Antonia Zerbisias
Encyclopedia
Antonia Zerbisias is a Canadian
journalist
associated with the Toronto Star
since 1989. She has been a reporter and TV host for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
, as well as the Montreal correspondent for Variety
trade paper. She was nominated for ACTRA
awards for her documentary writing in 1980 and 1981, and won the 1996 National Newspaper Award for critical writing for her columns about magazines.
from Concordia University
(then called Sir George Williams University), as well as an MBA from the same university. Her first job as a reporter, in the early 1970s, was with the now-defunct Montreal weekly newspaper
the Sunday Express
. In the late 1970s she joined CBC, eventually becoming a current affairs reporter for The City at Six.
In 1980 she returned to school to earn her MBA (Marketing Research, Honours, 1985), while still working as a journalist for CBC-TV and Variety. In 1986, she became a reporter/producer for the CBC-TV business show Venture
. In 2002-2003, she co-hosted the CBC Newsworld
program Inside Media with Matthew Fraser
.
in 1989. She began as a broadcasting critic and reporter and, in 1991, joined the Montreal bureau. In 1993, she returned to Toronto and became media reporter. She won the 1996 National Newspaper Award for critical writing for her columns about magazines; the award noting that Zerbisias "is not one to mince with words as she focuses on the subject matter at hand. She proceeds to give us her insights, analysis and critique not only with rhetorical, stylistic and intellectual rigor, but with gusto and passion, a rare commodity in today's bland politically correct journalism." In 1997, she became TV critic and then, in 2003, was appointed media columnist.
Zerbisias' blog
for the Star, Azerbic http://thestar.blogs.com/azerb/ effectively went on hiatus in August 2006 and ceased publishing the following December having won Best Media Blog in the 2005 Canadian Blog Awards. She continued as media critic until June 2007, when she became the social issues and cultural affairs columnist at the Toronto Star. In January 2008, she launched a new blog, with a focus on feminist issues, for The Toronto Star, Broadsides http://thestar.blogs.com/broadsides/.
and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
. Among other things, she was an early advocate of broadcasting by Al-Jazeera in Canada, and asked former Minister of Justice
Irwin Cotler
whether he was loyal to Canada or Israel.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
associated with the Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
since 1989. She has been a reporter and TV host for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
, as well as the Montreal correspondent for Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
trade paper. She was nominated for ACTRA
ACTRA
The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists is a Canadian labour union representing performers in English-language media. It has 22,000 members working in film, television, radio, and all other recorded media....
awards for her documentary writing in 1980 and 1981, and won the 1996 National Newspaper Award for critical writing for her columns about magazines.
Career
Zerbisias has a BA in applied social sciencesSocial sciences
Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...
from Concordia University
Concordia University
Concordia University is a comprehensive Canadian public university located in Montreal, Quebec, one of the two universities in the city where English is the primary language of instruction...
(then called Sir George Williams University), as well as an MBA from the same university. Her first job as a reporter, in the early 1970s, was with the now-defunct Montreal weekly newspaper
Weekly newspaper
A weekly newspaper is a general-news publication that is published on newsprint once or twice a week.Such newspapers tend to have smaller circulations than daily newspapers, and are usually based in less-populous communities or small, defined areas within large cities; often, they may cover a...
the Sunday Express
Sunday Express (Montreal)
The Sunday Express was an English-language weekly newspaper published in Montreal.-Foundation:The paper was published by Midnight founder Joe Azaria, who also tried without success to turn the paper into a daily, under the name Daily Express. That experiment lasted less than a year, as the paper...
. In the late 1970s she joined CBC, eventually becoming a current affairs reporter for The City at Six.
In 1980 she returned to school to earn her MBA (Marketing Research, Honours, 1985), while still working as a journalist for CBC-TV and Variety. In 1986, she became a reporter/producer for the CBC-TV business show Venture
Venture (TV series)
Venture is a weekly Canadian business television series that aired on CBC Television from 1985 to 2007. The show focused mostly on business documentaries, but also aired business-related news pieces...
. In 2002-2003, she co-hosted the CBC Newsworld
CBC Newsworld
CBC News Network is a Canadian English language Category C specialty news channel owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . It broadcasts into over 10 million homes in Canada. It is the world's third-oldest television service of this nature, after CNN in the United States and...
program Inside Media with Matthew Fraser
Matthew Fraser (journalist)
Matthew William Fraser is a British-Canadian journalist, academic, and author known for his writing about the media industries...
.
Toronto Star
Zerbisias joined the Toronto StarToronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
in 1989. She began as a broadcasting critic and reporter and, in 1991, joined the Montreal bureau. In 1993, she returned to Toronto and became media reporter. She won the 1996 National Newspaper Award for critical writing for her columns about magazines; the award noting that Zerbisias "is not one to mince with words as she focuses on the subject matter at hand. She proceeds to give us her insights, analysis and critique not only with rhetorical, stylistic and intellectual rigor, but with gusto and passion, a rare commodity in today's bland politically correct journalism." In 1997, she became TV critic and then, in 2003, was appointed media columnist.
Zerbisias' blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
for the Star, Azerbic http://thestar.blogs.com/azerb/ effectively went on hiatus in August 2006 and ceased publishing the following December having won Best Media Blog in the 2005 Canadian Blog Awards. She continued as media critic until June 2007, when she became the social issues and cultural affairs columnist at the Toronto Star. In January 2008, she launched a new blog, with a focus on feminist issues, for The Toronto Star, Broadsides http://thestar.blogs.com/broadsides/.
Controversies
Throughout her career as a columnist, Zerbisias has taken a number of controversial positions, especially with respect to the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. The conflict is wide-ranging, and the term is also used in reference to the earlier phases of the same conflict, between Jewish and Zionist yishuv and the Arab population living in Palestine under Ottoman or...
. Among other things, she was an early advocate of broadcasting by Al-Jazeera in Canada, and asked former Minister of Justice
Minister of Justice (Canada)
The Minister of Justice is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Department of Justice and is also Attorney General of Canada .This cabinet position is usually reserved for someone with formal legal training...
Irwin Cotler
Irwin Cotler
Irwin Cotler, PC, OC, MP was Canada's Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada from 2003 until the Liberal government of Paul Martin lost power following the 2006 federal election. He was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons for the constituency of Mount Royal in a by-election...
whether he was loyal to Canada or Israel.
External links
- Zerbisias' columns in the Toronto Star
- Azerbic - Zerbisias' former blog page at the Toronto Star
- "In Your Face", The Ryerson Review of Journalism (Spring 2006)
- Broadsides - Zerbisias' new blog page at the Toronto Star
- Antonia Zerbisias interview - Thursday, 09 October 2008