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Storylines

Storylines

Written by: CBC
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About this listen

A weekly documentary show for people who love narrative podcasts. These are stories you can’t stop thinking about. That you’ll tell your friends about. And that will help you understand what’s going on in Canada, and why. Every week a journalist follows one story, meets the people at its centre, and makes it make sense. Sometimes it’s about people living out the headlines in real life. Sometimes it’s about someone you’ve never heard of, living through something you had no idea was happening. Either way, you’ll go somewhere, meet someone, get the context, and learn something new. (Plus it sounds really good. Mixed like a movie.) One story, well told, every week, from the award-winning team at the CBC Audio Doc Unit.

Copyright © CBC 2026
Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Life in overcrowded jails
    Jan 16 2026

    Inmates recall seeing feces on the walls and using tampons for earplugs to drown out the constant screaming of other prisoners.


    Today in Ontario, thousands more people are behind bars than just a few years ago. But the number of cells remains the same.


    Reports of violence, lockdowns and inadequate healthcare are on the rise. Most inmates haven’t been tried yet and this is all happening while federal and provincial politicians debate new bail reform bills — legislation that could lead to even more accused people being incarcerated.


    Julie Ireton brings us this documentary called “Catch 22”

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    24 mins
  • Confronting the pain - and stigma - of stillbirth
    Jan 9 2026

    Laura and Nick Bordignon fell in love with their daughter before she was born. They named her Makayla. They decorated her nursery. Nick snuggled up to Laura's stomach and read to her at night.


    But seven months into the pregnancy Laura stopped feeling Makayla's movements, and doctors confirmed the worst. Makayla is one of about 3-thousand stillborn babies delivered every year in Canada. And despite the devastation that comes with that experience – stillbirth is seldom talked about. For many it’s still taboo. This is one family's story of confronting that taboo and advocating for better medical care for those who experience it.

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    26 mins
  • War and Peace
    Jan 3 2026

    When Arthur Arnold resigned from the Moscow Symphony Orchestra in protest of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, he walked away from one of the world's most prestigious symphony stages. This decision would bring him a world away, to Powell River, British Columbia, a town tucked between the ocean and the mountains with a population of 13,000.


    This town is at a crossroads. Two years ago, its economic heart, a massive pulp and paper mill, shut down. The plant closure left residents wondering what would come next.

    But some are hoping that the city’s past could help define its future. There’s a deep history of arts and culture that goes back to the very beginnings of Powell River. And now with people like Arthur Arnold bringing in world class musicians and building an arts hub in town - there’s hope that music could help fill the void left by the loss of the pulp and paper industry.

    Produced by Liz Hoath and Joan Webber.


    Storylines is part of the CBC Audio Doc Unit

    (This episode first aired in September, 2025)

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    28 mins
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