Brian Stewart (journalist)
Encyclopedia
Brian Stewart, one of Canada
's most experienced journalists, is host of the foreign affairs show CBC News: Our World as well as senior correspondent of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
's flagship news hour The National.
A leading reporter on The National since 1992, Mr. Stewart was also a host of the hour's current affairs segment The Magazine from 1998-2000. Prior to this post, Stewart was a senior reporter for The Journal as well as a back-up anchor for Barbara Frum
. Though best-known for his television work, he started in print and was a political columnist with The Montreal Gazette from 1968 to 1971. He won a National Newspaper Award in 1969 for feature writing. He announced his retirement from the CBC on July 28, 2009.
in 1942, Stewart was educated in Canada and England
. He attended Toronto's Thornton Hall Private School
and graduated from Ryerson's School of Journalism
in 1964.
in 1971 at CBMT
Montreal as a host of the supper-hour television current affairs program Hourglass. In 1973 he was appointed a national reporter in Ottawa
where he was the network's foreign affairs and military specialist. He became CBC's foreign correspondent in London in 1982 where he worked until joining NBC
as a foreign correspondent in 1985. Stewart returned to Canada in 1987 to become senior reporter with The Journal, a post in which he wrote and hosted a series of specials on North American and world politics.
Stewart has been one of Canada's most prominent foreign correspondents. He covered many of the world's conflicts and has reported from nine war zones, from El Salvador
to Beirut
. During the Gulf War
, he was the first Canadian reporter to get into the liberated Kuwait City
. In the Sudan Civil War in 1989, his report on child slavery, Sudan: Children of Darkness (with Tony Burman
), won several international awards, including the UNDA prize at the Monte Carlo Television Festival. He has worked extensively in underdeveloped countries and was the first North American reporter to focus the world's attention on the massive Ethiopian famine of 1984-85 (also with Tony Burman). In 1987, Stewart's career was the subject of a major documentary, The War Reporters, produced by Brian McKenna
.
"Having Brian Stewart on a story meant no one could ever beat us," says Mark Starowicz
, creator and executive producer of The Journal. "It would always be brilliant journalism and it would always be head and shoulders over any reportage by any other journalist in the world covering that story."
In the course of his reporting career, Stewart has interviewed such leading world's leading figures, including Margaret Thatcher
, Lech Wałęsa
, Nelson Mandela
and Henry Kissinger
.
and they have a daughter, Katie Stewart (b. 1993). The Stewart family lives in Toronto
.
as "Best Overall Broadcast Journalist," the prestigious Gordon Sinclair Award, in 1996. Nominated for numerous Geminis, he won "Best Information Segment" in 1994 for Rwanda: Autopsy of a Genocide, in which he uncovered advanced warnings of the mass murders. In 1995, his moving report Return To Ethiopia was broadcast internationally and his documentary The Somalia Affair won top prize for investigative reporting at the Canadian Association of Journalists awards in 1993.
In May 2004, he presented the Convocation
Address during the 160th Anniversary of Toronto's Knox College, University of Toronto
, titled On the Front Lineshttp://www.utoronto.ca/knox/pages/News%20and%20Events/brian_stewart.htm.
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...
's most experienced journalists, is host of the foreign affairs show CBC News: Our World as well as senior correspondent of 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...
's flagship news hour The National.
A leading reporter on The National since 1992, Mr. Stewart was also a host of the hour's current affairs segment The Magazine from 1998-2000. Prior to this post, Stewart was a senior reporter for The Journal as well as a back-up anchor for Barbara Frum
Barbara Frum
Barbara Frum, OC was a Canadian radio and television journalist, acclaimed for her interviews for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.-Personal life:...
. Though best-known for his television work, he started in print and was a political columnist with The Montreal Gazette from 1968 to 1971. He won a National Newspaper Award in 1969 for feature writing. He announced his retirement from the CBC on July 28, 2009.
Biography
Born in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
in 1942, Stewart was educated in Canada and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He attended Toronto's Thornton Hall Private School
Thornton Hall
Thornton Hall Private School was an incorporated Canadian co-educational private high school that operated for half a century from 1948 to 1997. It was founded by Stuart E...
and graduated from Ryerson's School of Journalism
Ryerson University
Ryerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...
in 1964.
