The strange early days of the second wave
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An anti-lockdown rally provided Chris Saccoccia, the childless creator of Mothers Against Distancing, with another Toronto stage for his stunts: but this one came with a $1,000 ticket. Meanwhile, a car rally that led Wasaga Beach to be blocked off resulted in nearly 200 tickets, although only 11 of them were for violating the Reopening Ontario Act.
Betting on the political capital
The new Ontario Liberal leader backs a rollback to Stage 2 restrictions in response to the resurgent coronavirus case count, even though Doug Ford signalled that it’s for the people to decide if they want a second wave or a tsunami. Liberals also want the premier to prove he’s not angling for an early election to build on his new benevolence.
Red zones are ahead in the biggest cities of Quebec. October will bring a new four-week alert status to Montreal and Quebec City, whose rules include a general ban on private gatherings and no eating inside restaurants. François Legault bemoaned the slackening of standards as his province lost control of the second wave of COVID-19.
The lost island of shock jocks
Quebec City station CHOI Radio X made national news in 2004 when listeners marched on Ottawa to protest the CRTC revoking its licence due to offensive comments by its hosts. Now the frequency finds itself boycotted by advertisers, led by the city of Quebec, in response to the broadcasting of coronavirus conspiracy talk:
Corus Entertainment fired a talk radio host in Edmonton. Ryan Jespersen used the word “chimpanzees” when ranting about the staff of conservative city councillor Mike Nickel, who called it “extra tone deaf.” After the firing, Jespersen noted the politically progressive positions he took in six years with Global News Radio outlet 630 CHED.
Finally, a golden-aged Polkaroo
Ontario Educational Communications Authority started broadcasting on September 27, 1970, and its political creator, Bill Davis, is around to reminisce about it. The 50th anniversary of what’s now known as TVO is being marked with a podcast and a story about how the first day of OECA required grasping that a dial could go to 19:
