CCR People

Kerry Edmonds, director of communications for Canadian Heritage minister Sheila Copps, has been hired as director of operations in the department’s communications and public affairs branch. Naline Rampersad will take over as Copps’ director of communications. Stephanie Smyth has been named news director of Global Toronto. Her 15 years in news have seen her report on-air, anchor newscasts and act as assignment editor. Most recently, she was news director at the Toronto radio station 680News. Michele Erskine has been named VP at Solutions Research Group Consultants Inc. Previously, she worked at Youth Culture Group, where she was director of research and managing partner. Prior to that, she was director of marketing for the radio division of Corus Entertainment Inc., and director of research at Media Buying Services. Doug Richardson, partner and chair of the law firm, McKercher, McKercher & Whitmore, has been appointed to the board of directors of SaskTel. As well, Tracey Bakkeli has been named vice-chair of the SaskTel board. Julie Lam joined Decima Research Inc. in Toronto as a senior consultant on April 7. Lam was previously senior research analyst at Corus Entertainment Inc. Cable entrepreneur Charles Keating has been named as a Member of the Order of Canada. Keating owned Nova Scotia-based Access Communications Inc. and 45% of Halifax Cablevision Limited before selling his cable assets to Shaw Communications Inc. in 1999 (CCR, April 6/99). The cable systems are now owned by EastLink Cable Systems. Keating is currently a member of Shaw’s board of directors. Kathy Corcoran has joined Craig Media Inc. as research director where she will be overseeing audience and market research for all of Craig’s television operations, including the new toronto/one station that is scheduled to launch in September. Corcoran was previously with CTV where she spent two and a half years as research manager. Prior to that she worked for WIC Television and Nielsen Media Research. Stéphan Bureau has been replaced as anchor of Radio-Canada’s 10 p.m. newscast, Le Téléjournal, by Gilles Gougeon. Gougeon is the former host of the network’s consumer affairs program La Facture. Bureau will be working on a multimedia Internet TV program he’s developing with Le Groupe Rozon, the company behind the Just for Laughs festival. Four-time figure skating world champion Kurt Browning is joining the Biography Channel as a regular host. Erin O’Neill leaves Bell Canada, where she was director of marketing and communications, to take up the position of promotions account manager at The Family Channel. Keith Clarkson of Telefilm Canada will be temporarily relocating to the agency’s Halifax office from Toronto for one year as business unit director. His replacement in Toronto will be Agnes Zak.

CCR People

Broadcast | April 10, 2003

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