From the exam-marking trenches to the ivory tower executive suites, Premier Danielle Smith has injected nervousness throughout Alberta’s post-secondary sector.
It initially seemed her Bill 18, the Provincial Priorities Act, was intended to make her government play checkstop or gatekeeper whenever the federal government and mayors made deals without provincial involvement.
Then it became apparent that Smith’s government would apply the same scrutiny to the higher-learning sector, and the premier’s remarks made it clear she had federal research grants and notions of ideological “balance” in her targets.
“When the government of Alberta states that it wants to align research funding with provincial priorities, it risks colouring research coming from Alberta post-secondary institutions as propaganda,” wrote Gordon Swaters, a University of Alberta mathematics professor and academic staff association president.
“Students are caught in the UCP’s forever war with Ottawa,” stated James Steele, head of the University of Calgary Graduate Students’ Association.
Bill Flanagan chimed in on his University of Alberta president’s blog Wednesday: “I will continue to do all I can to advocate for a regulatory framework that does not impede our ability to secure federal funding and operates in a manner consistent with the university’s core commitment to academic freedom.”
An academic world, wondering jointly: what’s Smith going to do?
It doesn’t appear even she knows, not yet revealing any clear direction.
Campus improv night
Several signs, in fact, suggest that the UCP government did not initially conceive of the post-secondary realm to be a major player in this Bill 18 drama — at least, not until journalists began asking last week how those provincially controlled entities could get tangled up in the bill’s oversight.
Consider the following:
Advanced Education Minister Rajan Sawhney didn’t participate in the April 10 news conference; only Smith and Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver did.
The premier didn’t mention post-secondary once in announcing the program; it only came up when a reporter asked about it, and Smith mentioned a curiosity about social-science research.
When Sawhney was approached to discuss this the next day,her comments suggested no crackdownor limits on federal grants to researchers, seemingly at odds with what the premier would later say.
When Smith began speaking in more detail in interviews on April 12, she extensively referred to a Nova Scotia business professor’s criticisms of the system, which appeared in an Edmonton Journal column that very day.
If this policy approach involved more forethought, one imagines there would be a body of evidence or anecdotes beyond that morning’s newspaper. Smith did cite one political scientist’s survey that indicated far more left-identifying Canadian professors than right-wing ones — which was mentioned in that same Journal column.
This week, she tabled that article in the legislature.
A few days later, in her 38-minute debate speech on the bill she extensively quoted from that piece, but also brought in a second anecdotal point — another article.
This one came from the National Post in 2021, a McGill University chemistry professor’s protests that he was denied a science research grant because the “woke” granting agency expected him to factor diversity and equity into his assistant hiring. Unmentioned by Smith — that agency’s peer review committee gave the same scientist, Patanjali Kambhampati, a $144,565 grant last year.
For those keeping score at home, that’s two articles about out-of-province profs forming almost the entire public justification for Smith’s coming policy on universities.
Now, journalists love to imagine they have massive influence in high offices, and probably inflate their self-importance too often (or maybe this is just me). But it’s likely that most journalists, and more importantly most citizens, don’t expect or intend for articles or columns to form not just the backbone but the entire skeleton of political decision-making.
University of Alberta president Bill Flanagan pledged this week to push for a provincial approach ‘that does not impede our ability to secure federal funding and operates in a manner consistent with the university’s core commitment to academic freedom.’ (Peter Evans/CBC News)
But even if Smith cobbled together her justification from news clippings after she tabled Bill 18, there is at least a sense of where her grievances lie. And if it’s not clear what route she’ll take with this legislation, she’s signalled what the desired destination is.
She’s made it clear she believes more conservative-tilted research would bring more like-minded academics and then students. “If we did truly have balance in universities, then we would see that we would have just as many conservative commentators as we do liberal commentators,” she told the CBC’s Power and Politics.
Smith offered this week two potential paths she could pursue. One is using this provincial oversight bill to track all federal research grants to determine what share goes where — even though the granting agencies already publish everything online, as many academics have recently noted to the UCP.
“The other way is that we could also establish our own research programs to make sure that we’re providing that kind of balance,” Smith added.
The UCP government, in this notion, would create a new body to support ideologically focused research that Smith doesn’t feel gets its fair shake from the non-partisan, peer-review committees that dole out agency grants, at arm’s length from the Liberal government or the governments of various stripes that have overseen these agencies for more than a century.
Believe this to be far-fetched and heavy-handed, for a partisan government to set up their own shop to conduct public-interest research?
It’s already happened in the UCP government era — twice.
Former premier Jason Kenney gave his “energy war room” twin mandates to advocate for and research oil and gas, to do work he felt was lacking elsewhere; Smith has maintained this program.
In early April, Smith announced a new Crown corporation for research and expertise on addiction recovery — to bolster, hone and spread elsewhere the type of drug-crisis response her government has already invested heavily in.
The constitution squarely places post-secondary education into provincial jurisdiction, but the federal level has long led the way on supporting research projects.
The province topping up federal research funding could be a good thing, said Richard Sigurdson, past arts dean at the University of Calgary. Emphasis on could.
