Goldbloom named new chair; three new board members added
OTTAWA – Long time film, television and digital content maker Catherine Tait has been named president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada, Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly announced this morning. She will be the first woman to hold the top job at Canada’s public broadcaster.
She replaces Hubert Lacroix, who has been CEO since 2008.
Tait has a long and successful track record in film, television and digital-content in Canada and beyond. She was a co-founder and has been president of independent content producer Duopoly for 15 years and in 2006, she also founded iThentic, an award-winning digital content production and distribution company where she is executive chair. Prior to that she was president and CEO of Halifax-based Salter Street Films. Tait is also a founding partner of independent broadcaster Hollywood Suite, which has become the largest licensee of Canadian feature films in the country, plus serves on the board of directors of DHX Media. She was also a board member of the former CHUM Ltd.
She has worked in the independent film and television business for over 25 years as “an entrepreneur, advisor and champion for Canadian content,” reads the government’s press release. (Ed note: The government could not have gone wrong with any of the folks on its short list of candidates, but this is an excellent selection.)
Joly also announced the appointment of a new chair and three more new directors to CBC/Radio-Canada's board of directors. It added five new board members in December, too.
Montreal’s Michael Goldbloom has been appointed chair. He has been principal and vice-chancellor of Bishop's University in Sherbrooke since 2008. He began his career as a journalist at The Montreal Gazette in Montreal and after working as a lawyer in private practice and then as CEO of the Montreal YMCA, he returned to the Gazette as its publisher, from 1994 to 2001. He also served as publisher of the Toronto Star from 2004 to 2006.
The three new directors are:
- Suzanne Guèvremont has worked in digital media, culture and education for over 20 years. She has worked at Montreal's NAD École des arts numériques, de l'animation et du design for over 23 years; she began there as director of business development, leading to her current position as the school's director general.
- Guillaume Aniorté, of Montreal, is an entrepreneur and a professional in the field of digital and media content. He has held numerous management and director positions in companies with an international focus. He was vice-president for corporate and strategic development at Frima Studios in Montreal and before that, he helped found Tribal Nova (now Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company), a market leader in content, services and technology solutions related to the field of education.
- Sandra Singh was recently appointed general manager of arts, culture and community services with the City of Vancouver. She has a background in library and information leadership and worked as chief librarian at the Vancouver Public Library. In this position, she oversaw the implementation of significant changes in the field of digital transformation, creative technologies and public engagement, continues the government’s release.
These selections were guided by a “non-partisan, regionally diverse” independent advisory committee chaired by Tom Clark, notes the release.
All appointments have a five-year mandate.