Career
Stewart first joined the CBCCanadian 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...
in 1971 at CBMT
CBMT
CBMT-DT is the CBC's television station in Montreal, Quebec. Programming on CBMT is seen on a network of more than 50 rebroadcasters throughout Quebec and in three communities in northern Manitoba: Brochet, Poplar River, and Shamattawa.-History:...
Montreal as a host of the supper-hour television current affairs program Hourglass. In 1973 he was appointed a national reporter in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
where he was the network's foreign affairs and military specialist. He became CBC's foreign correspondent in London in 1982 where he worked until joining NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
as a foreign correspondent in 1985. Stewart returned to Canada in 1987 to become senior reporter with The Journal, a post in which he wrote and hosted a series of specials on North American and world politics.
Stewart has been one of Canada's most prominent foreign correspondents. He covered many of the world's conflicts and has reported from nine war zones, from El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
to Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
. During the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, he was the first Canadian reporter to get into the liberated Kuwait City
Kuwait City
-Suburbs:Although the districts below are not usually recognized as suburbs, the following is a list of a few areas surrounding Kuwait city:Al-Salam ""السلام"" -Economy:...
. In the Sudan Civil War in 1989, his report on child slavery, Sudan: Children of Darkness (with Tony Burman
Tony Burman
Tony Burman is the Velma Rogers Graham Research Chair at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada.Previously, he served as Al Jazeera's chief strategic advisor for the Americas, 2010-2011, based in Washington DC. He also served as managing director of the Al Jazeera English network, based in Doha,...
), won several international awards, including the UNDA prize at the Monte Carlo Television Festival. He has worked extensively in underdeveloped countries and was the first North American reporter to focus the world's attention on the massive Ethiopian famine of 1984-85 (also with Tony Burman). In 1987, Stewart's career was the subject of a major documentary, The War Reporters, produced by Brian McKenna
Brian McKenna
Brian McKenna is an award winning Canadian documentary filmmaker.He has been a frequent collaborator with his brother Terence McKenna, also an award winning filmmaker, in particular on The Valour and the Horror, a film about strategic bombing during World War 2.-References:...
.
"Having Brian Stewart on a story meant no one could ever beat us," says Mark Starowicz
Mark Starowicz
Mark Starowicz, is a Canadian journalist and producer.Born in Worksop, England, the son of son of Polish émigrés, he and his family immigrated to Montreal in 1954. He received a B.A. from McGill University in 1968. In 1964, he started as a reporter for the Montreal Gazette...
, creator and executive producer of The Journal. "It would always be brilliant journalism and it would always be head and shoulders over any reportage by any other journalist in the world covering that story."
In the course of his reporting career, Stewart has interviewed such leading world's leading figures, including Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa is a Polish politician, trade-union organizer, and human-rights activist. A charismatic leader, he co-founded Solidarity , the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland between 1990 and 95.Wałęsa was an electrician...
, Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
and Henry Kissinger
Henry Kissinger
Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...
.
Personal
Stewart is married to former journalist Tina SrebotnjakTina Srebotnjak
Tina Srebotnjak is a Canadian television journalist.She was born in Slovenia and moved to Canada with her parents as a child, growing up in Mississauga, Ontario...
and they have a daughter, Katie Stewart (b. 1993). The Stewart family lives in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
.
Awards and honours
Stewart received the Gemini AwardGemini Award
The Gemini Awards are annual television broadcasting industry awards in Canada.First awarded in 1986, the Geminis celebrate the achievements of TV members of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. Essentially, it presents awards for the best television productions in Canada. Awards are...
as "Best Overall Broadcast Journalist," the prestigious Gordon Sinclair Award, in 1996. Nominated for numerous Geminis, he won "Best Information Segment" in 1994 for Rwanda: Autopsy of a Genocide, in which he uncovered advanced warnings of the mass murders. In 1995, his moving report Return To Ethiopia was broadcast internationally and his documentary The Somalia Affair won top prize for investigative reporting at the Canadian Association of Journalists awards in 1993.
In May 2004, he presented the Convocation
Convocation
A Convocation is a group of people formally assembled for a special purpose.- University use :....
Address during the 160th Anniversary of Toronto's Knox College, University of Toronto
Knox College, University of Toronto
Knox College is a postgraduate theological college of the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1844 as part of a schism movement in the Church of Scotland following the Disruption...
, titled On the Front Lineshttp://www.utoronto.ca/knox/pages/News%20and%20Events/brian_stewart.htm.
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