As It Happens

CBC News & Politics
CBC News & Politics
  • 4.5 (373)
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  • Updated Daily

News that’s not afraid of fun. Meet people at the centre of the day’s most hard-hitting, hilarious and heartbreaking stories — powerful leaders, proud eccentrics and ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. And plenty of puns too. Hosted by Nil Köksal and Chris Howden, find out why As It Happens is one of Canada’s longest-running and most beloved shows. (Ahem, we literally helped make the beaver a national symbol.) New episodes Monday to Friday by 7:30 pm E.T.

  1. 2d ago

    His debut novel was a hit. But was it written by AI?

    A Quebec writer’s work divides the literary community, after it's alleged that he wrote his acclaimed novel with the help of AI. One writer says his peers are frustrated -- and grieving. Donald Trump and Xi Jinping wrap up their Washington summit without major policy developments -- but former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig says that doesn't mean the Chinese leader didn't score a big win. A former student at one of India’s top women’s colleges was among hundreds protesting after a young student was sexually assaulted. She says all they're demanding is for women to feel safe in public. We hear from the Canadian trainer of a dog named Uber –- who’s finally gotten his big break, starring alongside Brad Pitt in the new movie “Heart of the Beast.” A new study finds elephants use plants for medicinal purposes — and they don’t use them just to treat themselves, but their offspring, too. As It Happens, the Friday Edition. Radio that applauds their problem-salving ability.

  2. 3d ago

    Is it time for Canada to quit StarLink?

    Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada reducing its dependence on the US includes finding alternatives for Elon Musk's StarLink — and our guest applauds his spatial awareness. Amnesty International accuses the Parti Quebecois of breaking international law because of how some of its members treated a psychiatrist who criticized the party's leadership.  Award-winning hip hop artist Haviah Mighty tells us about getting life-saving heart surgery in her early thirties — and why she’s now partnering with the professionals who cared for her. A museum owner in Brooklyn, New York understands why most people think hair art — as in, art made from human hair — is creepy. But she chooses to see the beauty in it. The mayor of Richmond, B.C. says a snap election in his province is colliding with previously scheduled municipal elections and threatens to distract voters from crucial local issues. An Edmonton historian makes the case for preserving the site of some of the city’s most legendary gay bars and shares his own fond memories of the time he spent there.  A contender at this year’s World Town Crier Tournament tells us what it takes to compete against the best belters around — and says victory takes more than volume. As It Happens, the Thursday Edition. Radio that's covering this story just for the yell of it.

  3. 4d ago

    A detained journalist marks 25 years behind bars

    Eritrean-Swedish journalist Dawit Isaak was imprisoned in 2001 for calling for calling democratic reforms in Eritrea. We'll talk to his daughter — who hasn't seen him since she was seven years old.  British Columbia's Conservatives have gone through months of infighting, but their new interim leader says yesterday's snap election call has united the party.  He was paralyzed after heart surgery — and the late activist and wheelchair user Gerry Post spent the rest of his life fighting fiercely for disability rights in Nova Scotia. The world's most-seasoned Celtic band has played at an Irish pub in New York City for a record-breaking 1,500 weeks and counting.  An anonymous donor gives 100-million dollars to a Toronto cancer research centre. Our guest says that gift is nothing short of transformational.  An MIT prof explains how — and why — his team created tiny batteries you can swallow.  Scientists discover the prima donnas of the primate world — a rare species of lemur that happens to use the same vocal tricks as human opera singers.  As It Happens, the Wednesday edition. Radio that invites you to listen under falsetto pretenses.

  4. 5d ago

    B.C. heads to the polls…whether voters like it or not

    David Eby calls an election in B.C. two years ahead of schedule, and a provincial affairs reporter says he'll have to convince British Columbians he's not just taking advantage of the chaos in the ranks of his Conservative opponents.  Thousands are still unaccounted for after the flash floods in Nepal — and forensic teams are racing to sort through DNA samples, to try to get answers for families of the missing.  A violent attack on a Sikh truck driver in Wyoming strikes fear in South Asians across the United States. And our guest says the White House is to blame.  The discovery of a single, 9-million-year-old tooth from an ancient capybara suggests that a very dry Chilean desert was once a very wet Chilean wetland.  A former head of the White House Correspondents Association tells us how the U.S. President's eviction of several media outlets has united the press corps.  Once again, Fat Bear Week asks us to bear in mind the bears at a park in Alaska — and bear witness as those bears build as much bulk as they can bear.  New York City's new public bathrooms are timely in the sense that they're overdue — and also in the sense that you have ten minutes to use them before the doors open on their own. As It Happens, the Tuesday Edition. Radio that's a little nervous about these newfangled can openers.

