Turing and Pulitzer prizewinners to join leaders from the BBC, NPR and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) on the Public Broadcasters International stage in Ottawa

Press Release

Sep 24, 2024

CBC/Radio-Canada today announced the speakers and panellists for the 2024 Public Broadcasters International conference (PBI Ottawa 2024). Among those taking to the stage from October 8 to 10 are Yoshua Bengio, Founder and Scientific Director of Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, and 2018 winner of the Turing Award; Connie Walker, Pulitzer Prize and Peabody Award-winning investigative journalist; Tim Davie, Director-General of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC); Katherine Maher, President and CEO of National Public Radio (NPR); and Noel Curran, Director-General of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

“At such a critical juncture in the future of public media, I am thrilled that so many of the world’s most eminent leaders in public broadcasting, AI, and Indigenous culture will gather in Ottawa-Gatineau for the Public Broadcasters International conference. Their insights will help us to navigate the turbulent waters of our times, and to find innovative ways we can continue to inform, enlighten and entertain the hundreds of millions of people we serve.”

— Catherine Tait, President and CEO, CBC/Radio-Canada
Other speakers and panellists include:

• Natan Obed, President, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami
• Monika Ille, CEO, APTN
• David Shoemaker, CEO and Secretary General, Canadian Olympic Committee
• Karen O’Neill CEO, Canadian Paralympic Committee
• Éric Poivre, Secretary General, Les Médias Francophones Publics

The Hon. Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage, will address delegates at the opening reception. A complete list of speakers and panellists, as well as the full conference program, is available here.

PBI Ottawa 2024 will take place at the Canadian Museum of History (October 8) and the National Arts Centre (October 9 and 10). Media accreditation for the conference is available online here.

About CBC/Radio-Canada

CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada’s trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages: Dehcho Dene Yati, Dënesųłıné (Chipewyan), Eastern Cree, Gwich’in, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, Sahtu Got’ine Godi, and Tłı̨chǫ (Tlicho). We also deliver content in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi and Tagalog, as well as both official languages, through Radio Canada International (RCI). We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.

Media contacts:

Leon Mar
Director, Media Relations and Issues Management | Corporate Spokesperson
leon.mar@cbc.ca

Eric Wright
Senior Specialist, Media Relations
eric.wright@cbc.ca

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