A motorcade went beyond downtown Toronto in support of Donald Trump hours before louder protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol. A demonstration to “Stop the Steal” of the since affirmed election also appeared at Calgary city hall. And a similar rally in Vancouver culminated in protesters attacking photographers of their assembly.
Breaking out the After Eights
François Legault announced a Quebec curfew for four weeks starting Saturday, and similar measures are being eyed in Ontario. The latter province announced COVID-19 testing will be free and voluntary for arrivers at Pearson Airport—even if stationary snowbirds stand to be more tantalized by stories about getting vaccinated in Florida.
The hospital executive who went on a Caribbean holiday has lost at least one CEO job. Tom Stewart remains at another health system, for now, following his resignation as a provincial pandemic adviser. Also confessing to a recent Hawaiian vacation is the director of the University of British Columbia’s school of public health. (And a correction to yesterday’s newsletter: the politician who apologized for travel to Somalia is from Victoria, not Vancouver.)
New mulligan for newspapers
News Media Canada ended a busy 2020 of lobbying the government to boost benefits to its legacy member publishers by wrangling a group MPs who accuse Google Canada of spreading misinformation about them. Meanwhile, as the new Torstar ownership pledges to repair its legacy in 2021, its first move of the year involves getting into golf:
“Here are tips for what to do when your child’s favorite media goes away.” PBS had already prepared the advice for an event like its cancellation of Caillou, even though social media reaction indicated parents couldn’t be happier. Reruns of the Canadian cartoons made from 1997 to 2010 helped the hairless four-year-old remain an international shame.
Finally, for whom are the notes
Neil Young dropped his copyright suit against the Donald Trump campaign in December, when he was probably working on other plans related to ownership of his catalogue. U.K. investment vehicle Hipgnosis Songs Fund announced it bought ownership of 50 per cent of Young’s songs, with a pledge to maintain his artistic standards:
