Dateline Canada set to launch on Citytv, helmed by investigative journalist Diana Swain

Dateline Canada

Citytv has announced the launch of Dateline Canada, the first international expansion of the NBC Dateline franchise.

Set to premiere Thursday, Nov. 26 on Citytv and Citytv+ with a two-hour special, the inaugural episode will bring the Dateline brand’s signature long-form investigative treatment to the 1990 disappearance of University of Toronto student Elizabeth Bain.

Diana Swain

The Canadian franchise will be helmed by veteran journalist and Dateline Canada contributing correspondent Diana Swain, who had a 33-year career with CBC prior to launching her own corporate communications firm in 2024. The longtime investigative journalist is a former Executive Producer of flagship CBC investigate program, The Fifth Estate, and left CBC as Managing Editor, Investigative Journalism.

Following the examination of decades of police files on the Scarborough cold case, the Dateline Canada special promises to share previously unreported details of the police investigation, including exploring the wrongful conviction of Robert Baltovich.

“I’m proud to bring this story to Canadian audiences,” said Swain, in a Citytv announcement. “With Dateline Canada, we have an opportunity to re-examine a complex story through a fresh lens, connect pieces that may have been overlooked, and bring viewers a deeper understanding of the events that shaped this case and investigation.”

“For more than three decades, Dateline has been telling stories that resonate with audiences,” added Keith Morrison, award-winning correspondent for Dateline NBC. “To see the franchise expand with Diana Swain leading the new Canadian edition is an exciting evolution for the broadcast, and I’m honoured to help welcome this new chapter to Canadian audiences.”

The Dateline format is licensed globally by NBCUniversal Formats, a division of Universal Studio Group. Catherine Legge and Claire Adams are executive producing for Rogers Studios.