The Canadians

Jared Michael

The Canadians (formerly Bad Canadians) is a Canadian long-form interview series devoted to ideas, curiosity, and thoughtful conversation. Hosted by Jared Michael, the show creates a space where writers, journalists, and cultural observers can exchange ideas across traditions while avoiding the usual culture-war trenches. Each episode is a deep, unhurried conversation with people who think differently, challenge orthodoxies, or see the country from an unexpected angle. The goal is serious, open-ended discussion about culture, institutions, history, science, media, and the stories Canada tells about itself. Working-class roots. A Free Speech lens. Canadian contrarians. That means taking disagreement seriously and treating people as full moral equals, not caricatures or mascots for a side. The aim is to understand how thoughtful people actually think, especially when you disagree with them.

  1. Sep 8

    Heather Exner-Pirot: Resources, Prosperity, and Canada’s Future | The Canadians Ep. 24

    Heather Exner-Pirot is a political scientist, senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, and one of Canada’s leading voices on energy, natural resources, and the North.   We discuss Canada’s extraordinary resource wealth, the changing politics around developing it, and what resource projects can mean for Indigenous and remote communities. From there, the conversation broadens into questions of economic growth, national ambition, and Canada’s place in a changing world.   This is a conversation about what Canada has, what we’re willing to build, and the kind of country we want to become.   Heather’s Links   X:   https://x.com/ExnerPirot   Articles:   https://macdonaldlaurier.ca/cm-expert/heather-exner-pirot/   Macdonald-Laurier Institute Energy Program:   https://macdonaldlaurier.ca/category/issues/energy-policy-program/energy/     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on August 10, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Heather Exner-Pirot: Resources, Prosperity, and Canada’s Future | The Canadians Ep. 24

  2. Aug 25

    Tara Henley: Journalism, Objectivity, and the Crisis of Trust | The Canadians Ep. 23

    Tara Henley is a veteran Canadian journalist, author, and host of the independent current affairs podcast Lean Out. After nearly a decade at the CBC, she resigned from the public broadcaster in 2022, raising concerns about the direction of the CBC and mainstream journalism more broadly. Her latest book is The Trust Spiral: Why the Media Needs Objectivity.   We begin by exploring Tara’s diagnosis of what went wrong: the economic collapse of the traditional media business model, the rise of activist journalism, changing newsroom culture, and the profession’s move away from objectivity. From there, we discuss the CBC, political and intellectual diversity inside newsrooms, and whether rebuilding public trust requires the media to acknowledge where it has gone wrong.   This is a conversation about journalism, objectivity, and a larger question facing an increasingly fragmented country: is it still possible to create journalism that Canadians across the political spectrum can trust?   Tara’s Links   The Trust Spiral: Why the Media Needs Objectivity:   https://www.amazon.ca/Trust-Spiral-Media-Needs-Objectivity/dp/1509570934   Lean Out Podcast:   https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/lean-out-with-tara-henley/id1605838486   Lean Out Substack:   https://tarahenley.substack.com     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on August 4, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Tara Henley: Journalism, Objectivity, and the Crisis of Trust | The Canadians Ep. 23

  3. Aug 11

    Jimi Fritz: Rave Culture, Community, and Transcendence | The Canadians Ep. 22

    Jimi Fritz is a writer, musician, filmmaker, entrepreneur, and the author of Rave Culture: An Insider’s Overview. A longtime traveler and legendary rave promoter, he has spent decades documenting and participating in one of the most influential—and perhaps most misunderstood—youth movements of the late twentieth century.   We begin by exploring the origins of rave culture, the music that defined it, and the unique experience that kept people returning to dance floors around the world. From there, we discuss community, belonging, psychedelics, spirituality, and why the movement was so often misunderstood by authorities and the media.   This is a conversation about community, transcendence, and what one forgotten cultural movement might still teach us about the enduring human search for meaning and belonging.   Jimi’s Link’s   Website:   https://www.jimifritz.ca/   Rave Culture: An Insider’s Overview:   https://www.amazon.ca/Rave-culture-insiders-Jimi-Fritz/dp/0968572103/     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on July 7, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Jimi Fritz: Rave Culture, Community, and Transcendence | The Canadians Ep. 22

  4. Jul 28

    Trevor Herriot: Grassland Conservation, Place, and Humility | The Canadians Ep. 21

    Trevor Herriot is a Saskatchewan naturalist, conservationist, and award-winning author. Through decades of writing and conservation work, he has explored the relationship between people, place, and the natural world.   We begin by discussing Canada’s native prairie grasslands, the historic role of bison, and the surprising partnership between ranchers and conservationists in protecting these increasingly rare landscapes. From there, our conversation broadens into questions of spirituality, humility, our relationship with nature, and whether modern society has become a little too certain of what it knows.   This is a conversation about conservation, belonging, and the landscapes that shape who we are.   Guardians of the Grasslands (12-min documentary):   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CG4ROvCu0Y   Nature Saskatchewan:   https://www.naturesask.ca/     Trevor's Links   Website:   https://www.trevorherriot.com/   Public Pastures - Public Interest:   https://pfrapastureposts.wordpress.com/about/who-we-are/     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on May 27, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Trevor Herriot: Grassland Conservation, Place, and Humility | The Canadians Ep. 21

  5. Jul 14

    Selina Robinson: Identity, Democratic Values, and Being Jewish in Canada | The Canadians Ep. 20

