‘Under a microscope’: Cottagers call for wildfire management plans after fatal fires

WINNIPEG - Cottage owners and disaster prevention experts in Manitoba are urging governments to develop comprehensive wildfire management plans after a pair of devastating wildfires.

Close to 1,000 people were forced from their homes last week as a wildfire near the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet, spurred by dry, hot and windy conditions, burned nearby.

The quick-moving fire, which is currently being held, destroyed 28 homes and cottages and left two people dead.

"The whole emergency plan for every municipality should be under a microscope review right now," said Brad Wood, a Winnipeg firefighter whose cottage was destroyed.

RCMP, city police brace for ‘largest domestic security operation’ as G7 summit nears

OTTAWA - RCMP and local police say security planning is well underway for next month's G7 summit in Alberta.

Officials told The Canadian Press they're expecting protesters and are taking steps to deal with new technological threats, such as the weaponization of drones.

David Hall, Alberta RCMP superintendent and event security director for the G7 Integrated Safety and Security Group, told The Canadian Press the G7 is "the largest domestic security operation" a country can take on.

"It is a large undertaking in terms of the security footprint," he said, adding that the RCMP is responsible for protecting the heads of the delegations and the safety and security of the summit.

More than half of Canadians say they understand Alberta separatism: poll

OTTAWA - A new poll suggests more than half of Canadians say they understand why Alberta might want to split from Canada — even if almost two-thirds say they don't want that to happen.

The Leger survey, which polled 1,537 Canadians between May 16 and 18, suggests that 55 per cent of Canadians understand Albertans' desire for independence.

Because the poll was conducted online, it can't be assigned a margin of error.

Seventy per cent of Albertans said they understand why their province might want to become an independent country.

Crowns to get training to help prosecute hate crimes

Manitoba Crown attorneys will receive enhanced training on the prosecution of hate crimes as part of a national effort to crack down on racism, discrimination and violence against marginalized groups.

The federal and provincial governments are providing $95,000 for the program, which follows the recent arrests of two Winnipeg men charged with separate hate-related offences.

“The impact of a hate crime is significant in a number of different ways. If you are a member of the targeted group, it involves the deep, personal injury of being made to feel this is not a place for you,” said Crown prosecutor Ami Kotler, a member of the working group of provincial attorneys who handle hate crime cases.

“The occurrence of hate crimes… corrodes the bonds that hold communities together; it normalizes perspectives and approaches that can never be allowed.”

Increase in sextortion cases prompts call for legislation to combat predators

The spike in online sextortion cases in Winnipeg has alarmed police and augmented advocates’ calls for Canada to begin regulating social media platforms to help protect children from predators.

Increasingly sophisticated deepfake AI-generated political ads threaten to unravel Canada’s social order

Increasingly sophisticated deepfake AI-generated internet political ads threaten to unravel Canada’s social order, experts warn, pointing to the successful war on truth U.S. President Donald Trump is waging south of the border.

Despite ease of digital media, candidates still rely on old-fashioned campaign lawn signs

When the federal election was called last month, candidates across Canada quickly arranged to have lawn signs printed and placed in willing supporters’ yards. Does all of the the planning, care and consideration that go into such an old-fashioned aspect of the democratic process pay off in the end?

Truth, lies and videotape

As an old warhorse journalist whose biases have always skewed toward rabid dislike of anyone who tries to control the media, my biases are working overtime right now.

‘Special to the world’: Supporters hope to save beloved Drumheller dinosaur

DRUMHELLER - A plan to send Tyra the tyrannosaurus, the popular tourist attraction that towers over the skyline in Drumheller, Alta., into proverbial extinction has sparked demands that she be spared.

The town of 8,400 northeast of Calgary bills itself as the Dinosaur Capital of the World. Home to the famed Royal Tyrrell Museum, the community also has statues of dinosaurs that look like they've crawled out of "The Flintstones" cartoon greeting people on the streets.

There's an extinct reptile riding a motorcycle. A triceratops in a frilly dress sits on a bus bench. Another dinosaur wearing a fireman's hat and holding a hose is poised outside a fire station.

The biggest is Tyra, standing across from the intersection of Gorgosaurus Street and Tyrannosaurus Drive near a visitor information centre. A nearby ice cream stand offers fossils, T-shirts and dino toys.

Runway show focuses on treasures, not trash

Some of Manitoba’s best-known public figures — including radio host Ace Burpee, activist Mitch Bourbonniere and politician Nahanni Fontaine — walk the catwalk in a fashion show at 109 Higgins Ave. tonight.

Global extremism, as close as your keyboard

An arrest in Winnipeg has provided yet another reminder of just how much extremist attitudes have spread across the world.

Conservative MPs beat Liberals, NDP on online engagement, study finds

OTTAWA - A new study from McGill University says Conservative MPs far outpace their Liberal and NDP counterparts in online engagement, partly due to the their voices being amplified on X.

The report from McGill’s Media Ecosystem Observatory found in 2024, online posts from federal Conservative MPs garnered 61 per cent more engagement — likes, shares and comments — than those from Liberal and NDP MPs combined.

It found that engagement with Conservative politicians on X has increased 52 per cent since Elon Musk, a key ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, took over the platform previously known as Twitter in 2022.

The report looked at online posts from all members of Parliament on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok between January 2022 and November 2024.

