CBC News is shaking up anchor roles at “The National” as it makes plans to launch a free 24-hour live streaming channel this fall.
The public broadcaster’s news division announced several changes Thursday that it says will help build a new home for local, national and current affairs reporting with commercial breaks.
CBC’s flagship news program The National will now be anchored primarily by veteran journalist Adrienne Arsenault, who shared the anchor role in recent years.
Arseno will sit in the chair from Monday to Thursday, and will also take the title of CBC News correspondent. Meanwhile, her current co-host Andrew Chang will retire from the role in “The National” in August to begin work on an untitled new daily show on the streaming channel.
Also, many specifics are still being worked out, said CBC News editor-in-chief Brody Fenlon. The ad-supported channel doesn’t yet have a name or an official launch date, for example, and potential live anchor components will be determined in the coming months.
But he stressed that it will be markedly different from the CBC News Network, the breaking news channel that is available on cable, satellite and via a CBC Gem subscription.
“I really see it as a companion channel, in a way, but very distinct and different,” he said in an interview about the new platform.
“A big part of that will be bringing together the journalism that we do across the country, which sometimes comes and goes in a newscast … It’s usually longer form. It’s more evergreen. And it can live more than a day.
CBC News Network will remain the exclusive home of news programs such as Power and Politics and Canada Tonight with Ginella Massa, he added.
The CBC says it is looking to strengthen its digital news platforms to “better serve Canadian audiences on both television and digital platforms.”
Chang’s retirement from hosting “The National” will free him up to help shape the new streaming offering, Fenlon said.
“We will be investing in new programs – Andrew’s show is one of them and we will have to announce more about the others,” he said.
“There we will experiment with format and time and learn what the audience is looking for from us.”
The addition of a free-to-air CBC News channel comes as more broadcasters introduce ad-supported streaming channels to address customer fatigue from the significant number of paid subscription platforms.
American streaming operator Pluto TV plans to launch in Canada this fall with a slate of free-to-air channels that include a range of movie and TV programming, as well as live streams of news channels.
Global News has already committed to making feeds from 14 markets nationwide available on Pluto, a service it already offers through Amazon’s Prime Video.
For many years, CBC News has operated a free streaming channel of highlights from its latest news programs, available on the Roku Channel in Canada and various other platforms around the world. The existing channel is an early version of what they envision the new streaming channel to become, Fenlon said.
On The National, Ian Hanomansingh will continue to host on Fridays and Sundays with his new weekly interview segment, which will debut in the fall. He will also become a regular host of Cross Country Checkup on CBC Radio and the CBC News Network.
It is not the first time The National has faced a reshuffle since its enthusiastic relaunch as a four-man program in August 2017, following the retirement of long-time presenter Peter Mansbridge.
When The National was first revamped following Mansbridge’s departure, the show was pitched as a snappy, multi-platform news program with four recognizable journalists, varying in age and experience, working in different locations across the country.
In early 2020, CBC began making changes to this format in response to viewer feedback. Arsenault and Chang took over the main household duties during the week, while Hanomansingh moved to Fridays and Sundays.
A fourth anchor, Rosemary Barton, has taken a new position as CBC News’ chief political correspondent. She still hosts the “CBC News: At Issue” panel on Thursdays and continues her role as host of “Rosemary Barton Live.”
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