Since the 1930s, CBC News services have kept Canadians at home and abroad informed about their communities, their country and the world. CBC/Radio-Canada is the country's largest news organization, employing more than 800 journalists in Canada and around the globe. Their stories now appear on CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBCNews.ca and CBC Newsworld. CBC/Radio-Canada correspondents operate out of New York, Washington Los Angeles and Buenos Aires covering the Americas; in London, Paris and Moscow covering Europe; in Nairobi covering Africa; in Jerusalem, covering the Middle East; Beijing covering Asia and Kandahar covering Afghanistan. more
News gathering at CBC.ca
CBC.ca offers up-to-the-minute reporting of breaking news, expert analysis and in-depth background information on current issues affecting Canadians at home and abroad. Visitors to CBCNews.ca will find one of the largest online news sites created by and for Canadians. In addition to producing unique web-based news content and features, CBC.ca also showcases television and radio programming, creating a comprehensive multimedia experience for our online audience.
Biographies of CBCNews.ca Staff
Last updated: September, 2009
Rachel Nixon is Director of Digital Media for CBC News. She heads the strategic direction and development of CBC News on digital platforms, including the news website, CBCNews.ca. Before joining CBC in June 2009, Rachel was Global News Director for NowPublic.com in Vancouver. She spent nine years with the award-winning BBCNews.com in the U.K., where most recently she served as Deputy World Editor. While at the BBC, Rachel led coverage of stories such as 9/11, the war in Iraq and the U.S. elections, and was named BBC World Service Editor of the Year in 2007. She has served as an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, and has a BA in Modern Languages from the University of Oxford.
Mark Mietkiewicz is Editorial Manager of CBCNews.ca. Mark started at CBC Radio as a chase producer for Metro Morning in Toronto and later became producer of Radio Noon. Moving on to television, he was a producer at CTV's The Shirley Show until his return to CBC Television where he became senior producer of Midday. Online, Mark was senior producer of the Canada: A People's History website and manager of CBC's Digital Archives website. Mark was a Toronto-based interviewer for Steven Spielberg's Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. He is co-author of Online News Fundamentals, published by CBC News.
Mary C. Sheppard is the executive producer and is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the CBCNews.ca newsroom. Mary returned to the CBC in 2003 after an absence to teach journalism at Ryerson University and to write a novel. She had worked at CBC Radio News for more than a decade as a reporter, editor and manager. Under her leadership, CBCNews.ca has won more than a dozen awards, including the Online News Association's awards for service journalism and for speciality journalism. In 2007, the RTNDA named CBCNews.ca the top website in Canada. Mary has a master's in journalism from Columbia University.
Christine Boyd is a senior producer and the chief copy editor for CBCNews.ca. She joined CBCNews.ca in 2004 and worked as a writer before becoming a copy editor in March 2006. She has more than a decade of experience reporting and editing for news media in print, radio, television and the internet across the country, including the Globe and Mail, the Ottawa Citizen, CBC Radio and Access Television. She has a BA in history and a master's in journalism from Carleton University.
Kim Fox is the senior producer of user generated content and social media. Kim is an online producer who came to us from Rogers Media where she developed a digital content distribution strategy for various magazines, including Maclean's, Canadian Business and Chatelaine. Before that, she worked for CBC Digital for more than two years supporting digital and social media strategy for CBC Radio, Documentary and CBC-TV Arts and Entertainment. Kim studied journalism and marketing at Ryerson University.
Gary Graves is the senior producer of CBCNews.ca responsible for emerging tools and technologies. Prior to joining CBCNews.ca in August 2000, Gary worked for CBC Radio and Television News for 17 years as a producer and executive producer on such programs as The Radio Show, Here & Now, This Morning, Newsworld Today and Benmergui Live. Gary has a degree in journalism and a master of arts in international relations.
Ian Johnson is the senior producer for CBCNews.ca technology, science, health, consumer and business news. He has covered the technology industry since the early 1990s as a writer, columnist and editor. Before joining CBCNews.ca in August 2006, he was the technology editor at the Globe and Mail, where he managed globetechnology.com, the Report on Business tech section and Tech Quarterly (TQ) magazine. He holds a number of media industry honours, including an Andersen Award for technology and business writing, the Richard Snell Award for investigative reporting, and the CATA Alliance Award for Science and Technology Reporting. Ian has an honours bachelor degree in journalism from Carleton University.