Study shows importance of local news

A new study shows the importance of local news to community knowledge, connections and democracy in small and mid-sized Canadian communities.

Manitoba to consider support for news outlets

The Manitoba government says it is dedicated to protecting democracy, journalism and freedom of the press and plans to strike an all-party committee to determine how best to do that.

“If there’s a business landscape that makes it much more difficult for journalists to keep doing that important work, I think there is a need to have a conversation about some form of public support or at least a fair hearing of those issues,” Premier Wab Kinew said Friday.

The promise will be unveiled in Tuesday’s throne speech, which kicks off the new legislative session.

The committee would “look at the future of journalism in the province, including whether there’s public supports that might be needed, or to discuss whether a specific percentage of government and Crown corporation advertising should be dedicated to supporting local media,” Kinew said.

Manitoba bans cellphones for K-8 students

Manitoba has announced a ban on cellphones in elementary schools and strict rules to silence devices and keep them out of sight during Grade 9-12 lessons next month.

Kindergarten to Grade 8 students will be barred from using phones at any point in the school day, including during lunch and recess.

High schoolers will be asked to leave their phones in their locker, with a teacher or at the principal’s office when classes are in session.

Teenagers can access their devices on breaks and when a classroom teacher approves usage for educational purposes.

Canadian news engagement down significantly one year after Meta’s ban: study

MONTREAL - A new study is painting a grim portrait of how local Canadian news outlets are struggling to reach audiences one year after Meta began blocking Canadian news content on its Facebook and Instagram platforms.

The Media Ecosystem Observatory study published today finds that Canadians’ total engagement with news content on social media has been reduced by 43 per cent, despite efforts to increase social media engagement on other platforms.

The social media giant banned Canadian news content after Ottawa passed the Online News Act in June 2023, which compelled tech companies to enter into agreements with news publishers for the use of their content.

Local news outlets, many of which rely on Facebook, have been especially hit hard — 30 per cent of them are now inactive on social media, the study found.

Mountain of Skibicki news coverage has irreparably biased jurors, U.S. researcher tells trial judge

Extensive pre-trial media coverage in the case of accused serial killer Jeremy Skibicki has biased the jury pool beyond the court’s ability to correct the damage, a judge was told Tuesday.

“We know that when (jurors) have been exposed to a certain amount of pre-trial publicity, even for a well-intentioned juror it is going to be very, very difficult for them to (remain unbiased),” testified Florida University psychology professor Dr. Christine Ruva, who has extensively researched the area of juror bias and its impact on jury decision-making. “It’s unconscious and out of their control.”

Skibicki, 37, has pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in the May 2022 slayings of three Indigenous women — Morgan Harris, Rebecca Contois and Marcedes Myran — as well as a fourth as-of-yet unidentified woman killed in March 2022, who Indigenous leaders have given the name Mashkode Bizhiki’ikwe, or Buffalo Woman.

A trial jury was selected last week and is set to begin hearing evidence May 8.

Satirical musical tackles health-care woes in bite-sized chunks

They say laughter is the best medicine. Throw a little song-and-dance into the mix and you get Larry Saves the Canadian Healthcare System — an 11-part web microseries that humorously addresses Canada’s ailing medical system through music and satire.

Sara Kreindler, a professor of community health sciences at the University of Manitoba, spearheads the show, drawing from her extensive research.

“It’s about starting a conversation,” says writer-composer Kreindler, who has a PhD in social psychology. “Whether you’re a health-care provider or just someone curious about the system, I want viewers to come away feeling empowered to hold our elected leaders accountable for addressing the underlying issues.”

Through the character of Larry, played by Winnipeg actor Toby Hughes, viewers embark on a journey navigating the complexities of health-care policy.

Classrooms don’t have to be smartphone-free zones, tech-fluent educators tell province

A group of tech-savvy teachers is calling on the province to create guidelines on cellphone use in schools and offering to help get it done.

The Manitoba Association of Education Technology Leaders has taken a firm stance against introducing a sweeping ban of personal wireless devices in kindergarten-to-Grade 12 buildings.

Manitoba Education has no policy in place. School divisions create their own appropriate use policies, while most buildings allow teachers to make rules for their own classrooms.

Tuxedo’s Laidlaw School, Collège Béliveau in Windsor Park and West Kildonan Collegiate are among Winnipeg facilities that have imposed stricter measures this year.

Controversy? Conspiracy in cryptic Conservative code? Just another day for Manitoba Tories

Stop the presses. Former federal Conservative MP Candice Bergen thinks youth today are “entitled” and they have been “brainwashed” by post-secondary and public education.

If you’re wondering right now what exactly Bergen was trying to communicate, and why, you are not alone.

The opposition NDP used question period to drop a 78-second clip of an address Bergen — who is the co-chair of the Progressive Conservative 2023 election campaign — delivered to a group of young Tories at an event held in a meeting room at the Manitoba Legislative Building. The recording included several pretty bizarre comments. |

Behold the transformation of Poilievre

It appears newly minted Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is willing to add a little water to his wine. After months of criss-crossing the country peddling conspiracy theories and fuelling anti-Liberal rage with juvenile slogans and deranged claims about Canadians losing control of their lives, Poilievre is showing signs of moderation.

Neo-Nazi group members plotted to kill Free Press reporter

Disturbing details of a plan to kill a Free Press reporter who had infiltrated a white nationalist hate group were revealed for the first time Wednesday.