  5. 6d ago

    Shooting near synagogue shocks Ontario community

    People in Belleville, Ontario are trying to make sense of a shooting last night, just outside a local synagogue. The local MP tells us it is "incomprehensible." Her brother was killed in the 1985 Air India bombing -- and Sudha Berry tells us she's appalled that the RCMP's investigation of the attack is now "inactive." It's a fraught political time between Canada and the U.S. -- but our guest saw only friendship at the celebration of Canada she holds every year in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  A decade after it closed down, New York's legendary Carnegie Deli is back in business; we'll talk to the third-generation owner who brought it back to life. The separation issue is getting all the headlines -- but a Calgary political scientist says the other 9 questions on the upcoming Alberta referendum are also important – and controversial. And…the organizer of the Pittsburgh Parallel Parking Championships tells us about the stiff competition at this year’s event -- and explains what qualities give a parking whiz curb appeal.  As It Happens, the Monday Edition. Radio that's always looking for someone to validate our parking.

  6. Sep 19

    Special Episode: “Once Upon a Time in Harlem”

    In the summer of 1972, the late filmmaker William Greaves sent out invitations that promised a "gathering of artists and intellectuals — the living luminaries of the Harlem Renaissance." He filmed that cocktail party but never ended up completing a full-length documentary. Now, 50 years later, his son and granddaughter have restored that footage and turned it into a new film, “Once Upon a Time in Harlem.” Nil Köksal sits down with director David Greaves and producer Liani Greaves during the week of their Canadian premiere at TIFF.

  7. Sep 18

    Canada’s Conservative Party facing 'fractured' future

    A former Conservative Party campaign manager says if Pierre Poilievre wants to be part of the party's future, he'd better get the situation under control fast.  The former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, is being held in terrible conditions in prison. His son tells us that's because of a vendetta by the chief of the army — and he fears it will end in his father's death. A Montreal family doctor is shocked to see himself in videos promoting dodgy cure-alls. He says those AI deepfakes are leading to tense confrontations with people who've been deceived.  Parts of Bangladesh are in the dark, as the government deals with oil shortages caused by the US-Iran War. Our guest tells us how that's affecting life in the capital.  The editor-at-large of the Merriam-Webster dictionary explains how words like "looksmaxxing" and "rickrolling" made the cut this year, along with more than a thousand other new entries. One summer afternoon in 1972, filmmaker William Greaves invited the biggest names of the Harlem Renaissance to a cocktail party at Duke Ellington's home. Fifty-plus years later, his footage of that gathering is reaching audiences for the first time, thanks to his son and granddaughter. The pair joins Nil for a feature interview about their new documentary, "Once Upon a Time in Harlem." A new study focuses on the bullying behaviour of an Australian dolphin named Bubbles, who torments certain fish around him until they throw up. As It Happens, the Friday edition. Radio that offers an embarrassment of retches.

  8. Sep 17

    The European reaction to Canada’s bid for stronger ties

    A German member of European Parliament reacts to plans for a deeper relationship between Canada and the EU. He tells us the alliance is a long time coming, but making it official is no simple matter.  The son of the late Nigerian actor Olu Jacobs remembers a man considered one of the architects of the Nigerian film industry known as "Nollywood."  Newly released documents detail shocking corruption allegations against several Toronto police officers — including misusing criminal databases, accepting bribes, and dealing drugs.  A researcher tells us a one-of-a-kind Canadian lake of fresh water floating on top of salt water is gone for good, thanks to climate change.  We take you to Saskatchewan, where some snappy — and pecky — dressers compete in a costume contest for farm birds.  A Wisconsin woman recaptures her world record title with her ever-expanding collection of salt and pepper packets. Turns out a Charlottetown Olympic-size pool is a tiny bit short. And now,  they'll have to do extensive renovations to extend it by just a few millimetres. As It Happens, the Thursday edition. Radio that refuses to pick a lane.

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News that’s not afraid of fun. Meet people at the centre of the day’s most hard-hitting, hilarious and heartbreaking stories — powerful leaders, proud eccentrics and ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. And plenty of puns too. Hosted by Nil Köksal and Chris Howden, find out why As It Happens is one of Canada’s longest-running and most beloved shows. (Ahem, we literally helped make the beaver a national symbol.) New episodes Monday to Friday by 7:30 pm E.T.

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