Canadian journalists Ali Velshi, Wab Kinew join Al Jazeera America
Canadian journalist Ali Velshi has left his position as CNN’s chief business correspondent to join Al Jazeera America. Wab Kinew also tweeted Tuesday that he will be joining Al Jazeera as a correspondent for the documentary program "Fault Lines."
Canadian journalist Ali Velshi has left his position as CNN’s chief business correspondent to join Al Jazeera America.
Based in New York, the new channel is expected to launch later this year. Velshi will develop and host a daily primetime business program. The magazine-style program is yet to be named but will run for 30 minutes. It will initially launch in a weekly format but is expected to move to a five-days-a-week schedule by year’s end.
The program will cover a variety of topics including employment, personal finance, healthcare and education and will feature a mix of field reports, studio guests and interactive discussions designed to highlight how economic developments in the U.S. and around the globe affect the daily lives of Americans, according to a press release.
We are thrilled to secure Ali’s extraordinary talents and services,” said Ehab Al Shihabi, executive director of Al Jazeera international operations. “Al Jazeera America will be bringing respected, independent reporting to its viewers and that’s exactly the type of coverage Ali Velshi is known for.”
Velshi called it a “tremendous opportunity.”
“I’m thrilled to be joining Al Jazeera America, an organization that puts quality, fact-based journalism first,” he said.
Wab Kinew also tweeted Tuesday that he will be joining Al Jazeera as a correspondent for the documentary program "Fault Lines." He will continue in his role as the director of Indigenous Inclusion at the University of Winnipeg. The Anishinaabe journalist has previously hosted the CBC Television series “8th Fire”and won an Adrienne Clarkson RTNDA Award.
Tamara Baluja is an award-winning journalist with CBC Vancouver and the 2018 Michener-Deacon fellow for journalism education. She was the associate editor for J-Source from 2013-2014.