When Rose Kingdon started her broadcasting career more than 40 years ago, she recalled that it was “love at first on air light.”
And when she accepted a lifetime achievement award in 2023, she said she was grateful for the opportunity to “make great radio” and to “cover some of the biggest stories of our time.”
Kingdon, former director of Broadcast News at The Canadian Press national news service, was found dead in her home in Toronto on Friday. She was 65.
In her most senior role at The Canadian Press, she was well known to news directors and broadcast executives across Canada.
“Her dedication to CP was second to none,” editor-in-chief Andrea Baillie said in a statement Saturday. “She had exacting standards and an unbelievable work ethic, but she was also such a softie — kind, generous, funny, wry and always ready to lend an ear. We are heartbroken.”
When Kingdon announced her retirement in 2023, Baillie spoke highly of her commitment to the craft. The editor-in-chief recalled how in August 2003, Kingdon spent 36 hours at the CP office after a massive blackout left 55 million people in the dark in Ontario and the northeastern United States.
But it was Kingdon’s softer side that left the biggest impression on Baillie.
“Kind, humble, hard-working staffers like her are what make this company run,” Baillie said in a note to staff.
Kingdon grew up in southwestern Ontario, where she landed her first radio job at CKLA in Guelph. News director Gus Hazelar hired her as a summer reliever. And years later, Kingdon thanked Hazelar for “opening the door to the magic that is radio.”
She also worked at CKEY in Toronto before moving to Broadcast News, at that time a subsidiary of The Canadian Press.
Kingdon would spend the next 38 years at CP. Starting as a reporter/editor, she worked as an audio editor, newscaster, senior editor and then in supervisory roles. She was appointed director of Broadcast News in 2012.
Ellen Huebert, a longtime CP colleague and close friend, said Kingdon had a sharp wit when there was breaking news.
“You would be in the newsroom and something would happen, and she would give you her take on it, and people would be killing themselves laughing,” Huebert said in an interview.
“She would tell you that this was her dream job. She loved the news. She loved being a broadcaster and she loved all that it could bring to storytelling.”
Huebert described Kingdon as uncompromising in her standards.
“She did her utmost every single day, 100 per cent, to make sure that those standards were being met,” Huebert said. “For those reasons, she was incredible … and I would say beloved.”
Kingdon also had a knack for making the most out of recorded interviews with newsmakers.
“She had an ear for that … one clip, that one thing that everybody would be talking about, that would sum up a story,” Huebert said. “And it would be on the air in 10 minutes so that everybody could have it.”
Karen Rebot, a close friend and newscaster at CP in Toronto, said Kingdon had a unique way of looking at the world, which endeared her to others.
“She looked at life in a really funny way — just very stark and blatant, but with humour that would just have you laughing,” Rebot said in an interview, adding that the pair had worked together for 30 years.
“She was never trying to be crass, rude or disrespectful. But the way she looked at the world was definitely a darker take than some. But it was always meant for humour, and it always came off that way.”
Rebot said that when Kingdon was presented with a lifetime achievement award by the Radio Television Digital News Association of Canada she was thrilled that her two children, Sean and Ailish, were there.
Throughout her career, Kingdon remained modest about her accomplishments.
“It’s surreal how much she’s done and how revered she was in the industry,” Rebot said. “She would have known people across the country, dealing with the clients and making sure they got what they needed.”
During her acceptance speech at the awards ceremony, Kingdon said her proudest accomplishment was watching the progress of young journalists she had mentored.
“I’ve always tried to give my best to this job, but it has certainly given back to me,” she said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2026.
Michael MacDoanld, The Canadian Press
