. It's being seen as a potential new phase in Canada-U.S. relations following the strained ties of the Trump era, but with Biden struggling with plummeting approval ratings and domestic priorities, many wonder if he is listening to the concerns of allies. The Star's Washington Bureau Chief Edward Keenan recaps the highlights of the summit and the impact on the Canada-U.S. relationship.

19/11/2021

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21 min
13/03/2025

Why are so many patients filing complaints about Ontario's ERs?

Guest: Toronto Star reporter Kenyon Wallace Ontario's ER crisis is pushing patients to the brink. A recent report by the Ontario Patient Ombudsman reveals a record-breaking 4429 patient complaints—the highest since the office was created. Almost 20 percent of the complaints were about emergency room experiences, highlighting growing concerns about patient care in hospital emergency departments. In this short edition of This Matters, we unpack what you need to know. This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Paulo Marques.

13/03/2025

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7 min
27/01/2022

Why we need N95 respirators more than cloth masks

Guest: Lisa Brosseau, a bioaerosol scientist & industrial hygienist at the University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy With most of us interested in having the best level of protection against the highly transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19, a growing number of doctors around North America say a cloth mask doesn't cut it and medical masks or respirators (like an N95) should be worn for maximum protection. Which mask is the safest bet? Can we still get away with a cloth mask? Will N95 masks be mandatory? What are the most effective ones for kids? What are the best practices for handling your mask? We try to tackle some of these questions with a "mask expert" who has over 25 years of experience with respiratory protection and workplace health & safety. This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz, Brian Bradley and Matthew Hearn.

27/01/2022

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23 min
22/02/2022

Can the world deter Putin's plans for Ukraine?

Guest: Edward Keenan, Washington Bureau Chief Host: Raju Mudhar After weeks of posturing, on what President Vladimir Putin is calling a peace keeping mission, Russian forces have entered Ukraine. It is the culmination of weeks of troop buildups on the border. Despite several attempts at diplomatic resolutions, many NATO countries including the U.S. said this would happen. Now the world watches and attempts to find new ways to isolate and punish Russia for this incursion, but also try to find a way to deter any further escalation that may lead to armed combat.

22/02/2022

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18 min
01/02/2021

QAnon, Boogaloo, Proud Boys: What's next for the U.S. extreme right?

QAnon, the Boogaloo movement, the Proud Boys — names once lurking on the fringes of the internet are now making mainstream headlines. On today's episode, Saba Eitizaz talks to Amarnath Amarasingham, a veteran researcher on terrorism and political violence, about what could be next for the American far-right and whether there are some global parallels to how they operate. If you would like to support the journalism of the Toronto Star, you can subscribe at thestar.com/subscribingmatters.

01/02/2021

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19 min

The Star Podcasts are part of the Toronto Star, a multi-platform news organization that informs, connects, investigates, reports and effects change. The purpose of the Toronto Star is to keep our audience informed about what matters most to them, to help make their life, community, country and world better.