MONTREAL, Jan. 16, 2012 /CNW/ - CBC/Radio-Canada president Hubert T. Lacroix has confirmed Louis Lalande as the new executive vice-president of French Services. Mr. Lalande had held the position on an interim basis since September 2011.
"I'm very pleased to announce this appointment today, as we enter the second year of our 2015: Everyone, Every way strategic plan. Louis has the leadership qualities we need to continue developing Radio-Canada in line with our three main priorities: regions, digital platforms and distinctive programming," said Hubert T. Lacroix. "In a rapidly evolving media environment, Canadians are right to have high expectations for their public broadcaster. We'll need to move more quickly to implement the required changes and I'm confident that Louis has the skills and experience to meet these challenges, while keeping audience levels high across all our platforms."
Louis Lalande has worked at CBC/Radio-Canada for nearly three decades. During that time, he has held a variety of positions with news and current affairs, including 10 years as an executive producer of special coverage and major events, such as election nights. He later went on to become executive director of technical production, then executive director of news and current affairs for Télévision de Radio-Canada. As a member of the French Services management team, he also played a key role in establishing the Centre de l'information in Montreal.
In 2006, Louis Lalande was appointed executive director of regional services, where he oversaw all French-language TV, radio and web programming in the regions, managing a staff of approximately 1,000 employees spread across the country.
Radio-Canada Regional Services experienced considerable growth during Louis's tenure. Three multimedia centres were established in Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivières and Saguenay, with a fourth one now under construction in Rimouski, slated to open in September. Radio-Canada also launched two websites in late 2011 devoted to local affairs in Montreal's off-island communities: Radio-Canada Rive-Nord and Radio-Canada Rive-Sud. Thanks to these initiatives, the public broadcaster is now more visible, more effective and more relevant in these communities.
Over the past few years, French Services has achieved and maintained all-time high ratings on TV and radio. Traffic on Radio-Canada.ca, TOU.TV and the new web music platform Espace.mu is also growing steadily, demonstrating the public broadcaster's online leadership in French-speaking Canada.
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. The Corporation is a leader in reaching Canadians on new platforms and delivers a comprehensive range of radio, television, Internet, and satellite-based services. Deeply rooted in the regions, CBC/Radio-Canada is the only domestic broadcaster to offer diverse regional and cultural perspectives in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages, plus seven languages for international audiences.
Nathalie Moreau
Promotions Manager, Television et Information
French Communications
514-597-4140
E-mail: [email protected]
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