Distrust of news media driven by political messaging? Yep.👇 See: www.niemanlab.org/2026/08/is-a... "...the decline in public trust in the media was both preceded by & driven by attacks on the press by political elites..." Criticism of press "has become a decidedly conservative behavior."

Is Americans’ declining trust in media driven by political messaging?

A massive analysis of every speech given on the floors of Congress between 1939 and 2023 finds that criticism of the news media is remarkably tied to specific partisan interests and historical moments...

niemanlab.org

I was recently out for a walk in my local park, which is always full of birders, and I saw a guy with a giant camera looking enraptured so I asked him what the bird was and he pointed to the RACCOON looking at me from inside a dead tree. Calgary is not prepared. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

The next Toronto? Reports of urban raccoons on the rise in Calgary | CBC News

Raccoons are seldom seen in most of Alberta, where harsh winters and abundant predators are among the challenges they face. But according to pest control professionals and wildlife biologists, sightin...

cbc.ca

Health Canada has long had an odd relationship with caffeine in carbonated beverages, it must be said. "Mixing energy drinks and alcohol can lead to ‘wide-awake drunk’ danger. So why did Health Canada drop warning labels?" c/o @alexboyd.bsky.social www.thestar.com/news/investi...

Mixing energy drinks and alcohol can lead to ‘wide-awake drunk’ danger. So why did Health Canada drop warning labels?

Regulator removed warning labels on mixing energy drinks and alcohol. An investigation reveals Red Bull-funded studies played a role.

thestar.com

Mixing energy drinks and alcohol can lead to ‘wide-awake drunk’ danger. So why did Health Canada drop warning labels? by @alexboyd.bsky.social www.thestar.com/news/investi... via @thestar.com

Mixing energy drinks and alcohol can lead to ‘wide-awake drunk’ danger. So why did Health Canada drop warning labels?

Regulator removed warning labels on mixing energy drinks and alcohol. An investigation reveals Red Bull-funded studies played a role.

thestar.com

How research funded by Red Bull helped convince Health Canada to remove warning labels against mixing energy drinks with alcohol @alexboyd.bsky.social leads the Sunday front page of @thestar.com, in the latest big story in the #BehindtheBuzz investigation w the @theexamination.org

Mixing energy drinks and alcohol can lead to ‘wide-awake drunk’ danger. So why did Health Canada drop warning labels?

Regulator removed warning labels on mixing energy drinks and alcohol. An investigation reveals Red Bull-funded studies played a role.

thestar.com

Heartbreaking. I’ve never seen a city embrace a search for a child the way Calgarians looked for Parker. As someone who lives here I regularly ran into people looking, cops following up on leads; ad hoc search parties were all over my social media. That poor family.

cm 🍁@cmcalgary.bsky.social · 7d ago

"it is with profound sadness that we have found the body of a small child which we believe to be Parker". He entered a deep culvert under Deerfoot Trail and was found in one of the pipes it connects with. Condolences to the friends and family.

We've had a yellow or orange-level severe thunderstorm approximately every three days for the last two weeks and received more rain in the last two months than we usually get in a year. Send boats.

Alex Boyd@alexboyd.bsky.social · last wk.

In Canada it's Toronto weather that tends to get all the attention because, Toronto, but has anyone checked to make sure Edmonton is still there?? They're truly having a summer for the ages. www.instagram.com/reel/DbTKyEF...

In Canada it's Toronto weather that tends to get all the attention because, Toronto, but has anyone checked to make sure Edmonton is still there?? They're truly having a summer for the ages. www.instagram.com/reel/DbTKyEF...

The Weather Network on Instagram: "Dramatic footage captures the moment a powerful storm with intense wind and rain suddenly hits a fair in Edmonton, Alberta, sending people running for shelter. [ Se...

3,448 likes, 159 comments - weathernetwork on July 27, 2026: "Dramatic footage captures the moment a powerful storm with intense wind and rain suddenly hits a fair in Edmonton, Alberta, sending people...

instagram.com

Scoop: The Liberal government is sitting on a proposal from Meta that could restore news to Facebook and Instagram in Canada. But Playbook has learned the offer is now caught up in broader Canada-U.S. trade negotiations. www.politico.com/newsletters/...

For Joyal Jose’s parents in India, his tuition in Canada was a retirement investment — and a huge gamble. His father, a farmer, and mother, a nurse, had to mortgage their family’s land to scrape together the money for his two-year program at Seneca College.  New @nicholaskeung.bsky.social:

His family in India took out a mortgage to fund his tuition in Canada. Why many temporary residents ‘can’t even think about going back’

Pressure to stay in Canada weighs heavily when families back home, often working-class, invest so much.

thestar.com

This is such a great answer to a question I didn't even know I had.

The New York Times@nytimes.com · 2w ago

Once upon a time, there was only one way to get your hands on a ripe strawberry in winter: be a member of the French royal court. But this California company has helped turn a local, seasonal treat into a worldwide refrigerator staple. nyti.ms/4b7IpAN

Taylor Farms, the lettuce supplier at the center of our explosive diarrhea outbreak, has spent millions to oppose food regulation and elect Donald Trump and other MAGA Republicans:

Taylor Farms Spent Big on MAGA and Anti-Regulatory Lobbying Before Diarrhea Outbreak

The company donated more than $3.6 million to conservative groups between 2020 and 2025, including $1 million to the MAGA Inc. super PAC.

wired.com

NEW: The Calgary Police Service is asking the entire city of Calgary to check their yards and sheds for 11 y/o Parker. He was last seen yesterday in Thorncliffe. More than 200 officers are involved in the search.

