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The Walrus

John Semley

John Semley's latest book is Hater: On the Virtues of Utter Disagreeability. He grew up in the Niagara Region.
Screenshot of the actress who plays Anne Shirley on the TV show Anne with an E. She has red hair and freckles and is looking towards the top of the frame while wrapped in a grey blanket.
Arts & Culture

When Anne with an E Fans Waged War against Netflix

August 5, 2020October 13, 2020 - by John Semley

In their campaign to save the show, fans stopped behaving like an audience and started acting like owners

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A black and white shot of Clifton Hill's storefronts at night. Visible signs include a Travelodge, a Ruby Tuesday, and the Guinness World Records Museum.
Arts & Culture / March 2020

Stay Tacky, Niagara Falls

February 13, 2020February 13, 2020 - by John Semley

Why I wouldn’t change a thing about my hometown

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Current Affairs / Education / June 2019 / Society

Are University Campuses Where Free Speech Goes to Die?

May 22, 2019March 27, 2020 - by John Semley

A new generation of students reignites the fight over intellectual freedom

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blue and red toy robots facing each other
Society

In Defence of Hate

December 13, 2018November 14, 2019 - by John Semley

Hatred doesn’t have to be a formless, frothing resentment. It can also work as an urgent corrective

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Illustration by Brandon Celi
March 2016 / Society

Junk Foodie

February 17, 2016March 31, 2020 - by John Semley

Eat your way to Internet stardom—by stuffing your face at the drive-thru

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Illustration by Chip Zdarsky
October 2015

Sex Criminal

September 15, 2015April 8, 2020 - by John Semley

A lewd cartoonist reboots a squeaky-clean icon

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Nickelback tour bus pelted with eggs and spraypainted
April 2015

Too Bad

March 25, 2015April 10, 2020 - by John Semley

Why we hate Nickelback—and why that’s okay

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Shirtless, bearded man in front of stage lights
July/August 2014

Glass Boy

June 30, 2014April 14, 2020 - by John Semley

A hardcore punk front man grows up

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Allen Fraser/Courtesy of Pier 21 Films Ltd.
January/February 2013

Jack in the Box

December 24, 2012April 5, 2017 - by John Semley

The popular NDP leader has been dead for barely a year. Is it too soon for a biopic?

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March 2012

Rock of Aging

March 12, 2012April 14, 2020 - by John Semley

Notorious punk filmmaker Bruce McDonald grows up—and old—in his candid mockumentary sequel, Hard Core Logo II

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The Walrus' March/April 2023 cover featuring artwork of the megachurch March/April 2023
It was massively popular. It billed itself as a new kind of church. Then sexual abuse and misconduct allegations surfaced against its leaders

Part of The Trust Project

Read more about The Trust Project and how this article fits in it

Part of The Trust Project

The Trust Project is a collaboration among news organizations around the world. Its goal is to create strategies that fulfill journalism’s basic pledge: to serve society with a truthful, intelligent and comprehensive account of ideas and events.

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