TORONTO – The Radio-Television News Directors Association of Canada recently announced that seven individuals will be honoured with the 2005 RTNDA Canada Lifetime Achievement Awards.
The awards will be presented at RTNDA Regional Conferences in Saint John, N.B., Edmonton and Kelowna, B.C. in May, and at the Central Regional meeting in Toronto in June during the RTNDA National Conference.
The seven recipients of 2005 RTNDA Lifetime Achievement Awards are:
* Vince Gallant of VOCM Radio St. John’s, Newfoundland. Gallant is marking his 51st year in broadcasting. He started at CJRW in Summerside, P.E.I. in 1954. Over the years he worked in Charlottetown, Moncton, Halifax and Montreal. It was at CKGM Montreal that Gallant developed his news reputation, a direct result of working on stories of the escape, search for, and resulting recapture of drug kingpin Lucien Rivard and the big blackout of 1965 that plunged the U.S. eastern seaboard and parts of eastern Canada into darkness.
Gallant spent a brief time in the U.S. before returning to Canada and anchoring the ATV News in Halifax. In 1976, he moved to St. John’s with stints at CJON-TV and CJYQ Radio before settling in at VOCM Radio where, for the past 21 years, he has served as chief news anchor.
* Pete James of CJBK Radio London. A native of Hamilton, Ontario, James says he knew he wanted to be a broadcaster ever since he could talk. Earlier this year he celebrated 50 consecutive years of working in broadcast journalism. In 1955, at the age of 19, James began his career at CKTB Radio in St. Catharines, Ontario. A year later, he was hosting the all-night show at CHLO in St. Thomas. That same year, London’s CKSL Radio came calling and James took a job in the city where his name soon became a household word.
From CKSL, he moved to CFPL Radio where he established himself as the number one sports voice in southwestern Ontario. Television beckoned and James spent 35 years at CFPL-TV. In 1996, he entered the next phase of his career – returning to his roots in sports radio. James is the morning sports voice of CJBK London while providing colour commentary for London Knights hockey and Western Mustangs football broadcasts. Through the years, James has supported numerous charities and has been a mentor for many aspiring broadcasters.
* Jim Junkin of CFTO-TV Toronto. Junkin’s career in broadcast journalism continues to flourish 44 years after it began at CHWO Radio in Oakville in 1961. Over the next eight years, he learned his craft as a newsman in seven other southern Ontario radio stations, as well as CJAD Montreal, before joining CFTO-TV in the spring of 1969. Junkin worked as a general assignment reporter and anchored the weekend newscasts on CFTO before being appointed the station’s crime reporter in 1986. Today, he is Toronto’s veteran reporter on the police beat.
Junkin’s reporting skills and wide network of contacts have earned him police, fire and ambulance awards too numerous to mention. His professionalism over the years has earned him the trust and respect of police chiefs, senior investigators and regular officers on the beat.
* The late Bob Beaton of Winnipeg. Beaton began his broadcast career in 1963 at CFRY Portage la Prairie. Over the next three years, he worked at CJRL Kenora, CKDM Dauphin and CJOB-FM Winnipeg. In 1966, he became evening news editor at CJOB. Beaton moved up as mobile/political reporter and commentator, assistant news director and, in 1976, News Director for CJOB and CKIS-FM. It was a post he held for 14 years.
After his notable broadcast career, Beaton did communications work for the province of Manitoba and worked as a freelance journalist and consultant until his death in 1996 at the age of 55. He was an active member of RTNDA for many years and served as President of the association in 1984-85. Beaton chaired national and regional conferences and, while serving as Past President, was instrumental in rewriting the RTNDA Constitution. Along with his professional affiliations, Beaton was an active member of numerous community groups and causes in Winnipeg.
* Bruce Hogle of Edmonton. Hogle’s distinguished journalistic career has spanned five provinces and more than five decades and has earned him countless awards and accolades. He began in 1947 at the age of 18 as an announcer at CHNO Sudbury. Hogle dabbled on the print side in the 50’s before joining CKRM Radio in Regina as News Director in 1961. It was there he first made a name for himself by telling the world of the Saskatchewan medical care plan adopted by the only Socialist government in North America.
After a two-year stint as Public Relations Director for the Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons, Hogle moved to Sunwapta Broadcasting in Edmonton where he would remain for 31 years. He began as Manager of News, Sports and Public Affairs for CFRN-TV and CFRN and CJKE-FM Radio. In 1989, Hogle became General Manager of the radio stations and from 1991 to 1996 served as General Manager of CFRN-TV. Currently, he is President of Bruce Hogle Communications. Hogle was a founding member of RTNDA Canada and served as President in 1974-75. He was inducted as a Member of the Order of Canada in 1998 and in 2004 was named one of the "100 Edmontonians of the Century" for his significant contributions to the broadcast media and community.
* John Ashbridge of CKNW Radio Vancouver. Ashbridge was in high school in Victoria, B.C. when the broadcasting bug hit. On May 10, 1965 he started at CKNW New Westminster and, other than a three month stint at CFUN in 1967, spent the next five years at the station. In 1970, Ashbridge moved to Prince George to sign on CJCI and spent three years there as News Director. He returned to CKNW for seven years before heading to Australia in 1980 where he worked in television news. A year-and-a-half later, it was back to CKNW where he continues to pull down a full anchor shift each weekday morning. Ashbridge has anchored and produced numerous breaking news stories and special events coverage.
For many years, he ran CKNW’s regional news network, now called the Corus Radio Network. Since 1988, Ashbridge has been the Vancouver Canucks’ public address announcer and has long been the voice of the Crimestoppers features heard several times a day on CKNW.
* Mike Roberts of CHBC-TV Kelowna. Roberts is arguably the most recognized face in B.C.’s Okanagan Valley. His career began in 1969 at CKAY Radio in Duncan, B.C. In 1972, Roberts entered the world of television at CHEK-TV in Victoria doing nine half-hour shows per week, plus the noon news. He moved to CHBC-TV in Kelowna in 1973 where he has hosted and produced weekly news programs, served as a sportscaster and, for 25 years, has been "The Okanagan’s Very Own" weatherman.
Roberts’ career is varied and busy and he has been involved in a multitude of projects in his 32 years at CHBC-TV. He has been the media advisor for the Central Okanagan Crimestoppers Society, honourary chair for the United Way campaign and has been the driving force behind CHBC’s annual fundraiser for area food banks. Roberts is frequently called upon to emcee worthwhile events from cancer research fundraisers to Christmas concerts.
The RTNDA Lifetime Achievement Award is one of the highest honours bestowed by the Radio-Television News Directors Association of Canada. It was created in 2002 to recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves through outstanding service and continued excellence during the course of their career in broadcast journalism. The award is for lifetime achievement rather than for a single contribution, no matter how monumental.
RTNDA Canada is the voice for electronic journalists and news managers in Canada. Its members recognize the responsibility of broadcast journalists to promote and to protect the freedom to report independently about matters of public interest and to present a wide range of expressions, opinions and ideas. The RTNDA Canada Code of Ethics, adopted by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council, is used to measure fairness and accuracy in our profession.
For further information: RTNDA Canada, (416) 756-2213, e-mail info@rtndacanada.com, www.rtndacanada.com.