The “this is straight-up Nazi shit” line gets overused sometimes. But not all the time.

PEIPolitical 🇨🇦@peipolitical.bsky.social · 3w ago

Miller: "It's not a coincidence that when you look at these violent Antifa demonstrations not one of the people that is demonstrating looks like a normal person. Not one looks normal. They're all deformed in some way in their appearance, in their dress, in their mannerism." #cdnpoli

They've done news organizations and minor celebrities, which makes sense from an attention perspective, but can anyone explain why the newest trend in AI scam slop is... TD Bank themed?? What did they do.

I wish Calgary would embrace other themed costume weeks like it does Stampede. There should be a week where we dress up like magicians. Another where everyone is now a zebra. It would be good.

Thanks to the smart folks at West of Centre for the invite to talk Calgary’s turn as the tiny town in Flashdance, Corb Lund and confusing referendum questions. url.ca.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/fS2ICmOxvq...

Big tent party

Podcast Episode · West of Centre · June 26 · 39m

url.ca.m.mimecastprotect.com

Thanks to the smart folks at West of Centre for the invite to talk Calgary’s turn as the tiny town in Flashdance, Corb Lund and confusing referendum questions. url.ca.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/fS2ICmOxvq...

Big tent party

Podcast Episode · West of Centre · June 26 · 39m

url.ca.m.mimecastprotect.com

Media might be in a time of existential crisis, but don't worry, there's still bandwidth to report that randos on social media think one of our greatest female icons is OLD. torontosun.com/entertainmen...

Shania Twain embraces confidence at 60 despite backlash over racy Wembley outfits

The Canadian country-pop superstar, 60, is facing criticism over her racy concert outfits, but fans are rushing to her defence. Read more.

torontosun.com

Reupping this in case anyone knows Ontarians in Alberta who might want to talk!

Alex Boyd@alexboyd.bsky.social · 2mo ago

🚨Journalist request 🚨: is anyone on here an Ontarian who has moved to Alberta relatively recently who wants to talk about how the separatism chatter is landing as a newcomer? Would love to chat if so! Send me an email! aboyd@thestar.ca

What happened in Sundre is another warning about how algorithms that decide what people see on social media platforms are promoting outrage and opportunistic influencers looking to score clicks are helping fuel that division.

Dave Cournoyer 🇨🇦@daveberta.bsky.social · last mo.

🤠😒 Sundre's rodeo parade an early casualty of Alberta's separation referendum. Social media algorithms and influencers put a big target on community volunteers. daveberta.substack.com/p/sundres-ro...

My first takeaway here is that most major news outlets in Canada still enjoy decently high levels of trust. www.pollara.com/wp-content/u...

This is so nerdy. (Complimentary.) open.spotify.com/episode/1uKS...

Making sense of the 16+ polls on Alberta separation

Hub Podcasts · Episode

open.spotify.com

Fun fact: the $400 Albertans got in 2006 would be worth $615.38 today. Inflation! www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Alberta will pay $100 energy rebate to about 3.4 million residents | CBC News

Twenty years after then-premier Ralph Klein gave every Albertan a $400 cheque, the current Alberta government is giving each eligible resident a one-time payment of $100.

cbc.ca

This is so fascinating because it does a basic thing so very well: laying out clearly what is known, how it's known--and where the gaps are. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

The Untold Story of Jeffrey Epstein’s Death and His Final Days in Jail

New evidence, new interviews and the fullest investigation yet into the question of whether he killed himself.

nytimes.com

A Muslim Texan sought to find his place in the party at the state GOP convention. He left in tears. www.texastribune.org/2026/06/15/t...

Muslims at Texas GOP Convention told to leave party, country

Muslim delegates and attendees hoping to participate in the state Republican convention were shunned and rejected by members as they espoused themes of party unity ahead of the November election.

texastribune.org

🚨Journalist request 🚨: is anyone on here an Ontarian who has moved to Alberta relatively recently who wants to talk about how the separatism chatter is landing as a newcomer? Would love to chat if so! Send me an email! aboyd@thestar.ca

The comparison to Quebec is interesting here: PQ voters are less resentful than UCP voters in Alberta, and also less removed from the average voter. In comparison, Alberta's governing conservatives are increasingly out of step with the average person, who is warming up to federation.

Jared Wesley@jaredwesley.ca · 2mo ago

"Five years of flat resentment index scores among these UCP supporters — despite changes to carbon pricing, renewed pipeline planning and intergovernmental agreements — suggests that the grievance is not transactional." policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/06/albe...

Dusting off my annual soapbox that people pearl clutch about animal abuse when it comes to rodeo and not, say, horse racing largely because of class/cultural bias. (To be clear, chuck wagons have some real issues, but I really don't think it's the *sheep* at risk here.)

Emmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦@emmettmacfarlane.com · 2mo ago

Listen up, central/eastern Canadians! Do NOT poke fun at this, or call it ridiculous, or suggest it seems like little more than animal abuse, or anything else that might denigrate cultural Albertans at this high time of precarious national unity. Thank you for your attention on this matter.