Nick Vandergragt on Jan. 25. Vandergragt was best known for his run as a late night talk show host on CFRA Ottawa, starting in 2002. He was among those caught up in a round of layoffs at the station in early 2016. Vandergragt had most recently been hosting “The Nick & Joe Show” podcast, alongside conservative commentator Joseph Ben-Ami, discussing politics and current events from a conservative point of view.
Pamela Segger, 50, on Jan. 22, following a prolonged illness. Segger had a career in insurance, managing an investment advisory team at Merrill Lynch, before returning to Nova Scotia from Alberta in 2003 where she co-founded It’s Alive Theatre Co., and started the Phoenix Dance Studio. She went on to study feature film, graduating from UCLA’s Screenwriting program in 2010, going on to co-found Lunenburg Doc Fest in 2013. She served as its Executive Director and lead programmer for the last decade. Segger also served as lead consultant of the LDF Atlantic Canada Delegation, a year-round initiative promoting and creating professional development opportunities for Atlantic Canadian film producers and directors. She additionally was active with DOC Atlantic, helping launch the Documentary Organization of Canada’s Breakthrough Program, which gives BIPOC filmmakers a start in their filmmaking careers. Segger also served on the board of Women in Film and Television-Atlantic (WIFT-AT) and as Program Chair for WIFT-AT’s Women Making Waves conference. She received Screen Nova Scotia’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023.
John Beattie, 65, on Jan. 11. By the age of 17, Beattie was working in the local CTV newsroom in Ottawa. Among other programs, he was the launch producer for the Sunday Edition with Mike Duffy and by the time he departed the station in 1992, was Executive Producer for the station’s news programming. Beattie went on to join ABC, traveling the world with Peter Jennings as his personal producer, supervising the production, editing and writing for his reports for “World News Tonight” and many ABC News Specials. He returned to Toronto after a decade covering international news stories like the Rwandan genocide, death of Princess Diana, and 9/11, for which he earned three Emmys and eight Peabody awards, among other accolades. After four years as an executive producer with Global News Toronto, Beattie joined the Office of Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty in 2008, taking the lead on the Ontario Olympic project. He moved on in 2012 to found JBT Media Solutions, his own independent consultancy offering reputation management, media and government relations.
