Gail Smith (journalist)

Gail Smith
Born (1955-09-04) September 4, 1955
EducationUniversity of Western Ontario (BA)
Carleton University (MA)
Occupations
  • Television news anchor
  • journalist
Years active1978 – 1988, 1993
Employer(s)CTV Television Network
CHUM Limited
Parents
  • Conrad Smith (father)
  • Mary Smith (mother)

Gail Smith (born September 4, 1955)[1][2] is a former Canadian television journalist and news anchor. She is best known for her work at CFTO-TV, the flagship station of the CTV Television Network in Toronto, where she anchored the supper-hour program World Beat News from 1984 to 1988.

Early life and education

Smith was born in Moncton, New Brunswick, the eldest daughter of Mary (née Milner)[3] and Conrad Smith, a school teacher.[4] In 1958, her family moved to Trenton, Ontario, where her father taught mathematics at Trenton High School.[4] She was raised in Trenton[5] with her three younger sisters.[3][4]

Smith earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Western Ontario.[2][5] During her undergraduate studies, she developed an interest in social issues, particularly feminism, which led her to pursue a career in journalism.[2] She subsequently earned a Master of Arts degree in journalism from Carleton University.[6]

Early career at BCTV News (1978–1982)

Smith joined CTV-owned BCTV in Vancouver in 1978,[7] three weeks after graduating.[6] As a television news reporter, producer, and anchor, she covered a range of hard-news stories, developing an interest in political affairs and coroner's inquests.[2] In 1981, she delivered early-morning news updates on the national morning television program Canada AM.[8]

News anchor at CFTO News (1982–1988)

In February 1982, Smith joined CFTO in Toronto as a television reporter.[2][6] Her rapid advancement at the station occurred during a period in which Toronto television news outlets were competing to hire women as news anchors in an effort to expand viewership.[9][10]

Night Beat News and World Beat News

Seven months after joining CFTO, Smith debuted as the weekend anchor for the station's early-evening and late-night newscasts on September 4, 1982, becoming the first woman and first full-time anchor to hold that position at CFTO.[5][6][11] In that role, she wrote and presented four weekend newscasts, produced two of them, and worked as a reporter on three additional days each week.[5] Following a 55 per cent year-over-year increase in ratings for CFTO's weekend news program,[5] she became the station's first female late-night news anchor on Night Beat News in 1983.[6] On August 20, 1984, she joined Tom Gibney as co-anchor of the station's early-evening one-hour newscast, World Beat News, then the highest-rated television news program in the Toronto market.[12][13]

Among her assignments, Smith reported live on the opening of Roy Thomson Hall.[2] She also co-anchored CFTO's election-night coverage of the 1984 Canadian federal election[14] and co-hosted television specials with Reverend Jacques Monet during Pope John Paul II’s 1984 visit to Canada, covering events in Toronto and Midland, Ontario.[15]

1986 trial

In September 1985, Smith was charged with assault after Maria Barbeiro, a CFTO studio cleaner, alleged that she had been injured when Smith closed a dressing-room door that struck her face.[16][17] The trial at Scarborough Provincial Court began on March 13, 1986,[16][17] and Smith was acquitted four days later due to insufficient evidence.[18][19]

1988 lockout

During a 12-week lockout at CFTO that began on June 7, 1988, Smith continued anchoring newscasts after crossing the picket line, despite being a member of the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians (NABET), the union involved in the dispute.[20][21][22] In the second week of the dispute, NABET filed a complaint with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, alleging that her reporting reflected management’s perspective.[22] The complaint was withdrawn after the lockout ended on August 31, 1988.[22]

Departure

Smith had planned to leave CFTO in March 1988 but remained at the request of management until the station's contract negotiations with its union were resolved.[7][23] By October, she had grown fatigued and decided to pursue other opportunities in television.[6][7][23] Her final broadcast of World Beat News aired on October 21, 1988.[7][24][25]

Late career at CKVR News (1993)

After developing an interest in the programming style of CHUM-owned CITY-TV in Toronto,[6] Smith returned briefly to broadcasting in 1993 following a nearly five-year absence from television news.[26] She joined CHUM-owned CKVR-TV in Barrie, Ontario, as a newscaster on the midday edition of Total News, making her debut on March 3, 1993.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "Friends, Beagles, Countrymen...". Toronto. Vol. 1, no. 1. April 1986. p. 12.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Zyvatkauskas, Betty (November 27, 1982). "More than just a TV face that reads". Broadcast Week Magazine. p. 101.
  3. 1 2 "Mary Smith: Obituary". Trenton Trentonian. October 20, 2022. Archived from the original on February 17, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "Conrad Earl Smith: Obituary". Belleville Intelligencer. December 17, 2015. Archived from the original on June 4, 2026. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Smith, Diane (May 28, 1983). "Grace under pressure". Starweek Magazine. p. 63.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hume, Christopher (November 19, 1988). "Clearing the air". Starweek Magazine. p. 6.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Quill, Greg (October 26, 1988). "TV anchor Gail Smith says it was time to move on". Toronto Star. p. E1.
  8. ↑ Wilson, Peter (September 11, 1981). "TV News". Vancouver Sun. p. L4. Archived from the original on March 10, 2024. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
  9. ↑ McLean, Ross (September 3, 1983). "Anchorwomen have looks and smarts but will they stand the test of time?". Globe and Mail. p. D10.
  10. ↑ Taylor, Bill (March 2, 1985). "News Wars". Starweek Magazine. pp. 4, 6.
  11. ↑ Adilman, Sid (August 26, 1982). "TV blurbs". Toronto Star. p. E6.
  12. ↑ Bawden, Jim (August 3, 1984). "More news on local news overhauls". Toronto Star. p. C1.
  13. ↑ Bonner, Susan (Spring 1985). "The Right Staff". Ryerson Review of Journalism. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  14. ↑ "TV and radio stations plan full election coverage". Toronto Star. September 4, 1984. p. A13.
  15. ↑ Taylor, Bill (September 8, 1984). "Papal processions". Starweek Magazine. p. 9.
  16. 1 2 Cox, Damien (March 14, 1986). "Anchorwoman on trial for assault". Toronto Star. p. A10.
  17. 1 2 Fagan, Drew (March 14, 1986). "Broadcaster on trial for assault". Globe and Mail. p. A16.
  18. ↑ Cox, Damien (March 18, 1986). "CFTO newscaster cleared of assault on cleaning woman". Toronto Star. p. A15.
  19. ↑ Delacourt, Susan (March 18, 1986). "Judge dismisses charge against TV broadcaster". Globe and Mail. p. A15.
  20. ↑ Wong, Tony (June 8, 1988). "Locked-out CFTO workers threaten to push for viewer boycott of station". Toronto Star. p. A23.
  21. ↑ Edwards, Peter (July 17, 1988). "The lockout at CFTO: Death of a union local?". Toronto Star. pp. B1, B4.
  22. 1 2 3 Chadha, Ena (Spring 1989). "Sins of Omission". Ryerson Review of Journalism. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2025.
  23. 1 2 "Smith leaves CFTO anchor desk". Globe and Mail. October 25, 1988. p. A27.
  24. ↑ "Ex-BCTV anchor quits Toronto job". Vancouver Sun. October 27, 1988. p. D8.
  25. ↑ "CFTO-DT". History of Canadian Broadcasting. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  26. 1 2 Quill, Greg (February 28, 1993). "Teens talking to Street Cents". Toronto Star. p. C6.
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