Kevin Newman, Anchor, Global National

We depend on the news media to bring us information and insights about the world around us. The present unfolds before our eyes and we need to try to be up to speed on current events because after they happen, they become history. Understanding history is essential because this adds to our understanding of cultures and their progression. Sometimes we may not understand how and what happens in places in our world that see conflict. However each piece of information that we get adds to our ongoing education about our world. There is endless discovery in our world, and unfortunately seemingly endless conflict. As a result we are going to experience stories that inspire us and sadden us through the news.

The researchers, producers, editors, camera operators, reporters, anchors, etc. all work together to bring you the facts about what is happening in our world. The dynamic team that brings you your daily news, does so under tight deadlines and a lot of pressure. They are held to the highest of standards so that you can gain a balanced perspective of what goes on in our world.

One great example of a fast paced operation Global National. This is a broadcast that does a lot to bring us together as Canadians. National issues are discussed extensively while global events are featured in a way that is relevant to Canadians. Kevin Newman anchors an information packed half an hour at 5:30 PM from coast to coast to coast! Recently I had a chance to learn about his very interesting career in Broadcasting.

Posing with Scouts following the taping of a special Global National commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Scouts Canada.

R: When did you realize that you wanted to be a broadcaster? Was it a single defining moment, or a gradual realization?

Kevin: I was always a news junkie. I knew I was a little different than my friends and family when I raced home the night of the Quebec election in 1976 to watch the Separatist's gain power through the Parti Quebecois. I remember thinking "I want to be near what's happening, not watching it this way". That was when I first considered going into journalism. I was 15.

R: Who inspired you in your youth to enter broadcasting?

Kevin: My hero in broadcasting was an anchor named Peter Trueman. He was crusty, gruff, and not very good looking. But he had integrity and it showed. You always had the feeling he had filtered everything he reported and believed he was reporting it as best he could -- even though I now know he couldn't possibly have had his fingerprints over everything. But you believed him because he obviously cared.

Kevin gets busted snooping around in the Prime Minister's office.

R: What is the most memorable news event you experienced before you went to school, during school, during your time in the US, and since you started on GN?

Kevin: Most memorable before school: Election of the PQ and the Apollo 11 moonshot.

Most memorable while at University: US President Ronald Reagan shot in 1981.

Most memorable during my time in US: death of Diana the Princess of Wales in 1997, I anchored 14 hours of live coverage on ABC.

Since GN: 9/11. 16 hours of live coverage of a place I loved and involving people I knew well.

R: What was it like seeing New York being attacked on that horrible day? You lived and worked there, what was it like seeing brave New Yorkers help each other and overcome such a difficult time? How has 9/11 changed not only how we think about the world, but the news media in general?

Kevin: We were a news network that was 4 days old, so no one had ever coped with something like this. I knew when the second plane hit that we were witnesses something extraordinary a story that would change everything. I saw that at home, and raced into the station in record time. I didn't let it affect me too deeply until I was driving home. I had vicariously lived through a disaster I knew would include people who had been my friends in the US, and then saw the beautiful and majestic mountains of BC on my drive home. I pulled over and bawled uncontrollably for half an hour by the side of the road. It made reporting more fearful for years after, including my own. We believed everything had changed and we still aren't sure it hasn't. We now live with the belief that worse is yet to come. Or is it?

R:Your resume is quite extensive, it seems like you have accomplished everything one could in your profession, what challenges in Broadcasting do you still look forward to? What haven't you done that you want to do?

Kevin: I've done far more than I ever imagined I would. I'm in golden territory now...with nothing to prove to myself. I still like the work, still like telling stories, still like being at the center of things. When I don't I will leave and maybe teach for awhile.

Sitting at the back of a LAV-III armoured vehicle in Afghanistan.

R:What was your favorite event of 2007 that you covered? Which one has been the most difficult to cover this year?

Kevin: The visit to Kandahar Afghanistan was important. I had been reporting on Afghanistan without seeing it, knowing our soldiers, or the Afghan people. Being there helped me bring my knowledge gap. You need to see a place to understand its geography, its military challenges, and its people. I also got the strong sense that while the soldiers will do what they're told to do, they're struggling with its bigger meaning and whether they're really making a difference. They want to believe they are, but they're not sure.

Shortly after arriving at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan. Our Alberta Team of Francis Silvaggio and Tim Lee, along with GN Producer Marc Riddell.

R: What I find amazing is how objective some broadcasters can be. Especially during election time. It must be hard to be neutral during the heat of an election, but broadcasters like yourself can initiate a line of questioning that simply focuses on the candidates. What is your favorite part about covering elections and which election was the most challenging to cover?

Kevin: Luckily I have no partisanship in me. I've voted Liberal, Conservative NDP and Green in my life. The feeling on election night is like nothing else, you know you're covering a big story as its happening, and no one is getting hurt in it! Being at the apex of history at a moment like that is thrilling.

