Memo: CBC announces new Moscow bureau
The following memo was sent to CBC staff on April 20, 2017 from Jennifer McGuire, General Manager and Editor in Chief.
The following memo was sent to CBC staff on April 20, 2017 from Jennifer McGuire, General Manager and Editor in Chief.
It’s always exciting to announce the opening of a new CBC bureau and a new correspondent. All the more so when the location is Moscow and the correspondent is Chris Brown.
Why Moscow? Returning to Russia with a fixed bureau is a timely investment for CBC in a target-rich news environment. In these anxious times, hardly a day passes without significant events connected to Russian interests. Moscow’s aggressive foreign policy under Vladimir Putin presents all sorts of diplomatic and strategic challenges. The domestic picture is equally striking with endless journalistic opportunities. We need to be there.
Enter Chris Brown, the master storyteller. Chris long ago achieved “go to” status among CBC journalists — a senior reporter trusted with the most important assignments at home and abroad. He showed his mettle covering a string of immense natural disasters including Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in 2013 and the devastating tsunamis in Japan in 2011 and Sumatra in 2004. Other foreign assignments have taken him to Afghanistan, Brazil, Colombia and Hong Kong plus numerous cities in the United States. Based in Vancouver since 2000, Chris has also applied his special touch to Canadian stories of every possible description — winning a slew of awards along the way. No matter what he’s covering, no matter where, Chris’s pure, elegant storytelling connects every time.
Field producer Corinne Seminoff has been back and forth to Russia repeatedly on short-term assignments. I’m pleased to announce that Corinne is now taking up a full time post in Moscow. This is more than a return engagement for Corinne; it’s practically a homecoming. She was based in Moscow for eight years through the early 1990s. As a fluent Russian speaker and highly creative journalist, Corinne will be crucial in developing our content and meeting expectations across platforms.
Rounding out the Moscow team is shooter/editor Pascal Dumont. Pascal has been living and working in Moscow as a transplanted French Canadian for three years. He knows the terrain well, has impressive skills and has earned a great reputation among major news agencies.
There is work to do before the Moscow bureau is fully operational. For one thing, Chris has a couple of big projects ahead in Vancouver, including the BC election. But we hope to have him reporting from Moscow soon after.
Congratulations Chris, Corinne and Pascal. What a team!
H.G. Watson was J-Source's managing editor from 2015 to 2018. She is a journalist based in Toronto. You can learn more about her at hgwatson.com.