Retired CBC journalist Bob McKeown is this year’s recipient of the Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF) Lifetime Achievement Award.
McKeown, best known for his more than 30 years with the public broadcaster’s flagship investigative program, The Fifth Estate, is being recognized for his “decades-long record of excellence in investigative journalism, reporting from more than 60 countries and winning dozens of awards and honours as a reporter, host producer, writer and documentary filmmaker.”
“Bob McKeown is the journalists’ journalist — an investigative reporter who can be proud of a lifetime of doing important journalism that matters,” said jury chair and CJF Board Chair Kathy English. “His impactful work has consistently exposed numerous issues of vital importance for many years, right up to the current day. Bob has shown tremendous courage in taking on stories about powerful people and broken systems, leading his team to produce outstanding investigative journalism, regardless of the threats they faced.”
McKeown started his broadcast career in 1971 as a freelance sports commentator in his hometown of Ottawa after graduating from Yale University, while also playing as a league all-star for the Grey Cup champion Ottawa Rough Riders. After retiring from football, he pursued journalism full-time, hosting on both CBC radio and TV in Ottawa and Montreal. He joined The Fifth Estate in 1981. He went on to work for CBS News in New York, starting in 1990, and later joined NBC as a Dateline correspondent. He returned to The Fifth Estate in 2002, a two-time Emmy winner, among many other accolades earned over the course of his career.
After 31 years with the show, McKeown made his final appearance on the program in November 2024 as the host of its 50th anniversary special.
He’ll be honoured at the CJF Awards ceremony on June 12 at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto.
McKeown joins previous CJF Lifetime Achievement Award winners, including Phillip Crawley, Kim Bolan, John Honderich, Thaioronióhte Dan David, Peter Mansbridge, Lloyd Robertson, Joe Schlesinger, Knowlton Nash, June Callwood and Trina McQueen.
