Justin Crann
@jcrann.bsky.social
Editor with Canada's National Observer. Opinions are my own. Also an avid reader, companion to a canine and fan of films and felines. Somehow, inexplicably, still a journalist.
Reposted by Justin Crann
REPORTERS/RESEARCHERS/POLICY NERDS:
@nationalobserver.com has released a tool that automatically transcribes council meetings in 550 Canadian municipalities.
THIS Is how you use AI in the newsroom!
Check it out: civicsearchlight.nationalobserver.com
@nationalobserver.com has released a tool that automatically transcribes council meetings in 550 Canadian municipalities.
THIS Is how you use AI in the newsroom!
Check it out: civicsearchlight.nationalobserver.com
CivicSearchlight - by Canada's National Observer
Search transcripts of municipal meetings across Canada. Find discussions about topics that matter to your community with Canada's National Observer's search tool.
civicsearchlight.nationalobserver.com
October 9, 2025 at 1:14 PM
REPORTERS/RESEARCHERS/POLICY NERDS:
@nationalobserver.com has released a tool that automatically transcribes council meetings in 550 Canadian municipalities.
THIS Is how you use AI in the newsroom!
Check it out: civicsearchlight.nationalobserver.com
@nationalobserver.com has released a tool that automatically transcribes council meetings in 550 Canadian municipalities.
THIS Is how you use AI in the newsroom!
Check it out: civicsearchlight.nationalobserver.com
Reposted by Justin Crann
Enbridge execs have been boasting to shareholders they plan to return $40-$45 billion to them over the next five years supported by gas expansions across the continent. Ontario in particular is a cash cow where they have an opportunity to "over earn."
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/09/a...
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/09/a...
Enbridge investors to get billions as gas giant expands into small-town Ontario
Enbridge executives know Ontario ratepayers are a cash cow for its gas business, and in recent calls with investors they said they plan to milk it for all its worth.
www.nationalobserver.com
October 9, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Enbridge execs have been boasting to shareholders they plan to return $40-$45 billion to them over the next five years supported by gas expansions across the continent. Ontario in particular is a cash cow where they have an opportunity to "over earn."
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/09/a...
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/09/a...
Reposted by Justin Crann
As the campaign continues to pop up in communities across the country, Canada’s National Observer has developed an unprecedented new tool that allows us to track the spread of campaigns like this: Civic Searchlight.
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/08/i...
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/08/i...
How Canada's National Observer tracked a climate misinfo group going 'under the radar'
As KICLEI's campaign moves into the shadows, Canada’s National Observer has developed an unprecedented new tool: Civic Searchlight. To build it, we assembled a database of council meetings in more tha...
www.nationalobserver.com
October 8, 2025 at 5:17 PM
As the campaign continues to pop up in communities across the country, Canada’s National Observer has developed an unprecedented new tool that allows us to track the spread of campaigns like this: Civic Searchlight.
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/08/i...
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/10/08/i...
This new tool is the sort of thing I would have loved to get my hands on when I was a community news reporter more than a decade ago. Kudos to @rorywh.bsky.social and the CNO team for their hard work on this asset, and to the publication for releasing it freely to journalists and researchers.
Canada’s National Observer unveils a powerful tool for fighting disinformation
Civic Searchlight brings together municipal meeting transcripts from across Canada into a searchable database for the first time. It has already been used to fight disinformation, report on impact, di...
www.nationalobserver.com
October 8, 2025 at 9:29 PM
This new tool is the sort of thing I would have loved to get my hands on when I was a community news reporter more than a decade ago. Kudos to @rorywh.bsky.social and the CNO team for their hard work on this asset, and to the publication for releasing it freely to journalists and researchers.
Reposted by Justin Crann
Mark Carney's 'Tragedy of the Horizons' speech was a landmark moment for the financial sector to recognize climate change was a severe threat, but a decade later he's flouting his own prophetic warning as climate breakdown rapidly approaches.
A decade later, Carney's climate wake-up call to financiers still falls on deaf ears
Mark Carney's 'Tragedy of the Horizons' speech was a landmark moment for the financial sector to recognize climate breakdown was a severe threat, but a decade later he's flouting his own prophetic war...
www.nationalobserver.com
September 29, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Mark Carney's 'Tragedy of the Horizons' speech was a landmark moment for the financial sector to recognize climate change was a severe threat, but a decade later he's flouting his own prophetic warning as climate breakdown rapidly approaches.