    Former BC cabinet minister Selina Robinson joins The Canadians for a conversation about identity, democratic values, and what it means to be Jewish in Canada today.   We begin with the controversy that brought her political career to an abrupt end before exploring the rise of Jew hatred following October 7th, the lived experience of belonging to one of Canada’s smallest minority communities, and the difficult relationship between anti-Zionism and antisemitism.   From there, we turn to broader questions about anti-racism, colour-blindness, equality versus equity, and whether class and poverty—not race or ancestry—should once again become the primary focus of progressive politics.   Selina Robinson served as a BC MLA from 2013 to 2024 and held several senior cabinet positions, including Minister of Finance during the COVID-19 pandemic. She is the author of Truth Be Told.   Selina’s links   Truth Be Told:   https://www.amazon.ca/Truth-Be-Told-Selina-Robinson/dp/1069165107   Website:   https://www.selinarobinson.ca/   Substack:   https://selinarobinson.substack.com/p/on-retirement   X:   https://x.com/SelinaMRobinson     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on May 19, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Selina Robinson: Identity, Democratic Values, and Being Jewish in Canada | The Canadians Ep. 20

  6. Jun 30

    Aaron Pete: Curiosity, Reconciliation, and Leadership | The Canadians Ep. 19

    Aaron Pete is a First Nation Chief, law graduate, and host of the Nuanced podcast. Through hundreds of conversations across Canada’s political, cultural, and ideological divides, he has earned a reputation for approaching disagreement with curiosity rather than certainty.   We begin by exploring what shaped Aaron’s approach to dialogue and what he has learned from speaking with people across the political spectrum. From there, we discuss reconciliation, Indigenous governance, economic development, land and title, and why he believes Indigenous policy should ultimately be judged by whether it helps communities become healthier, stronger, and more prosperous.   This is a conversation about listening well, thinking carefully, and searching for practical paths toward reconciliation.   Aaron Pete/Tim Thielmann debate on reconciliation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py3Ktn4iEkc   Aaron’s links   Website:   https://aaronpete.com/   X:   https://x.com/Aaronpete_   Nuanced:   https://www.youtube.com/@NuancedwithAaronPete     The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on May 14, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Aaron Pete: Curiosity, Reconciliation, and Leadership | The Canadians Ep. 19

  7. Jun 16

    The Love of Listening: A Reflection On Listening Across Difference | The Canadians Ep. 18

    Modern society has become very good at communication and increasingly poor at understanding.   In this solo minisode, Jared Michael explores the difference between listening and simply waiting for our turn to speak. He reflects on disagreement, dehumanization, curiosity, and why recognizing another person’s humanity may be one of the most important skills a healthy society can cultivate.   A reflection on listening, not as a communication technique, but as an act of recognition, empathy, and perhaps even love.   The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on Spotify:   https://open.spotify.com/show/75wxT42gEPMiOBGTFFU4D4   Subscribe on Apple Podcasts:   https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/bad-canadians/id1785300184   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    The Love of Listening: A Reflection On Listening Across Difference | The Canadians Ep. 18

  8. Jun 2

    Stephen Jenkinson: Cultural Poverty, Ritual, and Belonging | The Canadians Ep. 17

    Stephen Jenkinson is a culture worker, author, and founder of the Orphan Wisdom School. He holds master’s degrees from Harvard Divinity School and the University of Toronto and is the author of numerous books, including Die Wise and his most recent work, Trembling, Still.   This conversation began as an attempt to discuss Stephen’s earlier work on death and grief, but quickly moved elsewhere. Instead, we found ourselves talking about culture itself: what it owes, who it serves, and what happens when people inherit a world that no longer provides reliable ways of belonging, remembering, or understanding their obligations to one another.   We discuss Canada as a country shaped by immigration, displacement, and reinvention, the role of ritual and elderhood in modern life, the tension between freedom and obligation, and the challenge of building wisdom in an age increasingly detached from inherited forms of meaning.   Finally we turn to his new book, Trembling, Still, written in the wake of a serious neurodegenerative diagnosis, and Stephen’s reflections on illness, identity, and the possibility of becoming a stranger to oneself.   Stephen’s Links   Orphan Wisdom School:   https://orphanwisdom.com/   Trembling, Still and Other Books by Stephen Jenkinson:   https://orphanwisdom.com/books/   The Canadians Links   Website:   https://www.thecanadianspodcast.ca/   Support Page:   https://buymeacoffee.com/thecanadians   Follow us on X:   https://x.com/TheCanadiansPod   Subscribe on YouTube:   https://www.youtube.com/@TheCanadiansPod   Conversation recorded on April 22, 2026   Opening Song: Aria 51 by MicroBongo Soundsystem, used with permission.

    Stephen Jenkinson: Cultural Poverty, Ritual, and Belonging | The Canadians Ep. 17
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

The Canadians (formerly Bad Canadians) is a Canadian long-form interview series devoted to ideas, curiosity, and thoughtful conversation. Hosted by Jared Michael, the show creates a space where writers, journalists, and cultural observers can exchange ideas across traditions while avoiding the usual culture-war trenches. Each episode is a deep, unhurried conversation with people who think differently, challenge orthodoxies, or see the country from an unexpected angle. The goal is serious, open-ended discussion about culture, institutions, history, science, media, and the stories Canada tells about itself. Working-class roots. A Free Speech lens. Canadian contrarians. That means taking disagreement seriously and treating people as full moral equals, not caricatures or mascots for a side. The aim is to understand how thoughtful people actually think, especially when you disagree with them.

Information

  • Creator
    Jared Michael
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    25
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2024 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Canadians

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