It’s terrifying to see the chaos that has ensued due to social influencers spreading misinformation
There has been a great deal of controversy in recent weeks in fortunate countries where citizens have access to COVID-19 vaccines. Many feel it’s a violation of their freedom if they’re required to be immunized. Such thinking contradicts an important life principle made clear by Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. He said, “Freedom is…
If Liberals have a couple more weeks that resemble their first, re-election could be in serious jeopardy
During an election campaign, political parties are often faced with situations that could involve a few hiccups, some pitfalls, and even a major controversy or two. The Liberals, Conservatives, New Democrats and others aren’t immune to this. What differentiates them is how they handle these situations. From the initial response to the tactical use of…
Many of us have become very defensive about expressing our views
A 2018 episode of Channel 4 News from the United Kingdom has become rather infamous. Canadian psychologist and professor Jordan Peterson is interviewed by Cathy Newman about his book 12 Rules of Life, feminism and gender identity. Peterson has become very popular among those on the extreme right of the political spectrum. He has also…
Podcast titles have doubled since April 2020, when Apple announced the one-millionth entry in its podcast directory
The phrase “video killed the radio star” is often used as a metaphor for the domination of video over audio. It’s also a song by British new-wave band and one-hit wonder, The Buggles, and was the first selection played by MTV 40 years ago, on Aug. 1, 1981, sparking the music video revolution. It was…
There is a growing comfort in institutional journalism to follow rather than question
Warning lights should always flash before our eyes whenever journalists mix raw numbers and percolating percentages in the same paragraph. Numbers clearly state actuality. Percentages are the ups and downs of context. Regardless of the axiom attributed to Stalin that one death is a tragedy and a million is a statistic, if two people die,…
British Columbia Civil Liberties Association director Harsha Walia reacted to the burning of churches by tweeting ‘Burn it all down’
British Columbia Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) executive director Harsha Walia retweeted a Vice News article on June 30 about two Catholic churches being burned down in Canada. These terrible incidents were reportedly related to the discovery of unmarked graves of Indigenous children at three former residential schools. A retweet wouldn’t have been noticed by most…
A grad of U of A’s fashion business management program, Frances Heaton gained a deep understanding of the industry and a strong network
Frances Heaton has always loved dabbling in fashion design, even creating her own figure skating outfits as a kid. “It’s like art, but with human bodies, which has always intrigued me.” Fast-forward to spring of 2021, as she becomes one of the first graduates of the University of Alberta’s bachelor of science in fashion business…
They’re socially aware, fit within our digital ecosystem like cloud platforms, and take advantage of the latest technologies
Think of all the pictures you’ve snapped on your smartphone – chances are you haven’t printed one in eons but likely shared them to the dark depths of Instagram and Facebook. Try having those photos at your fingertips without hovering over your phone or signing up for social media. It’s not easy without a smart…
The more the critics bark, the more you’ll accomplish
Faith Wood knows how to resolve conflict. Her years in front-line law enforcement taught her how to effectively de-escalate any situation to a successful conclusion. Faith will use her knowledge of conflict management to guide you through the often stressful experiences you may encounter in your personal or professional life. Her Conflict Coach column appears…
Increasing tendency towards censorship is losing them some users
Facebook, Google and Twitter have enjoyed market dominance for more than a decade. And their increasing tendency towards censorship has lost them some users. Although censorship isn’t welcome, it has given social media a chance to reinvent itself out of near-monopolistic dominance. Ironically, the first loser in the info wars was Alex Jones. Accounts for…
There has been a great deal of controversy in recent weeks in fortunate countries where citizens have access to COVID-19 vaccines. Many feel it’s a violation of their freedom if they’re required to be immunized. Such thinking contradicts an important life principle made clear by Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. He said, “Freedom is…
