Helen Branswell, Jean-Luc Mongrain, Gord Hume: Sign Offs - Broadcast Dialogue
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Helen Branswell, 69, on Oct. 13 of cancer. Branswell, who originally hailed from Sherbrooke, Que., started freelancing for a small newspaper after graduating from St. Thomas University, which eventually led to a 30-year career with The Canadian Press (CP). Starting in 1986, Branswell first worked as a reporter-editor at CP’s Halifax bureau, then as a correspondent for CP in Calgary, covering local news, business, and sports, before going on to serve as a reporter and later editor with the Ottawa bureau from 1989 to 1995. She went on to do a five-year stint as a foreign correspondent, before returning to Toronto in 2000 and becoming focused on medical reporting during the SARS outbreak. She left CP in 2015 to join Boston-based STAT News, establishing herself as an expert with early insights into the COVID-19 pandemic. Branswell was frequently heard as an expert on CBC Radio, among other outlets. Among the accolades she received were the Victor Cohn Prize for Excellence in Medical Science Reporting and the George Polk Award for Public Service for her COVID reportage. She was also a Pulitzer Prize finalist and the recipient of an honorary degree from Carleton University.
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Branswell joined the wire in 1986, first working as a reporter-editor out of the Halifax bureau. In the following years, she spent time in Calgary, Ottawa and London, England. She covered a range of stories and topics, including politics, foreign affairs and sports. In 2000, Branswell moved to the Toronto bureau, and it was there that she discovered her passion for health and medical reporting. She spearheaded coverage of the 2003 Toronto SARS outbreak. Branswell became a fixture at daily news briefings, never shying away from asking probing questions that helped readers better understand the emerging medical threat. “Her work was absolutely stellar,” said former CP health reporter Sheryl Ubelacker. “She developed all kinds of sources and she was really on top of the story and probably led everybody on that particular epidemic. She did wonderful work.”At CP, Branswell also covered bird flu, polio and Ebola and demonstrated a relentless dedication to the demands of the health beat. She wrote science-backed stories with precision and accuracy, Ubelacker said, but did so in a way that the average reader or listener could comprehend.
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