Andre Mayer is the senior producer at CBCNews.ca Arts. He has written about arts - primarily books and music - for Toronto Life, the Globe and Mail, the National Post, eye Weekly, Report on Business Magazine, TORO, Shift (where he also served as Arts Editor), Saturday Night, THIS Magazine and Azure. His writing has been anthologized in The Rough Guide to Rock and Signs of Life in the U.S.A.: Readings on Popular Culture for Writers.
Carolyn Ryan is the senior producer for the news desk. She produced the morning show at CBC Radio in Saint John for two years before joining CBCNews.ca as a news writer in 2003. A graduate of both UPEI and Carleton University's School of Journalism, she has worked as an editor at newspapers in Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island.
Blair Shewchuk is CBCNews.ca's senior editor of journalistic standards. He helps set editorial guidelines for our website and is our chief online news trainer. Blair began his career reporting for Southam papers in Ontario and Alberta more than 25 years ago. He joined the CBC in 1989, and has worked as a reporter, editor and producer in both radio and television. Blair moved to CBCNews.ca in 1999 as a news writer and columnist. He has a degree in journalism and a master's in economics.
Our writers, editors and producers
Michelle Bellefontaine is the online journalist for CBC Edmonton. She joined CBCNews.ca in September 2008 after 12 years as a news reporter and associate producer with CBC Radio in Moncton, Yellowknife and Edmonton. Michelle has a bachelor of arts in history from Queen's University and a journalism degree from the University of King's College.
Darren Bernhardt is the online news writer in Manitoba, based in Winnipeg. He joined CBCNews.ca in February 2009 after spending 12 years as a reporter for The StarPhoenix newspaper in Saskatoon. Darren has a bachelor of arts in economics and political science from the University of Winnipeg and a BA in journalism from the University of Regina. Outside of journalism, he dabbles in acrylic painting and creative writing and has co-authored a book, To Kerouac and Back, and a play, Alison's Leather Couch.
John Bowman is an associate producer. He graduated from Queen's University with a degree in biology in 1997 and from the University of King's College with a degree in journalism in 2000. After riding the last wave of the dot-com boom at an ill-fated Toronto start-up company, he came to CBCNews.ca in January 2001.
Ruby Buiza designs and develops our special reports and backgrounders. She also creates graphics and works on program sites. Prior to joining us, Ruby worked for a number of television stations for 10 years. She has a degree in journalism from Ryerson.
Showwei Chu joined CBCNews.ca as a senior news writer on the national news desk in January 2007. Her previous employers include the Globe and Mail, The Canadian Press and Maclean's magazine. She has an undergraduate degree in journalism and a certificate in photography studies from Ryerson University.
Emily Chung is a news writer in Ottawa, joining CBCNews.ca in September 2006. Previously, she worked as a reporter for the Toronto Star and the Vancouver Sun, edited the travel section of an urban cycling magazine and wrote for various other publications. Emily took journalism courses at the University of Western Ontario and the University of British Columbia while completing two chemistry degrees.
Andrew Davidson joined CBCNews.ca as a news writer on the national news desk in August 2006 from The Canadian Press, where he worked as a reporter-editor in Toronto. Andrew has also worked as a news writer for CTV.ca and was an intern reporter at the Globe and Mail. He has a bachelor of arts degree in literature from McGill University and a graduate degree in journalism from Ryerson University.
Janet Davison is a copy editor. She came to CBCNews.ca in June 2006 after 16 years at the Standard in St. Catharines, Ont., where she was a reporter, copy editor and news editor. Janet has a BA in English and history from the University of Toronto and a master's in journalism from the University of Western Ontario.
Alison Downie joined CBCNews.ca as a copy editor in October 2007 after spending almost a decade with Sun Media as a readership editor and as a city editor. She received her journalism degree from Conestoga College and has worked at a number of Ontario newspapers, including the Woodstock Sentinel-Review, the Orangeville Banner, the Orangeville Citizen and the Arnprior Chronicle. She also served a term as a member of the Ontario Press Council.
Muriel Draaisma writes live headlines for Newsworld. She also writes for CBCNews.ca. Previously, she worked as a reporter for the Vancouver Sun, the Edmonton Journal and the Regina Leader-Post. Muriel has lived in five cities in Canada and four provinces. She has an honours bachelor degree in English from the University of British Columbia.
Zach Dubinsky has been a copy editor at CBCNews.ca since September 2007. Previously, he did stints as an editor at the National Post and the Montreal Gazette. For two years, he was the Canada correspondent for Britain's Times Higher Education Supplement, and he has written for several Canadian and U.S. newspapers and magazines. He won the 2003 Award for Excellence in Education Journalism from the Canadian Association of University Teachers for uncovering the McGill University Ayn Rand affair.
