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josh o'kane

@joshokane.bsky.social

"A dogged reporter with a weakness for bad jokes." Business of arts for @globeandmail. Wrote Sideways: The City Google Couldn't Buy. jokane@globeandmail.com

2,574 Followers  |  312 Following  |  241 Posts  |  Joined: 20.09.2023
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Posts by josh o'kane (@joshokane.bsky.social)

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Nova Scotia budget cuts publishing grant in blow to sector Programโ€™s end is a major blow to independent publishers trying to carry the torch of Canadian storytelling

'Itโ€™s a huge loss to future generations of Nova Scotians who wonโ€™t hear their stories'
N.S. budget cuts publishing grant in blow to sector
www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/arti...
#DefendNSBooks @theglobeandmail.com @writersfedofns.bsky.social @afterwordsliterary.bsky.social @nimbuspub.bsky.social

27.02.2026 19:49 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Nova Scotia budget cuts publishing grant in blow to sector Programโ€™s end is a major blow to independent publishers trying to carry the torch of Canadian storytelling

New: The elimination of Nova Scotiaโ€™s publishing funding has left the book sector reeling in a province that often depends on its independent houses to preserve its history and tell its stories.

Some worry it could set a precedent for other provinces www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/arti...

27.02.2026 19:38 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Ford government unveils designs for proposed Ontario Science Centre despite opposition Cost for planned facility on Torontoโ€™s waterfront is about $1-billion, including a 30-year maintenance contract, premier says

My confusing day: Government claims the new, smaller proposed building will actually have more "exhibition space" than its shuttered predecessor, despite releasing numbers showing it in fact has less -- and then couldn't explain itself.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

27.02.2026 18:44 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 62    ๐Ÿ” 32    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 12    ๐Ÿ“Œ 5

Wonder how TIFF feels about Doug Ford calling the Metro Toronto Convention Centre โ€œone of the worst convention centres anywhere in the world,โ€ as the festival stakes its upcoming multi-million-dollar content market on ... the attractiveness of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

27.02.2026 14:15 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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The AGO didnโ€™t just embroil itself in controversy over Nan Goldinโ€™s work โ€“ it missed out on a magnificent piece of art The galleryโ€™s decision not to acquire โ€˜Stendhal Syndromeโ€™ was based less on artistic merit than the politics of the artist
27.02.2026 10:08 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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The Public Lending Right (PLR) Program It pays to have your books in Canadaโ€™s libraries! Learn more about the Public Lending Right Program

Canadian authors, remember to register your books for the PLR program by May 1! For the first time, you are no longer required to mail things inโ€”you can do it online.

18.02.2026 23:04 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 27    ๐Ÿ” 30    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Failed Nan Goldin acquisition raises questions about art gallery volunteer committees: What kind of power are they supposed to have? Industry professionals weigh in on how these committees work and the role they play
26.02.2026 15:07 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
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Arts and culture in Nova Scotia left reeling from 'unprecedented' cuts - Halifax Examiner "It's going to be absolutely devastating."

Arts, culture and local publishing in Nova Scotia left reeling from 'unprecedented' cuts
www.halifaxexaminer.ca/arts-and-cul...

26.02.2026 16:09 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 6    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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Sechs Betriebe auf dem RAW-Gelรคnde fรผrchten das Aus Mehrere Betriebe auf dem RAW-Gelรคnde fรผrchten das Aus. Sie haben eine Nutzungsuntersagung vom Eigentรผmer erhalten. Hintergrund ist ein Streit um die Zukunft des Areals an der Warschauer StraรŸe.

Hmm, wonder where local mag The Berliner got this reporting about clubs under threat at RAW Gelรคnde: www.the-berliner.com/english-news...

Oh wait they (apprently?) just ran rbb's story through google translate, removed citations and gave no credit for exclusive quotes: www.rbb24.de/politik/beit...

26.02.2026 17:40 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Failed Nan Goldin acquisition raises questions about art gallery volunteer committees: What kind of power are they supposed to have? Industry professionals weigh in on how these committees work and the role they play

New from me: The AGO's failed Nan Goldin acquisition raises questions about art-gallery collections committees. What kind of power are they supposed to have?
www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/art-...

26.02.2026 15:38 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Itโ€™s a struggle raising money for the arts. Just ask Contact Photography Festival As high-profile sponsors pull back from the sector, arts organizations look for other funding and places to cut costs

New: Contact Photography Festival is hosting its first-ever fundraising gala tonight, two years after Scotiabank stopped sponsoring it, which threw it into financial peril

Today, philanthropy + sponsors are still hard to come by, but there's mild optimism www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/arti...

24.02.2026 18:23 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Itโ€™s a struggle raising money for the arts. Just ask Contact Photography Festival As high-profile sponsors pull back from the sector, arts organizations look for other funding and places to cut costs
23.02.2026 21:59 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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Exclusive | OpenAI Employees Raised Alarms About Canada Shooting Suspect Months Ago The ChatGPT maker opted against informing Canadian authorities about Jesse Van Rootselaarโ€™s descriptions of violence last June.

Absolutely wild. WSJ reporting that some OpenAI staffers thought the Tumbler Ridge shooter's use of ChatGPT raised the potential of real world violence but leadership decided not to alert RCMP. www.wsj.com/us-news/law/...