Calgary’s largest post-secondary school receives more than $200 million a year in grants from the federal government and outside jurisdictions. Bill 18 requires provincial officials to approve all such deals, and could let them veto ones they don’t see matching Alberta priorities. (CBC)
“It would only be great if the provincial government was to provide funds at an arm’s length, non-partisan fashion,” he wrote in an email while on academic administrative leave in Berlin. “There cannot be any interference with institutional autonomy or academic freedom.”
If the government takes this approach and establishes its own research body in the style of the Fraser Institute — a conservative think-tank where Smith herself used to work — expect heaps of controversy. But it could be less messy than actually using Bill 18’s gatekeeper function to interfere with federal agency grants, something that the Quebec government doesn’t do, despite long having the provincial go-between powers that Alberta now intends to mimic.
‘Firing a shot’
Alex Usher, a longtime analyst with the consultancy Higher Education Strategy Associates, doesn’t expect the Smith government to intervene with agency research grants.
But he still expects a fight that universities won’t like.
“While the UCP government may not be targeting tri-council grants specifically, they are firing a shot at the province’s universities, warning them that they will be expected to show ‘ideological balance,'” Usher wrote on his website.
“God knows what this will mean in practice, but my take would be that it will be low-level skirmishing and attempts at micro-management for the rest of the UCP’s term of office, combined with attempts to [wage] culture war [over] odd-sounding research projects in what the right likes to call ‘grievance studies.'”
The premier’s recent rhetoric doesn’t make it clear she knows what it will mean in practice, either. The Bill 18 debate seems to have become the jumping-off point, perhaps due to a combination of fluke and expansively written legislation.
Now the premier has been thinking about it, and finding articles to read. So an entire sector will be left to wait, wonder and worry.
48:33Alberta seeks power to veto deals between feds and municipalities
April 11, 2024 – Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has introduced legislation that would compel municipalities, schools or agencies looking to make deals with the federal government to first secure provincial approval. Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek tells us what this means for her city. Plus, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is visiting Canada on his first trip outside of Europe. He tells Power & Politics he doesn’t want the security of France and Europe to depend on the outcome of U.S. elections.
Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Tyson Philpot has announced he will be out for the rest of the CFL season.
The Delta, B.C., native posted the news on his Instagram page Thursday.
“To Be Continued. Shoutout my team, the fans of the CFL and the whole city of Montreal! I can’t wait to be back healthy and write this next chapter in 2025,” the statement read.
Philpot, 24, injured his foot in a 33-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Aug. 10 and was placed on the six-game injured list the next week.
The six-foot-one, 195-pound receiver had 58 receptions, 779 yards and five touchdowns in nine games for the league-leading Alouettes in his third season.
Philpot scored the game-winning touchdown in Montreal’s Grey Cup win last season to punctuate a six-reception, 63-yard performance.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sustained a concussion for the third time in his NFL career, leaving his team’s game Thursday night against Buffalo after running into defensive back Damar Hamlin and hitting the back of his head against the turf.
Tagovailoa remained down for about two minutes before getting to his feet and walking to the sideline after the play in the third quarter. He made his way to the tunnel not long afterward, looking into the stands before smiling and departing toward the locker room.
The Dolphins needed almost no time before announcing it was a concussion. The team said he had two during the 2022 season, and Tagovailoa was diagnosed with another concussion when he was a college player at Alabama.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Tagovailoa would get “proper procedural evaluation” and “appropriate care” on Friday.
“The furthest thing from my mind is, ‘What is the timeline?’ We just need to evaluate and just worry about my teammate, like the rest of the guys are,” McDaniel said. “We’ll get more information tomorrow and take it day by day from here.”
Some players saw Tagovailoa in the locker room after the game and said they were encouraged. Tagovailoa spoke with some players and then went home after the game, McDaniel said.
“I have a lot of love for Tua, built a great relationship with him,” said quarterback Skylar Thompson, who replaced Tagovailoa after the injury. “You care about the person more than the player and everybody in the organization would say the same thing. Just really praying for Tua and hopefully everything will come out all right.”
Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212 million extension before this season — a deal that makes him one of the highest-paid players in the NFL — and was the NFL’s leading passer in Week 1 this season. Tagovailoa left with the Dolphins trailing 31-10, and that was the final score.
“If you know Tua outside of football, you can’t help but feel for him,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said on Amazon following the game. “He’s a great football player but he’s an even greater human being. He’s one of the best humans on the planet. I’ve got a lot of love for him and I’m just praying for him and his family, hoping everything’s OK. But it’s tough, man. This game of football that we play, it’s got its highs and it’s got its lows — and this is one of the lows.”
Tagovailoa’s college years and first three NFL seasons were marred by injury, though he positioned himself for a big pay bump with an injury-free and productive 2023 as he led the Dolphins into the playoffs. He threw for 29 touchdowns and a league-best 4,624 yards last year.
When, or if, he can come back this season is anyone’s guess. Tagovailoa said in April 2023 that the concussions he had in the 2022 season left him contemplating his playing future. “I think I considered it for a time,” he said then, when asked if he considered stepping away from the game to protect himself.