That Greaves quotation is money. Parliament needs more Parliamentarians willing to break rank over issues they and their electorate care about.
Climate advocates within the Liberal party are finding common cause and voice, on the eve of parliament's resumption.
“I was not elected to parliament to either bite my tongue or not use my brain,” Will Greaves, freshman MP for Victoria, told me.
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/11/a...
“I was not elected to parliament to either bite my tongue or not use my brain,” Will Greaves, freshman MP for Victoria, told me.
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/11/a...
A Liberal environment caucus is born
About 50 Liberal MPs have formed a sub-caucus on environment to serve as a forum for the party’s environmental advocates to compare notes and speak with a collective voice as they push for progressive...
www.nationalobserver.com
September 13, 2025 at 3:13 AM
That Greaves quotation is money. Parliament needs more Parliamentarians willing to break rank over issues they and their electorate care about.
New from me for CNO: Trump's anti-science strategy is so familiar, it could have been cribbed from the playbook of a former prime minister.
#cdnpoli
#cdnpoli
Trump’s war on science mirrors Harper’s chilling Canadian legacy
US researchers grappling with the challenges presented by the president can look to their counterparts north of the border for strategies.
www.nationalobserver.com
September 9, 2025 at 3:53 PM
New from me for CNO: Trump's anti-science strategy is so familiar, it could have been cribbed from the playbook of a former prime minister.
#cdnpoli
#cdnpoli
Such a great story. Sea otters have made an almost unprecedented comeback on the west coast, but their resurgence is threatening Indigenous ways of life. CNO's Sonal Gupta handled this piece adroitly, respecting the Indigenous point-of-view while also spotlighting the hard science of conservation.
Sea otters have made an astonishing comeback from the brink of extinction, reaching populations so dense that they're now ploughing through shellfish.
All of which is prompting some First Nations to ask: is it time to hunt sea otters again? www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/02/n...
All of which is prompting some First Nations to ask: is it time to hunt sea otters again? www.nationalobserver.com/2025/09/02/n...
September 3, 2025 at 12:58 AM
Such a great story. Sea otters have made an almost unprecedented comeback on the west coast, but their resurgence is threatening Indigenous ways of life. CNO's Sonal Gupta handled this piece adroitly, respecting the Indigenous point-of-view while also spotlighting the hard science of conservation.
A rare misfire from director Ari Aster and star Joaquin Pheonix, Eddington aims for satire but lands far short of the mark. Catch my review on Letterbox'd — but be warned, spoilers abound!
A ★½ review of Eddington (2025)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
August 27, 2025 at 6:20 PM
A rare misfire from director Ari Aster and star Joaquin Pheonix, Eddington aims for satire but lands far short of the mark. Catch my review on Letterbox'd — but be warned, spoilers abound!
Got out for a 6 hour hike with the pup today. A wonderful time.
August 24, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Got out for a 6 hour hike with the pup today. A wonderful time.
Some genuinely excellent investigative work by CNO's @rorywh.bsky.social — don't miss it!
Meta banned the Epoch Times from advertising. Then it accepted $300k in new ads targeting Canadians
In the past 12 months, The Epoch Times has spent over $300,000 on Facebook and Instagram ads promoting political surveys to collect the emails of Canadians using a series of anonymous pages.
www.nationalobserver.com
August 21, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Some genuinely excellent investigative work by CNO's @rorywh.bsky.social — don't miss it!
Solid reporting here for CNO from Marc Fawcett-Atkinson and Joan Baxter. Canada has, for too long, engaged in a lot of exploitative resource extraction (and not just in the oil and gas sector) that has unfortunately primed our land for the climate crisis.
Nova Scotia's ban on entering the forest due to wildfire fears comes as the province deals with a moderate-to-severe drought, no rain in the forecast and a forest more susceptible to burn because of logging, say experts.
How industrial forestry and climate change created the NS wildfire problem
Nova Scotia's ban on entering the forest due to wildfire fears comes as the province deals with a moderate-to-severe drought, no rain in the forecast and a forest more susceptible to burn because of l...
www.nationalobserver.com
August 9, 2025 at 5:58 AM
Solid reporting here for CNO from Marc Fawcett-Atkinson and Joan Baxter. Canada has, for too long, engaged in a lot of exploitative resource extraction (and not just in the oil and gas sector) that has unfortunately primed our land for the climate crisis.
