OTTAWA — At a time when it’s looking to revitalize its organization in the face of many challenges facing broadcasters, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) is looking for a new president to be a strong voice in Ottawa and a tireless advocate for the country’s broadcasting industry.
The CAB’s de facto president Sylvie Bissonnette (officially the association’s CFO and vice-president of finance and administration) is retiring in November. The job ad for the new president’s position is posted here on Cartt.ca. Bilingualism is a mandatory requirement for this national role.
Executive search firm Boyden is assisting the CAB with the hire, and CAB board secretary Matt Thompson, Corus’ director of regulatory law and public policy, is chair of the CAB’s hiring committee for the position.
“The CAB is thrilled to be recruiting a new president to advocate and advise governments on opportunities to help Canada’s private broadcasting industry grow,” Thompson told Cartt.ca in an email. “We’re excited to hire for this role at a critical time for our industry. Private broadcasters are facing a number of issues that have been exacerbated by Covid-19. Most notably, across Canada, we have continuously provided critical local news, information and entertainment to Canadians while our advertising revenues have been decimated by the economic shutdown.”
As the industry shifts into the restart and recovery phase, the CAB “will be laser focused on tackling policies that keep local news on air — not only in big cities but in small towns and rural municipalities across the country,” Thompson writes.
“In addition to advocating for short-term relief to ensure small and medium broadcasters do not close as a result of Covid, we will be advocating for longer-term policy changes that allow Canadian private broadcasters to successfully compete in a global industry, and continue supporting Canadian content. In particular, the CAB will ensure that any federal review of the Broadcasting Act fosters a Canadian media, content development and broadcast ecosystem that is equitable, sustainable and reflective of voices across the country,” he writes.
For more information about the CAB president position and to apply, please click here.