McDaniel said it’s not his place to say if Tagovailoa should return to football. “He’ll be evaluated and we’ll have conversations and progress as appropriate,” McDaniel said.
Tagovailoa was hurt Thursday on a fourth-down keeper with about 4:30 left in the third. He went straight ahead into Hamlin and did not slide, leading with his right shoulder instead.
Hamlin was the player who suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle during a Monday night game in January 2023 at Cincinnati, causing the NFL to suspend a pivotal game that quickly lost significance in the aftermath of a scary scene that unfolded in front of a national television audience.
Tagovailoa wound up on his back, both his hands in the air and Bills players immediately pointed at him as if to suggest there was an injury. Dolphins center Aaron Brewer quickly did the same, waving to the sideline.
Tagovailoa appeared to be making a fist with his right hand as he lay on the ground. It was movement consistent with something that is referred to as the “fencing response,” which can be common after a traumatic brain injury.
Tagovailoa eventually got to his feet. McDaniel grabbed the side of his quarterback’s head and gave him a kiss on the cheek as Tagovailoa departed. Thompson came into the game to take Tagovailoa’s spot.
“I love Tua on and off the football field,” Bills edge Von Miller said. “I’m a huge fan of him. I can empathize and sympathize with him because I’ve been there. I wish him the best.”
Tagovailoa’s history with concussions — and how he has since worked to avoid them — is a huge part of the story of his career, and now comes to the forefront once again.
He had at least two concussions during the 2022 season. He was hurt in a Week 3 game against Buffalo and cleared concussion protocol, though he appeared disoriented on that play but returned to the game.
The NFL later changed its concussion protocol to mandate that if a player shows possible concussion symptoms — including a lack of balance or stability — he must sit out the rest of the game.
Less than a week later, in a Thursday night game at Cincinnati, Tagovailoa was concussed on a scary hit that briefly knocked him unconscious and led to him being taken off the field on a stretcher.
His second known concussion of that season came in a December game against Green Bay, and he didn’t play for the rest of the 2022 season. After that, Tagovailoa began studying ways where he may be able to fall more safely and protect himself against further injury — including studying jiu-jitsu.
“I’m not worried about anything that’s out of my hands,” McDaniel said. “I’m just worried about the human being.”
NEW YORK (AP) — When her husband turns on the television to hear news about the upcoming presidential election, that’s often a signal for Lori Johnson Malveaux to leave the room.
It can get to be too much. Often, she’ll go to a TV in another room to watch a movie on the Hallmark Channel or BET. She craves something comforting and entertaining. And in that, she has company.
While about half of Americans say they are following political news “extremely” or “very” closely, about 6 in 10 say they need to limit how much information they consume about the government and politics to avoid feeling overloaded or fatigued, according to a new survey from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts.
Make no mistake: Malveaux plans to vote. She always does. “I just get to the point where I don’t want to hear the rhetoric,” she said.
The 54-year-old Democrat said she’s most bothered when she hears people on the news telling her that something she saw with her own eyes — like the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol — didn’t really happen.
“I feel like I’m being gaslit. That’s the way to put it,” she said.
Sometimes it feels like ‘a bombardment’
Caleb Pack, 23, a Republican from Ardmore, Oklahoma, who works in IT, tries to keep informed through the news feeds on his phone, which is stocked with a variety of sources, including CNN, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press.
Yet sometimes, Pack says, it seems like a bombardment.
“It’s good to know what’s going on, but both sides are pulling a little bit extreme,” he said. “It just feels like it’s a conversation piece everywhere, and it’s hard to escape it.”
Media fatigue isn’t a new phenomenon. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in late 2019 found roughly two in three Americans felt worn out by the amount of news there is, about the same as in a poll taken in early 2018. During the 2016 presidential campaign, about 6 in 10 people felt overloaded by campaign news.
But it can be particularly acute with news related to politics. The AP-NORC/USAFacts poll found that half of Americans feel a need to limit their consumption of information related to crime or overseas conflicts, while only about 4 in 10 are limiting news about the economy and jobs.
It’s easy to understand, with television outlets like CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC full of political talk and a wide array of political news online, sometimes complicated by disinformation.
“There’s a glut of information,” said Richard Coffin, director of research and advocacy for USAFacts, “and people are having a hard time figuring out what is true or not.”
Women are more likely to feel they need to limit media
In the AP-NORC poll, about 6 in 10 men said they follow news about elections and politics at least “very” closely, compared to about half of women. For all types of news, not just politics, women are more likely than men to report the need to limit their media consumption, the survey found.
White adults are also more likely than Black or Hispanic adults to say they need to limit media consumption on politics, the poll found.
Kaleb Aravzo, 19, a Democrat, gets a baseline of news by listening to National Public Radio in the morning at home in Logan, Utah. Too much politics, particularly when he’s on social media sites like TikTok and Instagram, can trigger anxiety and depression.
“If it pops up on my page when I’m on social media,” he said, “I’ll just scroll past it.”
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Sanders reported from Washington. David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder.
The AP poll of 1,019 adults was conducted July 29-August 8, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.0 percentage points.
