Robert Fisher (journalist)

Robert Fisher (born 1948 or 1949) is a retired Canadian radio and television journalist.

Background

As a journalism student in the 1960s, he wrote his master's thesis on the then-emerging phenomenon of women in politics.[1] His first job as a journalist was with a local radio station in Oakville, Ontario, where he began working in 1967.[2]

Television career

Fisher worked for CBC Television in the 1980s as a Queen's Park reporter and host of Dateline Ontario for CBLT,[3] until taking a job with the Global Television Network in 1988.[4] While at Global, he hosted the weekend newsmagazine Focus Ontario on CIII in the 1980s and 1990s.[5] He was also the network's Queen's Park bureau chief,[6] and a sometime anchor of the station's 6 p.m. newscasts on weekends[7] and its 11 p.m. weekday newscasts.[8]

He served on the journalist's panel for the election debates in the 1987 provincial election as a representative of the CBC,[9] and in the provincial elections of 1990,[10] 1995[11] and 1999 for Global.[12] In the 1999 debate, his final question to Ontario Liberal Party leader Dalton McGuinty was perceived by some Liberals as unfair.[12]

As well, he appeared as an analyst for the network's coverage of the federal elections in 1988,[4] 1993[13] and 1997.[14]

He was fired from Global in 2000 after criticizing what he perceived as the network's shift toward infotainment reporting.[15]

Radio career

He returned to CBC Radio shortly thereafter. He was an afternoon news anchor on CBLA, CBC Radio One's station in Toronto, appeared on the network's Ontario stations as a political analyst,[16] continued to anchor provincial election coverage for that service in 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2014, and filed occasional science news reports, under the pseudonym "Dr. Robert", for the network's flagship interview program As It Happens.

Fisher has taught journalism law and ethics at Centennial College and radio and television news at Ryerson University.

In 2015, Fisher announced his retirement from journalism.[2] His final day at CBC Radio was July 23.[2]

References

  1. ↑ Fresh Air (CBLA-FM), July 19, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "CBC's Robert Fisher retires after 49 years in broadcasting". CBC News, July 23, 2015.
  3. ↑ "TV stations offer 2 dates for leaders' debate". The Globe and Mail, August 5, 1987.
  4. 1 2 "The networks' election race". Toronto Star, November 19, 1988.
  5. ↑ "Journalist to speak to Cambrian grads". Sudbury Star, October 15, 1999.
  6. ↑ "Change at Global". The Globe and Mail, January 16, 1991.
  7. ↑ "Global to upgrade news and sports: Traders will be one of few Canadian series to air on network". Ottawa Citizen, June 3, 1998.
  8. ↑ "Queen of England, pawn of the airwaves". Toronto Star September 1, 2000.
  9. ↑ "Ontario's image-conscious leaders prepare for critical TV showdown". Ottawa Citizen, August 15, 1987.
  10. ↑ "Party leaders live". Ottawa Citizen, August 15, 1990.
  11. ↑ "3 party leaders to hold televised debate May 18". Toronto Star, May 9, 1995.
  12. 1 2 "Debating the debate". Ottawa Citizen, May 19, 1999.
  13. ↑ "TV will keep an eye on the ballot box". Windsor Star, October 23, 1993.
  14. ↑ "Election TV coverage plentiful". The Guardian (Charlottetown), June 2, 1997.
  15. ↑ "Pink slip surprises host". The Telegram, September 7, 2000.
  16. ↑ "Radio voices set to read". Windsor Star, November 18, 2006.


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