Patti Edgar is a news writer in Alberta. She came to CBCNews.ca in June 2006 from the Winnipeg Free Press. She has also worked at the Ottawa Citizen. Patti is based in Calgary. She has a BA from the University of Victoria.
Lianne Elliott is the evening producer on the national news desk. Before joining us in November 2006, she worked as a reporter for five years at The Record in Kitchener, Ont. She has also worked at the Montreal Gazette and the Kingston Whig-Standard. Lianne has a BA in English literature from Queen's University and a master's in journalism from the University of Western Ontario.
Rod Etheridge is an online writer in St. John's. He has been at the CBC since 1992, when he started as a casual in the St. John's newsroom. Rod has since been a radio reporter in Whitehorse and Corner Brook. In 2000, he became a producer and has frequently been assigned as a national reporter.
Lee Ferguson is a features writer at CBC Arts Online. She has written about film and books for the Toronto Star, eye Weekly and Cinema Scope magazine (where she also served as Associate Editor). Lee has a bachelor's degree in cinema studies and English from the University of Toronto.
Mark Gollom joined the national news desk as a writer in 2003. He's worked as a reporter at the National Post, the Ottawa Citizen and the Toronto Sun. Mark has a degree in political science from the University of Western Ontario and a diploma in journalism from Centennial College in Toronto.
John Gushue covers Newfoundland and Labrador for CBCNews.ca. He is also a frequent contributor to CBC Radio in Newfoundland and Labrador. John has been a journalist since 1985, in both print and broadcast. He studied English literature and classics at Memorial University. He joined CBCNews.ca in 2004. (John is on a leave of absence until the spring of 2010)
Marlene Habib joined CBCNews.ca as a copy editor in March 2006. She started her career at the Globe and Mail and then spent 23 years at The Canadian Press, where she wrote and edited news, health and fitness and entertainment, and served as lifestyles editor for two years. She has a bachelor's degree in journalism from Ryerson University and is a certified fitness trainer.
Peter Hadzipetros is a content producer. He's had various responsibilities at CBCNews.ca over the years, from running the consumers zone to working on provincial election sites. Before joining us in 1997, Peter worked for CBC Radio for 15 years. Peter has a degree in creative writing.
Lee Hewitt joined CBCNews.ca in October 2007 as a producer with the In Depth area. Before coming to the CBC, he was the senior web editor at the Toronto Sun and the sports and travel editor at AOL Canada. Lee has degrees in political science and journalism.
Mari Ito is a writer in Halifax and comes to the online team with reporting experience both in radio and TV. Mari was transplanted from Toronto in 2007, soon after graduating from Ryerson University. She honed her print skills at the online desk of The Canadian Press.
Paul Jay is a techology and science writer. He's contributed as a freelancer to the top newspapers and magazines in Canada. He's also been a columnist and worked at CBCSports.ca during the Winter Olympics. Paul has a bachelor of applied arts in journalism from Ryerson University.
Rik Jespersen is a writer in British Columbia. He has worked as a senior writer, editor, producer and reporter for a number of broadcast news organizations in Toronto and Vancouver, including CTV, Citytv, BCTV and CBC. Rik's been with CBC Vancouver since 2003.
Brian Kemp became a copy editor at CBCNews.ca in March 2006. He spent the first nine years of his journalism career at the Telegraph-Journal in Saint John, where he began as a general reporter. While at the Telegraph-Journal, he was nominated for two Atlantic Journalism awards. In 2001, he moved to the Daily Gleaner in Fredericton, where he was the opinion editor and deputy managing editor. Brian has a bachelor of arts in English from the University of New Brunswick and a journalism diploma from Holland College.
Tara Kimura is a multimedia producer in Toronto. She came to CBCNews.ca as the consumer writer in July 2006. Tara has worked as a reporter-editor for the CBC Digital Archives website and online for CBC's coverage of the 2002 and 2006 Olympics. Tara has a master of arts in journalism from the University of Western Ontario.
Mike Laanela is a news writer in British Columbia. He came to online after working in radio and television news in Vancouver and Halifax with the CBC. Before joining the CBC in 2003, Mike was a freelance writer and photographer based in Sydney, Australia. He has BA in political science and a master's in journalism, both from the University of British Columbia.Andree Lau is the online journalist in Alberta (Calgary) and returns to CBCNews.ca after seven years as a TV reporter for CBC in Edmonton and New Brunswick. She has also reported for CTV in Ottawa. Born in Vancouver, Andree is a graduate of Carleton University's School of Journalism.
