Finally! The campaign begins. It feels like we've talking about since
- I don't know - the first episode, but the official campaign period
for the 42nd General Election is officially underway, and Open Sources Guelph
has you covered. We'll cover #elxn42 so far in the first half of the
show, the second half we'll tackle that other debate Thursday night, and
salute a fake news legend who became a paragon for actual news in his
own time. This Thursday, August 6, at 5 pm, Scotty...
Finally! The campaign begins. It feels like we've talking about since
- I don't know - the first episode, but the official campaign period
for the 42nd General Election is officially underway, and Open Sources Guelph
has you covered. We'll cover #elxn42 so far in the first half of the
show, the second half we'll tackle that other debate Thursday night, and
salute a fake news legend who became a paragon for actual news in his
own time.
This Thursday, August 6, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
1) They're Off!
As predicted (or leaked), Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited the
Governor-General Sunday and asked him to dissolve Parliament, and, as
consequence, officially kicked off a nearly three-month long campaign.
Despite the dog days of August, there's been a lot of action on the
campaign trail. Harper proposed a new tax credit (if the government can
afford it mid-mandate); Tom Mulcair was going to take the week off to
prepare for a debate (until the news cycle proceeded without him); and
Justin Trudeau, like the proverbial hare, stuck to his own race (but
finally swung back hard against his critics). With five days down, what
do we think of the race so far?
2) Debate Prep Part 1.
On Thursday night, Stephen Harper, Tom Mulcair, Justin Trudeau and
Elizabeth May will face-off in the first debate of the election season.
Hosted by Rogers/Macleans, and moderated by Macleans columnist
Paul Wells, this debate will not only be the first real test for party
leaders in #elxn42, but it will also test the "Aussie rules" debate
season prompted by Harper's (and then Mulcair's) refusal to participate
in the traditional debates held by the consortium of broadcasters
including CBC, CTV and Global. Will this first debate change the game in
more ways than one?
3) Debate Prep Part 2.
Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Mike Huckabee, Ben Carson, Ted
Cruz, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Chris Christie and John Kasich are the
winners, and by winners we mean the 10 Republicans who will get to
participate in the prime time Fox News debate Thursday night. Rick
Santorum, Bobby Jindal, Carly Fiorina, Lindsey Graham, George Pataki,
and Jim Gilmore will be debating in a separate debate Thursday
afternoon, a division that has been met with sharp controversy from both
the candidates and average GOP members. Despite that, the real question
is if this first debate will shake up the race, and whether Trump, when
challenged directly by his competitors, will be able to stand up to
scrutiny.
4) Jon Voyage! After 17 years, over 2,000 episodes, and a lot of burns at the expense of cable news, Jon Stewart signs off from his tenure on The Daily Show Thursday
night, leaving a gaping hole in the media landscape that may or may not
be filled. During his years on Comedy Central (and The Comedy Network
here in Canada), Stewart transcended from being the leading name in fake
news to being America's most trusted anchor. An ombudsmen for the
people, as they were being inundated with double-speak from TV talking
heads to politicians of the highest authority. Can anyone possible
replace Stewart in the hearts and minds of politicos?
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.
