Alan Horn, on Jan. 16. Horn first joined Rogers Communications in 1990 after working as a tax consultant for Ted Rogers for over a decade. A longtime Rogers executive, board member and family ally, he served as VP, Finance and Chief Financial Officer from 1996 to 2006 and Chair of the Board from 2006 to 2017. He also served as Interim President and Chief Executive Officer from October 2008 to March 2009 and from October 2016 to April 2017. A member of the Advisory Committee of the Rogers Control Trust, Horn served on the board of directors continuously from 2006 through the 2021 power struggle that saw Edward Rogers gain control of the RCI board. In a release, Rogers credited Horn with substantially strengthening the company’s balance sheet, turning the company’s debt from junk bond to investment grade status, bringing the Rogers operating companies under one public stock, introducing a dividend program and playing an integral role on many transformative acquisitions. Read more here.
David Onley, 72, on Jan. 14. The first person with a disability to hold the post of lieutenant governor of Ontario, Onley suffered partial paralysis after a bout with polio as a child and preferred to get around via electric scooter. His appointment, from 2007 to 2014, followed a radio and television broadcasting career as one of the first on-air television personalities with a visible disability. Born in Midland, ON and raised in Scarborough, Onley didn’t gain full-time employment until age 34. Unable to find work after graduating from the University of Toronto, Onley established himself as a Canadian authority on NASA’s space programs after publishing Shuttle: A Shattering Novel of Disaster in Space in 1982. That led to a broadcast career that began at CFRB Toronto where he hosted a weekly science show. He went on to join the CKO network full-time in 1983. Citytv co-founder Moses Znaimer took notice and hired Onley a year later as the station’s weather specialist. He went on to serve as the first news anchor for the station’s new morning show, Breakfast Television, from 1989-95, followed by a stint as an education specialist. With the launch of CP24, he continued anchoring in addition to hosting and producing technology series Home Page. Onley received numerous honours in recognition of his disability advocacy, including induction into the Terry Fox Hall of Fame, the Scarborough Walk of Fame, the Order of Ontario, and the Order of Canada. Read more here.
Janice Johnston, 62, on Jan. 13, of cancer. Born in London, ON, Johnston studied Radio and Television Arts at Ryerson University, landing her first broadcasting job in radio as a country and western DJ at CKNX Wingham, ON. She relocated to Edmonton in the 1980s, joining CISN-FM as a reporter and was later named news director. She eventually moved into television news and CFRN-TV as a reporter and had been with CBC Edmonton since 2002. Known for her tenacious, dogged reporting, Johnston covered courts and crime in the city for more than three decades. Her in-depth reporting earned her several awards over the years, including a national RTDNA Award in 2016 when she was recognized with the Adrienne Clarkson Diversity Award for her coverage of the trial of a 13-year-old Alberta boy acquitted of killing his abusive father. She is survived by her husband of 36 years, Scott Johnston, a former longtime reporter with 630 CHED in Edmonton. Listen to Jessica Ng and Min Dhariwal remember Johnston on CBC Edmonton’s Radio Active here.
Tony Cox, 86, on Jan. 3 after a lengthy battle with cancer. Originally from Sydney, Australia, Cox moved to Canada in 1958 and became interested in a career in broadcasting. His first stop was CFCW Camrose, AB, before he was hired at CFRN-TV Edmonton. He went on to serve as News Director at CHEK TV in Victoria, BC for two decades. In addition to his work in television news, Cox served on many boards and associations, including President of the Radio and Television News Director of Canada (RTNDA). He served as Chairman of the Board of Oak Bay Parks and Rec, was a founding Director of Victoria Crime Stoppers and was named Rotarian of the Year in 1990 by the Victoria Rotary Club. After retiring from CHEK, he served as an Executive Assistant with the B.C. Government, a skipper with the Victoria Harbour Ferry, a harbour patrol officer with Transport Canada, and a security officer at Government House for B.C. Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin.
Eduardo Olivares, 81, on Dec. 27. Born in Chile in 1941, Olivares spent the early years of his career as a freelance broadcaster, eventually getting his own show at a small radio station in 1962. When the government was overthrown in 1973 by dictator Augusto Pinochet, he was arrested for working there and suffered the fate of many broadcasters. After being imprisoned, tortured and eventually exiled from his homeland, in 1978 he arrived in Saskatoon with his wife and four children. After moving to Vancouver in 1992, he was encouraged to return to radio and created “Latino Soy” (I am Latino), a radio program designed to unite Vancouver’s growing Latin American community and help newly-arrived immigrants get information and connect with others. The show first aired on CJVB AM1470, before moving to Fairchild Radio’s CHKG in 1997, where it was broadcast on 96.1 FM, Monday to Friday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for 25 years. The show featured local talent, delivered news from Latin America, and played both new Latin music and old favourites. Olivares continued broadcasting the show from his home through the pandemic, up until the beginning of December. In 2002, he was recognized for his outstanding contribution to the Latin community and to Canada as a whole, when he was awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal.
Harvey Rosen, 83, on Dec. 22, after a brief illness and prolonged battle with dementia. Raised in North End Winnipeg, Rosen had a 33-year career as a school teacher, but was equally known for his side hustle as a sports reporter for The Canadian Press covering the Winnipeg Jets, Blue Bombers, and Manitoba Moose, among other teams. Rosen was also a weekly sports columnist for the Winnipeg Jewish Post, covering the achievements of Jewish athletes for more than 40 years. While he retired from teaching in 1995, he continued sports reporting until 2018.