Canada's "Big 3" Lloyd Robertson (CTV), Peter Mansbridge (CBC),
Kevin Newman (Global)

R: How would you describe the dedication and hard work that it takes to get to where you are in your field? What advice do you have for all those young broadcasters out there who are truly passionate about news?

Kevin: If you're interested in being a star, take up acting. You have to love the news, and be passionate about storytelling skills. Writing is what really matters. There are some people who get to 'host' quickly, but its for the wrong reasons such as how they look. Those people flame out first. The ones who concentrate on the nuts and bolts of reporting and writing and observing last.

R: What is it like to be recognized with awards from your peers? Do you have a trophy room in your house like a hockey player?

Kevin: I have a room my children refer to as my 'self-love' room ;-) I like trophies. I never won any as a kid for any sports, so I want them now. :-)

The GN Vancouver Team after our second Gemini Award.

R: How do you feel about how broadcasting and media are changing in this Internet age? How is broadband wireless Internet accelerating technology and enabling new opportunities and challenges in media?

Kevin: We are in the early days of a video news revolution. The ability to exchange video as easily as we e-mail or download iTunes will change everything. Its the last frontier the Internet has -- and like the print and audio media, everything will change. The economics of the industry will change, how people access news will change? How? I have no idea. At the beginning of a revolution there is only chaos. It takes time for its true form to take shape.

R:Who are your favorite broadcasters and shows?

Kevin: The favorite show I ever worked on was Nightline with Ted Koppel. Good and kind people, dedicated to hard work, context and storytelling. The leadership was extraordinary, and everyone worked as a team. It didn't last long enough as an assignment for me, but I was glad to get a taste of the good life.

R: What other passions do you have? If you did not become a broadcaster, where would you be today?

Kevin: I would have wanted to be a firefighter (if hadn't been allergic to smoke). I toyed with entering the coast guard, but in the end my choices were narrowed to: business, journalism or teaching. I ran a painting business and didn't enjoy working for customers. Tried an office job and was bored still. Journalism won.

R:Who is your favorite Canadian and why?

Kevin: I like all Canadians. I really do. They're just nicely balanced and very very lucky to live here.

R: Are you a Canucks fan? If not, why not? Who is your favorite player of all time?

Kevin: I'm a complete fake when it comes to hockey. I like to be part of the event, so I cheer for whichever team is the home team in the city I live in. First the Leafs, then the Canadiens, then the Oilers, Devils, Canucks and soon the Senators. Not sure what that says about me....
When I was a kid I loved big Frank Mahovolich.

R: Im noticed you canoe! My Favorite place to Canoe or Kyack is the River of Golden Dreams in Whistler. Where is your favorite place to row, canoe or kayak?

Kevin: I love rowing and canoeing at my cabin in Ontario. In the morning it’s like glass, and the sound the paddles/oars make is like nothing else.

Be sure to watch Global National each night @ 5:30 on Global. Seeing the reports will give you a good idea just how much work goes into a nightly national news broadcast.

Kevin has been lucky enough to experience many of the worlds most important events. You can't get any closer to the action! Here is a summary of Kevin's Career from Wikipedia:

Kevin Newman (born June 2, 1959 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian journalist and news anchor. Since 2001, he has been anchor of Global National, and currently also hosts Global's weekly newsmagazine series Global Currents.
Newman began his career in broadcasting at CHRWA radio in London, Ontario, becoming the first News Director and working on Western Mustang football broadcasts as the campus station of the University of Western Ontario formally organised. After graduating, he landed his first job as a reporter for Global in 1981. In 1986, he moved to CTVA as the network's parliamentary correspondent, and in 1988 he joined the CBC as a reporter and anchor, hosting the CBC's Midday from 1992 to 1994. He was also a substitute anchor on The National.
In 1994, Newman moved to ABC News in the United States, where he anchored World News Now until 1996 and served as a correspondent for World News Tonight until 1998, when he was named co-anchor, with Lisa McReea, of Good Morning America. He also worked on "Nightline" with Ted Koppel.

In 2001, Global Television launched Global National, and hired Newman as its first anchor and executive editor.
Newman led a television first in Canada. In 2004 Global National with Kevin Newman hit the road on the "Decision Canada" Election tour. The other networks followed suit with their own version of the tour. Later in 2004, Newman was the only Canadian anchor to anchor coverage of the U.S. presidential election from the United States, as Global National with Kevin Newman broadcast from the studios in the network's bureau in Washington.
Newman received the Gemini Award for Best News Anchor in 2005 and 2006.
He also writes an online blog, and occasional columns which appear in the National Post.
In terms of ratings, Global National with Kevin Newman competes closely with CTV National News as the most-watched national newscast in Canada.