The Current

The Current for Jan. 8, 2020

Today on The Current: U.S. Capitol mayhem was a long time coming, and fuelled by social media, say far-right watchers; Canadian airlines are encouraging people to travel amid the pandemic; the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Israel, India and France; and one year on from the crash that killed 176 people, we speak with fathers of Flight PS752 victims.
Matt Galloway is the host of CBC Radio's The Current. (CBC)

Full Episode Transcript

Today on The Current:

Some far-right watchers say the mayhem in the U.S. Capitol this week was a long time coming, and social media fanned the flames. Matt Galloway talks to Jen Schradie, a digital sociologist at Sciences Po in Paris, and Seyward Darby, opinion writer at the New York Times and the editor in chief of The Atavist Magazine.

Then, amid the pandemic, Canadian airlines are using deals and social media campaigns to encourage people to travel, despite stern government advisories not to. Should Canadians be taking up those offers? We talk to Oksana Mashchak, a travel advisor who has journeyed abroad during the pandemic; Ubish Yaren, a tour guide in Mexico who is torn between bringing money in and keeping COVID-19 at bay; former Air Canada executive John Gradek about the pressure facing the industry; and Dr. Lauren Lapointe-Shaw, a general internist physician at the University Health Network in Toronto.

Plus, we check in on the vaccine rollout around the world, speaking to Dr. Nadav Davidovitch in Israel, Dr. Swapneil Parikh in India, and Dr. Martin Blachier in France.

And exactly one year ago, 176 people were killed when Iran shot down Flight PS752. In a look to her forthcoming documentary, The Current producer Samira Mohyeddin brings us the voices of fathers who lost loved ones on that flight — men who have bonded over their shared loss, and their fight for answers.