The Year in Review
Alberta Story of the Year
Shane: Episode 160 - Isolating the Problem - Saudis Plan Big Oil Output Hike, Beginning All-Out Price War
Patrick: Episode 168 – The Circuitous 12,000 - Kenney fires back at May and Blanchet, calls comments about oil industry ‘un-Canadian’
BC Story of the Year
Shane: Episode 157 - The Throttled Bottleneck - Canada’s latest blockade? It’s at the end of B.C. Premier John Horgan’s driveway
Patrick: Episode 193 – Elective Elections - The Autopsy of Dr. Andrew Wilkinson’s Leadership of the BC Liberals
Worst Covered Story by the MSM
Shane: Episode 162 - Taxing the Essentials - COVID-19 bill would give Liberals power to raise taxes without parliamentary approval until end of 2021
Patrick: Episode 190 – The Social Democrat Coalition - Liberals, NDP vote to shut down Conservatives’ renewed push to examine WE affair
Most Important Story
Shane: Episode 170 – Going It Alone - Canada waited too long to close borders: Tam
Patrick: Episode 162 – Taxing the Essentials - Criticism of the Chinese government’s handling of coronavirus is not racism
Firing Line Story of the Year:
Shane: Episode 165 - Going Too Far - Federal government open to new law to fight pandemic misinformation tied into Episode 194 - Propaganda Coverups - Canadian military wants to establish new organization to use propaganda, other techniques to influence Canadians
Patrick: Episode 177 – The Challenge of Our Lifetime - Maybe we should have been looking at WE Charity earlier
Local Story of the Year:
Shane: Episode 186 – The Politics of Division - Auditor recommends reduction in City of Edmonton supervisors following 21 per cent increase in three years
Patrick: Episode 152 – Changing Emissions and Regimes - City of Victoria cheats on first emissions count
Story We Didn’t Get to Cover
Shane: Episode 167 - The End of the Rocket Launcher - Canadians have been gaslit on China
Patrick: Episode 164 – Helping the Enemy - Covid response offers chance to shift direction of Canadian economy: experts
Fake News Story of the Year
Shane: Episode 152 - Changing Emissions and Regimes - Harper misquote shows why ‘regime change’ needed in some Canadian newsrooms
Patrick: Episode 154 – Stigma and Defamation - Canada’s top doctor calls out ‘racism and stigmatizing comments’ over coronavirus
Funniest Story
Shane: Episode 167 - The End of the Rocket Launcher - Trudeau announces ban on 1,500 types of ‘assault-style’ firearms — effective immediately
Patrick: Episode 197 – On the Chopping Block - A $90,000 Canadian arts subsidy for Grimes, who lives in California with Elon Musk
Worst Government Expense of the Year
Shane: Episode 168 - The Circuitous 12,000 - Taxpayers spend $2.5-million for reconstruction of guest cottage at PM’s Harrington Lake retreat
Patrick: Episode 177 – The Challenge of Our Lifetime - The challenge of our lifetime’: Federal deficit to hit $343 billion this year
Newsmaker of the Year
Shane: China’s Coronavirus Pandemic
Patrick: China’s Coronavirus Pandemic
Word of the Year
Shane: Episode 167 - The End of the Rocket Launcher - Negligence
Patrick: Episode 169 – The Folly of Bryan Adams - Lockdown
Favourite Western Context Episode
Shane: Episode 167 - The End of the Rocket Launcher
Patrick: Episode 191 – The BC Murder Mystery
How to Find Us
Westerncontext.ca
Show Data
Episode Title: 2020 In Context
Teaser: We look at 2020’s news stories including pipeline blockades, government overspending, and the end of the rocket launcher in Canada. We also look at the October BC election, our words of the year, as well as the elephant in the room: China’s coronavirus pandemic.
Recorded Date: December 21, 2020
Release Date: December 27, 2020
Duration: 1:23:44
Edit Notes: None
Podcast Summary Notes
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