POD SAVE THE PM? — JUSTIN TRUDEAU may not have the favorability he did in 2015, but he’s managed to revive that era’s vibes in one way.
His recent long-form media blitz has put the spotlight on podcasts like they’re still some kind of interesting new creature in the media landscape — in 2024, no less, when everyone and their dog has one. — Starting clock: The Star’s SUSAN DELACOURT first dished on the blitz last week, saying it’s intended to connect him with different audiences, including with some U.S.-based pods, and “talk beyond the general news-of-the-day scrums in Ottawa.” — Medium is the message: Trudeau was asked about one of her columns on "The Big Story" podcast: “What is it about either this medium or the communication strategy in general that you’re hoping to use to make your message resonate with Canadians?” Trudeau replied his “favorite kind of interview was sitting down and talking for 15, 20 minutes with a radio host, and just having a real conversation.” “Podcasts represent the kind of thoughtful conversation that most Canadians end up having in their daily lives with their friends, their co-workers, their family, about big issues.” “One of the real challenges in politics these days is the polarization, the soundbite-ization, the snippets on internet or YouTube or Tik Tok or wherever that end up carrying an entire political debate.” → Translation: It’s a lot less weird to take ten minutes to explain something in a friendly sit down than at a news conference, where the answer is ultimately chopped up into a 10-second clip. And he performs well in a casual environment, without the breathy, gold-plated sentences featured in his speeches or any anxious the-house-is-burning-down looks he might wear at televised news conferences. — NBD: A PMO source speaking on background characterized the series of pod appearances as not nearly as dramatic as it seems. The PM’s done podcasts before. He was on CBC’s “Front Burner” last year and just in March he was on “The GIST of It” podcast talking about women’s sports. — Timing matters: The podcast push comes with the PM slumped in the polls. It follows the government struggling with the messaging on its capital gains hike, with the recent budget moving the needle in the wrong direction. Pollster SHACHI KURL described it as a sad-clown moment for the PM. At press conferences these days, the questions are tough and tricky. At a Friday announcement, The Logic’s MURAD HEMMADI pressed him on the prospect of the tax hike causing doctors and tech companies to leave the country. In the four-minute exchange, the PM ducked it with a lengthy boilerplate answer about tax fairness. — Sounds familiar: Recall that former PM STEPHEN HARPER spent time chatting up U.S. media while dismissing Canadian outlets, which changed the focus and framing of stories and interviews, and blew over the heads of the pesky, hard-nosed press gallery. — Ooof: On “The Big Story” pod, to which Trudeau’s team had reached out to set up the interview, the PM was asked to grade his own homework on climate policy on the assertion Canada missed its Paris targets. He swatted that one away: “Which targets have we missed?” “I think we've missed a couple of Paris Accord targets,” the host replied. “Have we not?” “No, we haven’t,” Trudeau said. “You got me on that one,” the host said. — Hint, hint: A fall report warned Canada is on track to blow its 2030 targets. Canada missed the 2020 Copenhagen target,though not by much. The Trudeau interviews all varied in substance and content, but climate change was a major theme, as CP points out in its dissection of four he appeared on recently. Those in it for the blood sport of politics or tough accountability interviews can give the appearances a pass. The interesting exchanges charted far off the daily news agenda. Here are four things that jumped out from his “Freakonomics Radio” appearance: → Teacher for life: Asked what he’d be doing now if he never got into politics and what he might want to do after, he said he’d still be a teacher. “When I leave politics, I will look to teach again in one way, shape or form,” he said. “Whether it’s reflecting on the intersection of technology and democracy and trying to shape the world that way. I’m ultimately a social activist who’s going to look to how I can have a positive impact on the world.” → Pot un-enthusiast: Trudeau is known internationally for legalizing recreational cannabis. Asked if he consumes it himself, the answer was a not really: “I’ve tried it, but it’s never been my thing. I’m much more of a beer and bourbon kind of guy, even then not too much.” → The way he thinks about his job now: “I did hear you say in a recent interview, ‘I think about quitting every day. It’s a crazy job I’m doing,’ so I want to get a temperature check,” the host said. Trudeau replied, “Actually what I said in French was, “C’est un job de malade,” which means, “It’s a job for crazy people.” “There is an intensity to this, and when you’re doing any job like this, you have to check in regularly on the family sacrifices — on do you still have the energy and the drive to do it? There are always days and moments in which you go, ‘Oh my God, you know, haven’t I done this enough? Haven’t I given enough? I can do something else now.’ But the stakes are so high, and the moment is so real.” → Why he reads a lot of fiction: “Because story is the only thing that matters. How we tell the stories of our lives, how we tell the story of the world we’re in, the narrative of our lives, and the arc of those stories is still how we think. … The idea of story as the vehicle for existence is at the center of everything I have. And when I need to step away from the mounds of briefing notes and nonfiction that I’m forced with my work, I need to dive into story.” At least one of these answers wouldn’t fly with traditional media in Canada right now. It’s not exactly a great time for him to carry on about reading “mounds of briefing notes” without some qualifiers. — Related reading: CBC’s AARON WHERRY mulls politicians turning to longer-form content away from the daily 5-second clip factory that is Parliament Hill. | 