Andrea Lee finished a two-year stint as the associate producer for CBC Radio in Washington, D.C., before starting as the online writer in Windsor in September 2009. She spent much of her Washington time travelling across the United States to help cover the 2008 election. Andrea moved to Washington from Windsor, where she was a radio reporter and associate producer. Before that, she was a reporter at the National Public Radio station in Aspen, Colo. Andrea has a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.
Donna Lee, news writer, covers the North for CBCNews.ca from our Yellowknife bureau. Before joining us in 2006, she worked at CBC Radio and Television in Winnipeg. She's also been a reporter with the Winnipeg Free Press and a freelance writer and broadcaster. Donna has a philosophy degree from Dalhousie University and a journalism degree from the University of King's College.
Sarah Liss is a features writer for CBC Arts Online. She has been writing about Canadian music and culture for almost a decade. The former music editor at Toronto alternative weekly NOW Magazine, she has also contributed arts and cultural criticism to print and online publications including Toronto Life, FLARE, Strut and AOL. She currently writes the Street Spirit column for Toronto's eye Weekly.
Doug MacKay is a copy editor with CBCNews.ca. He was previously a senior editor with the Globe and Mail Report on Business, GlobeinvestorGOLD.com, Bloomberg News, the Halifax Daily News, and the Winnipeg Free Press. He was a Southam Fellow at the University of Toronto in 1981-82.
Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon, news writer in Saint John, is originally from Ottawa. She holds a bachelor of journalism degree from Carleton University. Bobbi-Jean has made Saint John her home for the last 14 years, working as a reporter for the Telegraph-Journal. In her spare time, she runs a photography business and in 2009 Bobbi-Jean travelled to Zambia and El Salvador to build homes for Habitat for Humanity.
Peter McCluskey, news writer, is a CBC News veteran who has been with CBC.ca since 1998. He is a writer on the Toronto site. Before that, he was most recently CBC Radio's senior producer for British Columbia. Peter has also worked at Newsworld International and The National in senior positions.
Daniel McHardie joined CBCNews.ca in October 2008 as a news writer in New Brunswick. Previously, he worked as the province and business assignment editor at the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal. He also spent more than six years as the Moncton Times & Transcript's legislature bureau chief, along with stints at the Globe and Mail and the Ottawa Citizen. Daniel is a graduate from Carleton University's School of Journalism.
John McHutchion joined the national news desk in September 2009 after eight years writing businss news and features for CBCNews.ca. Before joining CBC in early 2001, John was a business-financial reporter at canoe.ca and the Toronto Star. He also worked at the Yukon News and the Whitehorse Star.
Cameron Mitchell is the associate producer in the encode unit. Cameron has a degree from the University of Guelph.
Martin Morrow is a features writer for CBC Arts Online. He was the chief theatre critic for 11 years at the Calgary Herald, where he also wrote about film, television and arts in general. In 1995, he won the Nathan Cohen Award for Excellence in Theatre Criticism. From 2003-2006, he was Arts and Books editor at Calgary's Fast Forward News and Entertainment Weekly. His 2003 book, Wild Theatre: The History of One Yellow Rabbit, was short-listed for the Alberta Book Award. He has written numerous articles for the Globe and Mail and Books in Canada.
Timothy Neesam has worked as producer and/or director on a wide range of arts and entertainment projects for CBC Radio (Roots and Wings, The Arts Today and Take Five), Radio 3, and CBC.ca. Also a practising photographer, he is a member of Toronto's Gallery 44. Timothy is the co-ordinating producer for CBC Arts Online.
Amil Niazi is an associate producer for social media and user generated content. Before joining CBC, she was the editor of Only, a weekly arts and culture magazine in Vancouver. Her freelance work has appeared in Vancouver Magazine, The Westender and CBC Radio 3. Amil studied journalism at the British Columbia Institute of Technology.
Susan Noakes is an arts news writer and editor. She has been a reporter at the Toronto Star and the Financial Post, a copy editor at the Asian Wall Street Journal in Hong Kong, a news writer at CBC Newsworld and a freelance magazine writer.