20.02.2026 23:28 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1699    ๐Ÿ” 838    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 33    ๐Ÿ“Œ 141
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Alberta Premier defends fall referendum plans Danielle Smith stumbles when asked about costs of providing health care and education to newcomers; NDP says referendum proposals designed to inflame

Premier Danielle Smith said she doesn't know how much newcomers cost Albertaโ€™s health care and education systems, despite scheduling a referendum to ask whether social services to those residents shd be limited b/c of cost

www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber... By @mattscace.bsky.social and friend

20.02.2026 20:54 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 226    ๐Ÿ” 97    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 39    ๐Ÿ“Œ 28
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B.C. health workers breached privacy of Lapu Lapu festival attack victims, privacy commission says Report finds 35 health authority workers engaged in the snooping, as well as one worker at a doctorโ€™s office

BC privacy commissioner: 16 ppl sent to medical facilities after Vancouver Lapu Lapu Day festival attack had privacy breached. Investigation found "71 incidents of snooping by 36 health care workers across Fraser Health, PHSA and VCH"
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/briti...

19.02.2026 21:40 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 5    ๐Ÿ” 4    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

Riding the Eglinton LRT for the first time and it appears to just beโ€ฆ.. two streetcars stitched together??

19.02.2026 18:54 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm album cover. Largely white, with lettering in grey and some sparse trees as glimpsed in a snowy landscape.

Bloc Party - Silent Alarm album cover. Largely white, with lettering in grey and some sparse trees as glimpsed in a snowy landscape.

"I must have been 16 when this album came out and it was such a soundtrack to my youth. There are lots of other records from around that era that define that time for me, but I think as a body of work itโ€™s pretty much flawless."

Jamie Campbell Bower on Bloc Party - Silent Alarm

buff.ly/fB93jrb

19.02.2026 14:00 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 23    ๐Ÿ” 5    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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A GPS tracker. Attempted insurance fraud. Alarming new allegations emerge in the Toronto police corruption scandal One cop arrested in Project South is accused of helping an associate install a GPS tracker on a woman's vehicle so she could be followed.

From the Starโ€™s Jennifer Pagliaro, @fxplante.bsky.social and me:
www.thestar.com/news/investi...

19.02.2026 14:18 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7    ๐Ÿ” 5    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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These Toronto laundromats are putting a new spin on the art gallery scene At two local laundromats, artists bypass the cityโ€™s costly and intimidating gallery scene to stage solo shows between the washers and dryers
18.02.2026 21:52 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

Really lovely surprise this month: I won both the Outstanding Review and Outstanding Critical Essay categories (plus runner-up for review! what!) for the Nathan Cohen Awards this year.

Very, very grateful to my editors @heypereira.bsky.social and Rebecca Tucker at @theglobeandmail.com.

18.02.2026 16:26 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 16    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
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Canadian programmer abruptly exits high-profile arts role at Londonโ€™s Barbican Centre Centre did not give reason for Devyani Saltzmanโ€™s departure, heralded the cultural leader for her work

Lots of questions about this! www.theglobeandmail.com/culture/art-...

18.02.2026 15:43 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Screenshot from King of the Hill Season 11, Episode 5

Screenshot from King of the Hill Season 11, Episode 5

18.02.2026 15:49 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 17    ๐Ÿ” 3    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Canadian programmer abruptly exits high-profile arts role at Londonโ€™s Barbican Centre Centre did not give reason for Devyani Saltzmanโ€™s departure, heralded the cultural leader for her work
17.02.2026 20:39 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Scotiabankโ€™s 1832 Asset Management sells last shares in Israeli military supplier Elbit Bank faced criticism for investment, including high-profile protests at the Giller Prize

www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...

17.02.2026 14:11 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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He spent decades perfecting his voice. Now he says Google stole it. NPRโ€™s David Greene says he was โ€œcompletely freaked outโ€ when he heard an AI voice that sounded just like his own, and heโ€™s suing over it.

NEW: David Greene was the voice of NPR's "Morning Edition." Is he also secretly the voice of Google's popular AI podcast tool, NotebookLM?

Google says no. Greene thinks they're lying. My story today breaks the news of his lawsuit and compares the two voices. Listen for yourself: wapo.st/3ZHRvho

15.02.2026 16:23 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 457    ๐Ÿ” 159    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 13    ๐Ÿ“Œ 14
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Steveโ€™s Music Store, pillar of Torontoโ€™s music scene, is officially closing its doors The store that lured in rock stars, hobbyists and everything in between is closing its doors, prompting a flood of memories for music lovers.

Steveโ€™s Music Store, pillar of Torontoโ€™s music scene, is officially closing its doors

15.02.2026 00:52 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 14    ๐Ÿ” 7    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
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Why Tumbler Ridge is resilient | CBC News The town at the centre of a national tragedy has faced collapse and hardship but continues to persevere.

This is a really lovely piece by @akurjata.ca on why Tumbler Ridge has been described as โ€œresilientโ€ long before this week.

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

14.02.2026 20:30 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 21    ๐Ÿ” 8    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Big Six banks all hold contentious Israeli defence stock, but one Scotiabank-owned investment manager stands above all A Globe and Mail review confirms that Scotiabank subsidiary 1832 Asset Management LP has a stake in Elbit that is much deeper and more deliberate than its competitors โ€“ more than 60 times bigger than ...

for context, here's a story from a year and a half ago on why Scotiabank faced many protests from folks in the arts world over its subsidiary's Elbit holdings www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...

14.02.2026 20:38 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Most recent filing here: www.sec.gov/Archives/edg... and previous quarter here: www.sec.gov/Archives/edg...

14.02.2026 20:33 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

A year after Scotiabank said it was pulling out of the Giller Prize โ€“ following months of protests over Scotia subsidiary 1832 Asset Management's major stake in Israeli weapons-maker Elbit Systems โ€“ a new securities filing shows that, as of December, 1832 had divested all shares

14.02.2026 20:32 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0