By Connie Thiessen
Travis Dhanraj has officially exited the CBC, blasting the public broadcaster on his way out the door, saying he has been “systematically sidelined, retaliated against, and denied the editorial access and institutional support necessary to fulfill my public service role.”
Dhanraj quietly disappeared from CBC News Network and his show Canada Tonight with Travis Dhanraj – which launched in January 2024 – last year.
The network ushered in new primetime Ian Hanomansing vehicle, Hanomansing Tonight, in February in the same time slot, renewing questions about where Dhanraj was and fuelling speculation that his absence was connected to his vocal challenge of the public broadcaster’s executive bonus structure.
In an open letter to CBC leadership published Monday, entitled “Resignation Under Duress – CBC Leadership Has Left Me No Choice,” Dhanraj wrote that the involuntary resignation comes “because the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has made it impossible for me to continue my work with integrity.”
Among other allegations, Dhanraj said he was repeatedly denied access to key newsmakers, came up against internal booking and editorial protocols, and while “fighting for balance” was accused of being on a crusade.
“My show, which I was initially told was a strategic priority, was rebranded,” Dhanraj continued. “My name removed. My access curtailed. My medical leave was whispered about in the newsroom. I was presented with an NDA tied to an investigation about a tweet about then CBC President Catherine Tait. It was designed not to protect privacy, but to sign away my voice. When I refused, I was further marginalized.”
“These were not isolated actions,” Dhanraj wrote. “They were part of a pattern that sent a clear message: fall in line or be removed. I stayed as long as I could, but CBC leadership left me with no reasonable path forward. This has taken a real toll — on my health, my career, and my trust in an institution I once believed I could help reform from within. But the greater harm is to the public: a broadcaster that no longer lives up to its mandate, a culture that resists accountability, and a system that punishes those who dare to challenge it. It is why the CBC is losing trust with Canadians and its audience.”
Dhanraj sent a second letter to former colleagues saying that he resignation had come “after trying to navigate a workplace culture defined by retaliation, exclusion, and psychological harm. A place where asking hard questions — about tokenism masquerading as diversity, problematic political coverage protocols, and the erosion of editorial independence — became a career-ending move.”
“I was once one of CBC’s most visible journalists: a senior parliamentary correspondent, co-host of Marketplace, and most recently, host of Canada Tonight. Promoted as a symbol of progress — until I began questioning the gap between CBC’s stated values and its internal reality,” said Dhanraj. “When I pushed for honest conversations about systemic issues and editorial imbalance, I was shut out. Sidelined. Silenced. And ultimately, erased.”
“CBC calls itself a champion of inclusion, and public trust. But those ideals are too often deployed as branding tools, not lived principles. And Canadians are noticing. What’s happening inside this institution is no longer just an internal problem. It’s a public one. CBC doesn’t need more workshops. It needs accountability. It needs reform. It needs courage,” he continued. “To those still inside: silence shouldn’t be the price of your paycheque. The only thing that sustains broken systems is fear. And the only way things change is when people speak.”
Prior to Canada Tonight, Dhanraj had most recently been with CBC consumer affairs program Marketplace, following his return to CBC in 2021 as a senior reporter in the Parliamentary Bureau. He previously served as Global News’ Queen’s Park Bureau Chief, after reporting for the public broadcaster in both Toronto and Edmonton. Dhanraj has also worked with Entertainment Tonight Canada, CP24 and CTV News.
