Canadian culture hasn't really emerged as a theme in this election. I guess health care, E.I., and tax cuts are greater priorities in these times.

The only mention of culture has been dropped onto a couple of the party platforms. The Liberals are offering to produce a Canadian "portal" on the Internet, which I think amounts to a site full of links ... as if there weren't half-a-dozen good Canuck portals already. Including the cbc.ca site, which isn't going to get any more funding. And speaking of which, the Canadian Alliance is offering, if elected, to sell off the CBC's broadcast and Internet divisions ... but keep radio. I guess because it's harmless.

Well, that would be a shame. I can't imagine any private broadcaster snapping up the CBC's television assets, and then continuing to pump money into valuable projects like Canada: A People's History. And what about the dozens of less epic programs that have enriched our lives, provided a training ground for some of our most creative storytellers, and even given us a few laughs?

Speaking of those Canuck yukmeisters. Tonight This Hour Has 22 Minutes treats us to an election special: "Marg Delahunty advises Conservative Leader Joe Clark, NDP leader Alexa McDonough and Canadian Alliance Leader Stockwell Day on how to handle the debate. Rick Mercer calls a referendum that affects Stockwell Day. Babe Bennett gives her take on women voters. And Greg Thomey reports on the American election." (8 p.m. on CBC-TV) ... Catch it while you can.

And at 9 p.m., if you haven't tired of all the election folderol, Peter Mansbridge hosts a national town hall from Halifax on the voters' issues. Politicos, interest groups and regular people respond to the question "what do you want from your federal government?" This actually sounds like it might make for more provocative responses than the official debates produced last week.

Radio Days: There's some pretty varied stuff on Radio One today. You can start off the morning with Shelagh Rogers examining how the Canadian parties are making use of the advertising medium. (I wonder how much they're spending when you consider it took George Bush 3 billion to maybe become President?) Shelagh has several advertising execs on hand to deconstruct the ad campaigns and see how Joe, Jean, Gilles, Stockwell and Alexa are trying to creep inside our cerebral cortexes and make us vote for them. That's This Morning, 9:06 to noon, (9:36 to 12:30 NT) on CBC Radio One.

Later at night Ideas will be airing a program called That Murder Guy: The Ideas of Elliot Leyton. Leyton is an anthropologist from Newfoundland who's become one of the world's leading experts on serial killers. I read "Hunting Humans" a couple of years ago. Leyton has an uncanny eye for dissecting the criminal mind. He is able to distance the reader from the gory details of the murders and dig into the psyche of the psycho. I found the book fascinating. CBC Vancouver producer Kathleen Flaherty looks at Leyton's career and ponders how a nice Newfie boy became interested in serial slayers. And furthermore, is homicide a legitimate area of study in serious academia? That's tonight on Ideas at 9:05 on CBC Radio One.

Mucho Matisse:
Art lovers will want to see Matisse From the Baltimore Museum of Art, currently on show at the Art Gallery of Ontario. There are 75 works including "extraordinary drawings, plus the finest collection of Matisse sculptures showcases 33 paintings, 16 sculptures, 25 drawings and one illustrated book covering more than 50 years of his career." Matisse was one of the most influential painters of the 20th century and a leader in the modernist movement. This is the only stop on the Canadian leg of this fantastic tour.