Peter Nowak is a senior science and technology writer. Before joining CBCNews.ca, he was the technology and telecommunications reporter for the National Post, as well as for the New Zealand Herald, where he was named 2006 journalist of the year by the Telecommunications Users Association. He was also a freelance correspondent in China for a number of leading newspapers, including the South China Morning Post, the Boston Globe and the Sydney Morning Herald. He also spent six years as an editor at The Globe and Mail, where he was a software columnist and technology writer. Peter has a degree in journalism from Ryerson University.
Kevin O'Connor is the online journalist for CBC Saskatchewan. A Regina resident, he joined CBC in 2004 after a 17-year career in newspapers. He has also reported for Time Magazine.
Mary Ann O'Rourke is a copy editor and came to CBCNews.ca in 2007 from The Toronto Star and The Canadian Press. While at CP, she was a supervising editor for the main bureau in Toronto. Mary Ann has a bachelor's degree from Ryerson.
Jai Parasram was a member of the team that inaugurated CBC Newsworld in Halifax in 1989 and was lineup editor for the network until 1998 when he left the corporation to work as an independent communications and media consultant. He returned to the CBC in 2003 to help create the running news ticker for CBC Newsworld. Jai's career spans more than three decades, mostly in television, during which he has worked as a reporter, editor, producer, news anchor and executive producer. He has won several journalism awards. Jai holds a master of journalism degree from Carleton University.
Mark Quinn joined the CBC in 1999 and most recently, before moving to be the online writer in St. John's, was a radio reporter and a producer in the St. John's newsroom. Before the CBC, he freelanced for Family Practice Magazine, the Toronto Star and Australian Doctor and for a year was the weekend bureau chief in Alliston for the London Free Press. Mark has a BA in political science from McGill and an MA journalism from the University of Western Ontario. In 2008, he won the Canadian Nurses/Canadian Medical Association award for his work uncovering the breast cancer-testing mistakes in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Pras Rajagopalan is a writer for the Toronto section. He has been a writer on the national online desk for the past year. Pras has an arts background writing for such magazines as Spin.com, Wavelength online, umbrellamusic.com. He has degrees from Queen's University and King's College.
Bruce Reeve joined CBCNews.ca as a copy editor in May 2006 after almost 23 years at Cycle Canada as managing editor and editor. He has a BA from the University of Toronto.
Kristy Rich is one of our writers for Quebec, based in Montreal. She joined CBC.ca in September 2009. She previously worked for CBC Radio as a reporter, editor and researcher in Montreal. Before joining the CBC, Kristy worked as a reporter for CJAD Radio in Montreal, and served as Quebec City bureau chief for the Astral Radio Network. Kristy graduated with a degree in Broadcast Journalism from Concordia University.
Robin Rowland is our photo editor and producer. He was one of the first four CBCNews.ca staff when Newsworld Online was launched in 1996. Before that he was a lineup editor and writer for Newsworld. He has also worked for CBC Radio News, CTV News and is the author of four books. His fifth, The Sonkrai Tribunal, was published by Allen and Unwin in April 2008. Robin has an interdisciplinary master's in history and law from York University, a bachelor of journalism from Carleton, and bachelor of arts degree in anthropology from York University.
Jackie Ruryk, national news writer, has been a journalist for more than 20 years. Before joining CBCNews.ca in 2000, she worked for United Press Canada and Broadcast News, as well as community newspapers in Ontario.
Charlene Sadler is a writer on the Newsworld live ticker. She started her career at the Chronicle Herald in Halifax and then moved to the Daily News. She's also freelanced for many of the major newspapers in Canada and has worked at CBC-TV. Charlene has a bachelor of political science from Dalhousie University.
Lara Schroeder came to CBCNews.ca's copy desk in December 2006 from the Toronto Sun, where she had been editing copy since 2003. She also worked on copy desks at the National Post and the Toronto Star after moving to Ontario in 2000. Before that, Lara worked in B.C. at the Nelson Daily News and the Free Press in Fernie, and in Dauphin, Man., at News for You. Lara has a bachelor of arts in English from the University of Winnipeg and a diploma in creative communications from Red River Community College.
Dave Simms is a Calgary-based producer who reports on business and finance for CBCNews.ca. Dave received a BA in Political Science from the University of New Brunswick and an MBA from the University of Calgary. He has been a reporter, editor and producer with CBC Radio, Television, and Newsworld in Alberta and New Brunswick.
