Closer Look - Insightful, credible, unfiltered conversations that matter
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Closer Look - Insightful, credible, unfiltered conversations that matter
In cities and towns across Ontario — and at Queen’s Park and Parliament Hill — our journalists work for you. Their mission is to dig for answers and tell you what they find. This new podcast from Village Media — ‘Closer Look’ — is all about the stories we tell. Every weeknight, hosts Michael Friscol...
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208 episodi
Tip of the iceberg’: Human trafficking in Canada much worse than stats show
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How widespread is human trafficking in Canada? Two new reports offer the clearest evidence yet.
According to Statistics Can...
Beware: These billboards are watching you
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Imagine looking at a billboard — then realizing it’s watching you back.
That’s exactly what’s happening near...
Should Ontario sell its stash of U.S. booze and give the cash to charity?
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Cheers to charity? That’s what the Ford government is being urged to do.
For months, the LCBO has been sittin...
Holy Mackinaw! Leafs broadcasting legend Joe Bowen stops by our podcast
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For more than four decades, Joe Bowen’s unmistakable voice has been the soundtrack of Leafs Nation. But this season...
Do you play in a lottery group? Keep good records
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This lottery winner will need to spend a portion of his prize on a defence lawyer.
A 70-year-old Toronto man is facing thef...
How is it even possible to shoplift $1.3M worth of booze from the LCBO?
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Earlier this year, the Retail Council of Canada released an alarming report about a "national crisis" facing its me...
Your grocery bill is going to keep climbing
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Don’t expect the new year to ring in lower grocery bills.
The latest edition of Canada’s Food Price Report, p...
'500 patients a day? Audit uncovers some fishy billing by Ontario doctors'
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Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, and produced by Derek Turner, Closer Look is a new daily podcas...
Pet raccoon? Don’t trash the idea until you watch this
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Raccoons as pets? Don’t laugh.
A new study has found that urban raccoons have shorter snouts compared to their rural counte...
What we discovered about the long-term care homes in your community
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The COVID-19 pandemic exposed a harsh truth about Ontario’s long-term care homes: many were woefully understaffed,...
Your local grocery store won’t be forced to collect empties after all
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Cheers to compromise.
Ontario grocers and The Beer Store have reached a tentative deal on a problem that’s be...
‘Nothing has changed’: New data, same old problems with hospital wait times
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Back in September, our podcast featured an emotional interview with Hazel van der Werken, a grieving mother who is...
A polar vortex is on the way! Here’s everything you need to know
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If you don’t have your winter clothes ready to go, dig them out. Frigid temperatures are on the way.
A polar...
‘It’s time to admit what you did’: Who was driving the truck that killed Loni Chum?
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This week, the OPP announced a major development in an unsolved mystery that devastated a small community in northe...
In trade war with U.S., Canada is winning the battle for tourists
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When it comes to our lingering trade war with the United States, reassuring headlines are hard to find. But here’s...
Dalton McGuinty has a book full of advice for every politician in Canada
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Whatever your opinion of Dalton McGuinty, this much is difficult to dispute: the man knows a thing or two about lea...
Why communities everywhere are banning candy tossing at parades
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We cover a lot of different issues on this podcast: some extremely serious, some much lighter. Today’s topic can fa...
Cloned meat could be coming to a grocery store near you — without labels
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Would you buy a steak or pork chop that came from a cloned animal?
In the new year, you might end up doing j...
Why we’re asking you to help fund our investigative journalism
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If you follow Ontario politics, you’ve no doubt heard of the Skills Development Fund (SDF). One of the Ford governm...
How fraudsters cashed in on the legacy of a beloved Canadian artist
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Spanning many years, the scheme grew into one of the largest art frauds in Canadian history: thousands of fakes bea...
50-year mortgage? Don’t bank on Trump’s big idea coming here
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U.S. President Donald Trump is floating a controversial idea to help more Americans achieve home ownership: 50-year...
This Ontario man says ChatGPT sent him spiralling into ‘AI psychosis’
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Leery of AI chatbots? This podcast episode definitely won’t dispel your fears.
OpenAI, the company that creat...
Another day, another record-breaking fentanyl bust
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It’s true what they say: records are meant to be broken.
Over the summer, the Ontario Provincial Police annou...
Why Canada got publicly shamed for having so many measles cases
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It’s definitely not something to be proud of.
This week, Canada was officially stripped of its “measles elimi...
Money questions? The Wealthy Barber still has all the answers you need
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Ironically enough, David Chilton did something he would never advise a client to do: he cashed out his RRSPs early...
Is a Hwy. 401 tunnel even possible? The answer will cost taxpayers $9.1M
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Premier Doug Ford has made no secret of his dream to build a massive tunnel underneath Highway 401. But is the idea even possible...
This is what Mark Carney’s budget means for you
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The Carney government tabled its first-ever budget this week — and like the recent federal election, the spectre of...
In the fight against dementia, this will be a ‘transformational decade’
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Last week, Health Canada gave the green light to a long-awaited drug that slows the progression of early-stage Alzh...
Should cigarette-style warning labels be mandatory on all alcohol?
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Should alcohol bottles contain cancer warning labels?
That controversial question was at the heart of a recen...
AI is going to steal your job — or set you up for a life of long weekends
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Last week, Amazon announced the elimination of 14,000 jobs worldwide as the retail giant ramps up spending on artif...
OK Blue Jays, let’s…get this done and start celebrating
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Will this be the night?
The Toronto Blue Jays are one win away from their first World Series title in more th...
What’s next for Canada Post? We’re starting to find out
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“Canadians have changed the way they use the postal service, and we must change with them.”
That was the mess...
Who is Pete Hoekstra, the Trump diplomat furious with Doug Ford?
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Doug Ford’s anti-tariff commercial has stopped airing on U.S. networks, but the controversial ad is still getting p...
Deadline looms for grocery stores to start accepting your empties
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Have you tried returning any empties lately? It’s not as easy as it used to be.
Nearly 100 Beer Stores have p...
Not just snowbirds — all Canadians travelling to U.S. will be photographed
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Last week, we told you about a new rule impacting Canadian snowbirds: if you plan to stay in the U.S. for more than...
Doug Ford finally gets Donald Trump’s attention
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Doug Ford never did secure a one-on-one meeting with Donald Trump — but the U.S. president definitely knows who he...
Been duped by an online scam? There’s no shame in that
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The Carney government is promising to create Canada’s first-ever national anti-fraud strategy, including a new fina...
Blue Jays are World Series-bound, but they’re not the only big winners
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Big bats equal big bucks.
The Blue Jays’ thrilling comeback victory in Game 7 of the ALCS didn’t just propel...
Spend your winters down south? Prepare to be fingerprinted at the border
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Canadian snowbirds are starting to flock south for the winter — but many are getting quite the surprise when they r...
Ban speed cameras? Not so fast, protesters tell Doug Ford
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Not so fast.
That’s the message from a growing number of Ontarians trying hard to convince Premier Doug Ford...