Stephen King, from whose work the film is adapted, describes The Life of Chuck as a "joy machine" — but that sells short the full emotional impact of one of the best films of the year so far.
My spoiler-free Letterboxd review: boxd.it/a2k8Zf
My spoiler-free Letterboxd review: boxd.it/a2k8Zf
A ★★★★★ review of The Life of Chuck (2024)
I have long said that my favourite films are the ones that can elicit great emotional responses, and The Life of Chuck did exactly that — three times over — when I caught it in the cinema this afterno...
boxd.it
June 17, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Stephen King, from whose work the film is adapted, describes The Life of Chuck as a "joy machine" — but that sells short the full emotional impact of one of the best films of the year so far.
My spoiler-free Letterboxd review: boxd.it/a2k8Zf
My spoiler-free Letterboxd review: boxd.it/a2k8Zf
Some excellent reporting here from CNO's very talented @natashabulowski.bsky.social and @rochellebaker1.bsky.social.
The question of how to rebuild has become existential: the NDP is down to seven MPs and lost official party status for the first time since 1993. @natashabulowski.bsky.social + @rochellebaker1.bsky.social on the future of the NDP for @nationalobserver.com
NDP grassroots buck against 'top-down' leadership race
With the NDP reduced to seven seats, Former MP Charlie Angus and party activists want to scrap data-driven or social media strategies and return to old-school organizing.
www.nationalobserver.com
June 12, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Some excellent reporting here from CNO's very talented @natashabulowski.bsky.social and @rochellebaker1.bsky.social.
The original Spaceballs is one of my favourite spoof comedies ever made. I'm ready.
Spaceballs 2 | Announcement
YouTube video by Amazon MGM Studios
youtu.be
June 12, 2025 at 6:45 PM
The original Spaceballs is one of my favourite spoof comedies ever made. I'm ready.
An opening message from Tom Cruise, the actor, precedes The Final Reckoning. Somehow, it raises the stakes far better than the previous entry in this franchise — and even though the first hour is heavy with exposition and flashbacks, the eighth Mission: Impossible still makes for great viewing.
A ★★★★ review of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (2025)
At my local cinema, after the "Feature Presentation" graphic screened, a shot of Tom Cruise — out of character, as himself — appeared. The actor thanked his audience for turning out at a theatre to se...
letterboxd.com
May 28, 2025 at 12:47 AM
An opening message from Tom Cruise, the actor, precedes The Final Reckoning. Somehow, it raises the stakes far better than the previous entry in this franchise — and even though the first hour is heavy with exposition and flashbacks, the eighth Mission: Impossible still makes for great viewing.
This one isn't going to top any lists for most memorable villain or even greatest Marvel movie, but Thunderbolts is a respectable return to form(ula) for the studio, bolstered by some memorable setpieces and excellent performances from its key players.
A ★★★★ review of Thunderbolts* (2025)
I have long said that I am a big fan of an old story told well, and at its heart, that is all that Thunderbolts really is: a return to form(ula) for Marvel after several consecutive swing-and-miss att...
boxd.it
May 6, 2025 at 8:02 PM
This one isn't going to top any lists for most memorable villain or even greatest Marvel movie, but Thunderbolts is a respectable return to form(ula) for the studio, bolstered by some memorable setpieces and excellent performances from its key players.
I'll be offering the most modest of back-end support to this stellar effort from two brilliant independent media organizations tonight. Join us!
TONIGHT: Join us + @ricochetmedia.bsky.social at 7:30 PM ET for election coverage that connects campaign narratives to voting realities. Live reports from across Canada. Expert analysis. Real context.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to get notified when we go live! www.youtube.com/c/NationalOb...
Subscribe to our YouTube channel to get notified when we go live! www.youtube.com/c/NationalOb...
April 28, 2025 at 4:58 PM
I'll be offering the most modest of back-end support to this stellar effort from two brilliant independent media organizations tonight. Join us!
Ryan Coogler is at his stylistic best and newcomer Miles Caton stands out amid a remarkable cast in Sinners — perhaps the best movie I've seen in years.
