CBC radio chief quits, citing 'midlife redesign'
GUY DIXON
November 3, 2007
In a surprise move, the head of CBC English radio, who championed the public broadcaster's re-emphasis on regional and local news, announced she is retiring after five years.
A major force in Canadian radio, Jane Chalmers said yesterday she is simply tired and felt it was time for her to leave the hectic job. In a note to CBC staff, she called her decision a "major midlife redesign," prompted by the recent deaths of her mother, an aunt and a close fellow executive at CBC Radio.
She is also the first of the top executives in charge of radio and TV during the 2005 lockout to leave. Insiders typically painted her as the most sympathetic manager in the upper echelon during the labour dispute and one who felt the clash took a heavy personal toll.
"The job has always come first, and then you start doing some reflection about what does your own life mean and about your own priorities," Ms. Chalmers, 53, said in an interview yesterday. "I've had a great run at the CBC. I love the CBC. Radio is doing very well, but I personally need more balance and a re-look at my life."
She will continue in her position until the end of December. She is leaving her position at a time when CBC English radio is widely seen as the one of the broadcaster's strongest pillars. As CBC president Robert Rabinovitch noted in a staff message yesterday, Radio One's morning shows are in the top three in most local markets, and audience shares are reaching record levels.
However, Radio Two is still settling into a major overhaul of its programming, and the broadcaster remains in the throes of a wholesale return to local news throughout all its divisions. Ms. Chalmers is widely credited by industry insiders as being a major force back into local programming.