Pierre Juneau

Pierre Juneau

Pierre Juneau, administrator, broadcasting executive (born at Verdun, Qué 17 Oct 1922; died at Montréal, 21 Feb 2012). After a distinguished administrative career at the NFB 1949-66, Juneau was appointed vice-chairman of the Board of Broadcast Governors 1966-68 and was chairman of the CANADIAN RADIO-TELEVISION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION 1968-75. His assertive application of commission regulations governing Canadian content in broadcasting won him a reputation as a cultural nationalist (the Canadian recording industry's Juno Awards were named partly in his honour) that was only marginally dimmed by the commission's failure to devise effective controls for cable transmissions.

In 1975 he was named minister of communications, but he resigned after failing to win election to Parliament. From 1975 to 1982 he held several senior administrative posts at Ottawa, and in 1982 he became president of the CBC, agreeing to serve until 1989. Faced with sharply reduced government funding, nationalists feared an increase in foreign programming, but with Juneau's mandate to make the CBC 95% Canadian and the 1987 licence for an all-news channel, they declared Juneau's presidency a victory for Canadian sovereignty.

Juneau was temporarily lured out of retirement in 1994 to oversee the operations of MacLean-Hunter during CRTC hearings to approve a takeover of MacLean-Hunter by Rogers Cable. Juneau is a member of the Royal Society of Canada and an Officer in the Order of Canada.