Full review on Letterbox'd: boxd.it/9uCnmH
Full review on Letterbox'd: boxd.it/9uCnmH
A ★★★★★ review of Sinners (2025)
There are movies that are great and there are movies that I love. Sinners is one of the films that lands squarely on both lists — it's a movie I thoroughly enjoyed, and probably the best one I've seen...
boxd.it
April 22, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Ryan Coogler is at his stylistic best and newcomer Miles Caton stands out amid a remarkable cast in Sinners — perhaps the best movie I've seen in years.
Full review on Letterbox'd: boxd.it/9uCnmH
Full review on Letterbox'd: boxd.it/9uCnmH
Jack Quaid is solid as the lead in Novocaine, and the film's fine enough. It's just 20 or 30 minutes too long.
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Full review on Letterbox'd:
A ★★½ review of Novocaine (2025)
There's nothing horribly wrong with this action film. In fact, there are a handful of great sequences and exciting moments, and Jack Quaid is solid in his leading role. Amber Midthunder and Jacob Bata...
letterboxd.com
April 10, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Jack Quaid is solid as the lead in Novocaine, and the film's fine enough. It's just 20 or 30 minutes too long.
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Sleek, stylish and sexy, Black Bag doesn't seek to reinvent the spy thriller, but it does nail its assignment. A stellar ensemble cast and Soderberg's best work in at least a decade made it the most fun I've had in the cinema year-to-date.
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Full review on Letterbox'd:
A ★★★★½ review of Black Bag (2025)
Sleek, stylish and undeniably sexy, Black Bag doesn't reinvent the spy thriller genre in any way, but it does deliver one of the best showings that genre has seen in years and — arguably — is Steven S...
letterboxd.com
April 8, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Sleek, stylish and sexy, Black Bag doesn't seek to reinvent the spy thriller, but it does nail its assignment. A stellar ensemble cast and Soderberg's best work in at least a decade made it the most fun I've had in the cinema year-to-date.
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Full review on Letterbox'd:
Amanda Seyfried acts her ass off in Seven Veils, and is easily the brightest spot of this slightly muddled meditation on childhood trauma and abuse.
The full review —
The full review —
A ★★★ review of Seven Veils (2023)
If you're a fan of Amanda Seyfried, this meditation on childhood and family trauma, as well as artistic obsession, is worth the price of admission. She acts her ass off in this and is easily the highl...
boxd.it
March 19, 2025 at 7:33 AM
Amanda Seyfried acts her ass off in Seven Veils, and is easily the brightest spot of this slightly muddled meditation on childhood trauma and abuse.
The full review —
The full review —
You'll have a pretty good idea of what you're in for after Mickey 17's first 15 minutes, for better or worse.
My full review of this sci-fi satire —
My full review of this sci-fi satire —
A ★★★ review of Mickey 17 (2025)
There is a lot to like about this science-fiction satire, penned by Bong Joon-Ho (fresh off the success of Parasite) and adapted from Edward Ashton's Mickey7. The film stars Robert Pattinson in a dual...
boxd.it
March 12, 2025 at 12:16 AM
You'll have a pretty good idea of what you're in for after Mickey 17's first 15 minutes, for better or worse.
My full review of this sci-fi satire —
My full review of this sci-fi satire —
At the time of Canadian Bacon's release, the notion of any sort of conflict between the U.S. and Canada seemed so farfetched that its central premise could only be played as a punchline. Now look where we're at.
Full review on Letterboxd -
Full review on Letterboxd -
A ★★½ review of Canadian Bacon (1995)
Three decades ago, Michael Moore wrote, produced and directed this satirical film. A lot has changed in 30 years, not least the Toronto skyline. But the truly remarkable thing about watching this movi...
boxd.it
March 3, 2025 at 2:58 AM
At the time of Canadian Bacon's release, the notion of any sort of conflict between the U.S. and Canada seemed so farfetched that its central premise could only be played as a punchline. Now look where we're at.
Full review on Letterboxd -
Full review on Letterboxd -
Talk To Me is one of my favourite horror films of the past five years, so to say I'm excited is an understatement.
BRING HER BACK | Official Teaser Trailer (2025)
YouTube video by JoBlo Movie Network
www.youtube.com
February 19, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Talk To Me is one of my favourite horror films of the past five years, so to say I'm excited is an understatement.