Robert Sheppard joined CBCNews.ca in August 2006 as a producer for the In Depth section. He spent much of his career at the Globe and Mail, where he was a reporter, columnist, Alberta bureau chief, parliamentary correspondent and national editor. He spent seven years at Maclean's, where he was a senior editor, senior writer and education editor. Robert was the co-author of The National Deal: The Fight for a Canadian Constitution. He has an honours bachelor of arts in literature and history.
Corinne Smith is the Quebec news writer, based in Montreal. She joined CBC.ca in September 2006. Corinne previously worked for CBC Radio as a news reporter, editor and producer in Montreal and Quebec City. She has also worked at the Montreal Gazette. Corinne has a BA in anthropology and English literature from McGill University, and a master's degree in journalism from Carleton University.
Kazi Stastna joined the copy editing desk at CBCNews.ca in December 2007. She has worked as a reporter and editor since 1996 for various media outlets in North America and Europe, including the Montreal Gazette, Radio Prague, the Czech News Agency (CTK) and FSK Radio in Hamburg. From 1998 to 2001, she was based in Prague, where she helped create and run the award-winning online magazine Central Europe Review. Kazi has a BA from the University of British Columbia.
Bob Sudeyko is an editor with our user generated content and social media unit. He's been in broadcasting for more than 25 years and has worked on air in both radio and television, most recently with CBC Newsworld in Halifax.
Kenichi Sum-Kuriyama is a broadcast technician. Ken was an internet producer at thestar.com before coming to CBCNews.ca. He was also the technical director at a community radio station and worked at The Canadian Press. Ken has a bachelor of arts from York University and several technical courses from Toronto Image Works and George Brown College.
Terra Tailleur is the online journalist for CBC Nova Scotia. For five years, she travelled the country as a radio reporter. Before joining CBC, she worked at several newspapers in Alberta as a reporter and proofreader.
James Turner became an online writer in Winnipeg in September 2009. James had been working at CBC in Winnipeg since the spring as a reporter-editor for radio with an emphasis on crime and justice stories. Before coming to the CBC, James was the justice reporter and a video editor-online reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. He has written a play and published a collection of short stories. He has a bachelor of arts from the University of Manitoba and a diploma in creative communications from Red River College.
Scott Utting joined CBCNews.ca as a reporter in 2000 and became a copy editor in June 2006. Previously, he worked as a newspaper reporter and editor. He has master's degrees in English literature from the University of British Columbia and in journalism from the University of Western Ontario.
Robert Vajda is a designer who worked on the first version of CBCNews.ca in the 1990s. He was also instrumental in the development and design of Newsworld Online. Robert maintains and redesigns our main pages and backgrounders, and creates graphics. He has a degree in film and television from York University.
Paul Vance is a designer at CBCNews.ca. He creates graphics and assembles In Depth features. Paul began his career at the CBC in 1997, writing news for the web at Newsworld Online and for television at Newsworld International. Paul has a degree in English/Anthropology from Trent University and a diploma in journalism from Sheridan College.
Kerry Wall is a broadcast technician. While at Ryerson, she was the online editor at The Eyeopener and after graduation served as a consultant during the planning stages of an overhaul of the Eyeopener's web presence, including the building of a new website. She has a bachelor of journalism from Ryerson University.
John Weidlich has worked as a journalist with CBC Saskatchewan since 1990, and moved from a secondment at CBCNews.ca to a full-time writer in September 2009. He has done stints with CBC Radio in Edmonton, Calgary and Windsor, Ont., and produced documentaries on figures ranging from William Aberhart to Erik Nielsen. John is a graduate of Carleton University.
Jessica Wong is an arts news writer and editor. She joined us after stints as an associate producer with CBC4Kids and ArtsCanada. Jessica has a bachelor's degree in magazine journalism from Ryerson University.
Kevin Yarr is the CBCNews.ca journalist for Prince Edward Island. He brought 12 years of experience writing for regional and national magazines, including En Route, National Post Business Magazine, Canadian Family and a regular column in Progress. He began working part-time at CBCNews.ca in March 2003 and joined us full-time in May 2006.
Prithi Yelaja is a writer on the national news desk. Previously, she was was a senior journalist at the Toronto Star with a speciality in health and was a reporter with The Record in Kitchener. In 1998, Prithi went to Uganda and Kenya to study the HIV/AIDS crisis under a CIDA fellowship. She has a master of social work from the University of Toronto and a bachelor of journalism from Ryerson.
Amina Zafar writes health and science news for our site. Before joining CBCNews.ca, Amina worked for CBC Radio's Quirks & Quarks. She has a degree in environmental science and a master's in journalism.
