971 episodes

The world is changing every day. Now, more than ever, these questions matter. What’s happening? And why should you care? This Matters, a daily news podcast from the Toronto Star, aims to answer those questions, on important stories and ideas, every day, Monday to Friday. Hosts Saba Eitizaz and Ed Keenan talk to their fellow journalists, experts and newsmakers about the social, cultural, political and economic stories that shape your life.

This Matters The Star

    • News
    • 4.3 • 324 Ratings

The world is changing every day. Now, more than ever, these questions matter. What’s happening? And why should you care? This Matters, a daily news podcast from the Toronto Star, aims to answer those questions, on important stories and ideas, every day, Monday to Friday. Hosts Saba Eitizaz and Ed Keenan talk to their fellow journalists, experts and newsmakers about the social, cultural, political and economic stories that shape your life.

    Canada set to have the best EV supply chain in the world

    Canada set to have the best EV supply chain in the world

    This Matters is pleased to publish episodes of the Toronto Star's podcast, "Road Trip: Electric Avenues," every Saturday. The next episode will be available next week here, or already in the Road Trip feed. This week, we are proud to share episode five:
    While China dominates the EV supply chain today, the ranking — put out by Bloomberg — really looks at the future and singles out Canada for having better environmental and labour standards, as well as a robust automotive sector and vast mineral deposits. But battery manufacturing itself is still in its infancy. There are plans to build three battery plants in Canada — Volkswagen in St. Thomas, Northvolt in Saint-Basile-le-Grand and NextStar in Windsor. NextStar was the first battery plant announced and is the furthest along, and while it’s not up and running yet, they agreed to show us around.
    Toronto Star photographer Steve Russell and climate change reporter Marco Chown Oved went on a road trip through northern Ontario in the dead of winter. It was cold, blizzarding and icy. They travelled 2,300 km during the coldest week of the year. And they did it in an electric vehicle (EV).

    • 22 min
    Is Canada heading toward a measles outbreak?

    Is Canada heading toward a measles outbreak?

    Guest: Megan Ogilvie, health reporter 
    A global surge in measles has made its way to Canada, where there’s been almost twice as many cases just three months into this year than in all of 2023. Just in Ontario, as of Wednesday, public health officials have confirmed eight measles cases. Last year, there were seven cases in total for the entire year. Cases have now also been confirmed in Quebec, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. What does this mean for us and what do we need to know about measles vaccines? The Star's health reporter Megan Ogilvie answers some of these questions. 
    Audio Sources: Global News
    This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Paulo Marques.

    • 16 min
    A Star reporter was hacked and got a terrifying glimpse into a digital dystopia

    A Star reporter was hacked and got a terrifying glimpse into a digital dystopia

    Toronto Star national columnist Susan Delacourt recently had her X account (the platform formerly known as Twitter) hacked. It compromised her entire digital life, from her sensitive emails to her banking information, even her phone number and home address. The hacker tried to blackmail her and appeared to be targeting her for her work as a journalist. While the "fake Susan" continues to be active on X, it's the real Susan that had to leave. This is the story of a hacking, what happens when someone tries to fix the situation and what this shows us about our disturbing and dystopian digital future. 
    This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Paulo Marques.

    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.

    • 22 min
    Can Ontario’s resource-extraction and industrial economy transition to the clean economy?

    Can Ontario’s resource-extraction and industrial economy transition to the clean economy?

    This Matters is pleased to publish episodes of the Toronto Star's podcast, "Road Trip: Electric Avenues," every Saturday. The next episode will be available next week here, or already in the Road Trip feed. This week, we are proud to share episode four: 
    Steel is one of the biggest emitters of carbon in the world. Currently, steelmaking is responsible for seven to nine percent of total global emissions. That’s about 2.6 billion tonnes of carbon — or four times more than all the emissions produced in Canada. And because most steel is made by melting down iron using coal, it’s very hard to decarbonize. In Sault Ste. Marie, Algoma Steel is transitioning its 100 year old coke oven and blast furnaces to electric arc furnace technology. It’s a change that will cut its carbon emissions by 70 per cent. Since Ontario’s electricity grid is so clean, Algoma Steel will become some of the cleanest steel on the planet. It’s already being used in EVs and will soon make its way into electrical towers and infrastructure used to build the clean economy.
    Toronto Star photographer Steve Russell and climate change reporter Marco Chown Oved went on a road trip through northern Ontario in the dead of winter. It was cold, blizzarding and icy. They travelled 2,300 km during the coldest week of the year. And they did it in an electric vehicle (EV).

    • 27 min
    Women’s sports and other reasons for hope

    Women’s sports and other reasons for hope

    Earlier this year, it seemed like the dream of a WNBA team in Toronto had died, but recent news revives the possibility, even if it won’t come until at least 2026. Speaking of sports in 2026, there’s more news about Toronto’s agreement to co-host the FIFA World Cup, and more to discuss about how costs are going to be shared. Ed wrote about a transportation miracle on King Street, and Emma discusses why a long-dormant disease should unite federal politicians. Plus, Toronto’s great Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) winning streak.
    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.

    • 41 min
    Women's bodies in the public eye

    Women's bodies in the public eye

    Guests: Tracy Moore of Cityline and Meredith Shaw of Breakfast Television
    Fat. Flattering. Big boned. Curvy. March 8 is International Women’s Day and to mark it we’re breaking down the negative ways we talk about women’s bodies. Most women are familiar with body shaming — none more so than women in the public eye. Meredith Shaw and Tracy Moore join us to talk about their own self-acceptance journeys, how they handle nasty viewer comments and whether they wish they could stop talking about it altogether.
    This episode was produced by Rani Sheen, JP Fozo, Julia De Laurentiis Johnston and Paulo Marques

    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.

    • 31 min

Customer Reviews

4.3 out of 5
324 Ratings

324 Ratings

Ella1218 ,

Good but please change the music!

As a Torontonian, I enjoy hearing about all of the relevant issues on this podcast and I find the guests are very knowledgeable. But I don’t like the podcast music at all and it bothers me every time I listen. My vote is to change the intro music to make it sound more interesting and upbeat.

TrojanTime ,

Professionalize it

Sounds like Ed is speaking through a potato connected to a forty foot length of twine running from my neighbour’s treehouse. Also the episode startup is way too slow, between ads, idle chatter, and administrivia. Listen to NPR Up First: four catchy notes and then boom, headlines. And professionally produced audio.

tptkto3 ,

‘America quietly grew 400,000 sq miles’

US made a claim that expands their Arctic sea territory in Dec 2023 that overlaps our. Why isn’t this covered by Canadian press?

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