TORONTO – Journalist and broadcast executive Trina McQueen was inducted into the CBC News Hall of Fame Friday afternoon at an event that included speakers such as CTV News president Wendy Freeman, CBC News editor in chief Jennifer McGuire, CBC executive vice-president of English services Heather Conway and McQueen herself.
The CBC News Hall of Fame was established four years ago to honour individuals who have "demonstrated a lasting impact on the CBC and Canadian journalism”, and includes Knowlton Nash, Joe Schlesinger and Barbara Frum.
A trailblazer who was one of the most powerful women in Canadian TV, McQueen had a career of many firsts – she was W5's first female co-host, the first female reporter to appear on CBC's The National and the first woman to head a TV news organization in North America.
On Friday, McQueen shared some anecdotes about what it was like being a female journalist in the late '60s. She said she had interviewed for her CTV W5 job with the executive producer at his home in a sauna and endured sexist remarks from an underling when she was the executive producer of The National.
She added that when the W5 executive producer was fired, she found herself working for the (CTV Toronto) CFTO station and in the crosshairs of its station manager who said, "Women do not have the authority to do news." McQueen's news director fought to keep her, but she said she left for a contract at CBC, where she stayed for 27 years.
"As it happened, I went back to CTV as president of everything including CFTO," McQueen said. "And one night I went down to the newsroom and spoke to the ghost of the station manager and I said, 'Tell me again about women and authority’."
McQueen added that the CBC News Hall of Fame award "comes close to the Order of Canada for me."
Photo of Trina McQueen by Tina Mackenzie/CBC
