Mark Starowicz, ( ; born September 8, 1946) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

journalist and producer. Born in

Worksop Worksop ( ) is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is located east-south-east of Sheffield, close to Nottinghamshire's borders with South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, on the River Ryton and not far from the nor ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the son of Polish émigrés, he and his family immigrated to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

in 1954. He attended Loyola High School and received a B.A. from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1968. In 1964, he started as a reporter for the ''

Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

''. He moved to the ''

McGill Daily ''The McGill Daily'' is an independent student newspaper at McGill University and is entirely run by students. Despite its name, the ''Daily'' has reduced its print publication to once a week, normally on Mondays, in addition to producing online-o ...

'' in 1968 and to the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'' in 1969. From 1970 to 1979, he was a producer for

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

and was responsible for revamping ''

As It Happens ''As It Happens'' is a Canadian interview show that airs on CBC Radio One in Canada and various public radio stations in the United States through Public Radio Exchange. Its 50th anniversary was celebrated on-air on November 16, 2018. It has been ...

'' and creating '' Sunday Morning''. From 1982 to 1992, he was the executive producer of the

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

newsmagazine A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published magazine, radio or television program, usually published weekly, consisting of articles about current events. News magazines generally discuss stories, in greater depth than do newspapers or new ...

program, '' The Journal''. From 1992 to 2015, he was an executive documentary producer for the CBC. He was the executive producer of the 2000 mini-series, '' Canada: A People's History'', and served as head of the

CBC Documentary Unit The CBC Documentary Unit was a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation from 2000 until 2015. The unit focused on documentary production, and was headed by executive producer Mark Starowicz. Notable productions by the unit include: *'' ...

. In 2004,

McClelland & Stewart McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is owned by Penguin Random House of Canada, a branch of Penguin Random House, the international book publishing division of German media giant Bertelsmann. History It was founded ...

published his book, ''Making History: The Remarkable Story Behind Canada: A People's History'' (), about his experiences. After overseeing documentary production at the CBC since 1992, Starowicz announced he would leave the organization in July 2015. He planned to launch his own independent production company, Grand Passage Media, which will specialize in documentaries.

Honours

He was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 2004 for having "demonstrated and shared his pride in" Canada. In 2006, he was made a member of the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is adm ...

in recognition for having been "responsible for some of the most influential news programs in Canada". Starowicz received the

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

for his lifetime contribution to Canadian broadcasting. In 2001, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

. In 2015, he received the

Gordon Sinclair Award The Gordon Sinclair Award is a Canadian journalism award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television for excellence in broadcast journalism. Originally presented as part of the ACTRA Awards, it was transferred to the new Gemini Awar ...

, the lifetime achievement award for Canadian broadcast journalism from the

Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is a Canadian non-profit organization created in 1979 to recognize the achievements of the over 4,000 Canadian film industry and television industry professionals, most notably through the Canadian Scre ...

References

External links

*
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Starowicz, Mark 1946 births Living people Massey College, Toronto Anglophone Quebec people Canadian newspaper journalists Canadian male journalists Canadian television producers Canadian people of Polish descent English emigrants to Canada McGill University alumni Members of the Order of Ontario Officers of the Order of Canada People from Montreal Governor General's Performing Arts Award winners Canadian Screen Award winning journalists