Robert Fife honoured with CJF Lifetime Achievement Award
TORONTO, March 11, 2026 /CNW/ - The Canadian Journalism Foundation's (CJF) Lifetime Achievement Award this year goes to Robert Fife in recognition of his decades-long career exemplifying the highest standards of political reporting, public‑interest journalism and newsroom leadership in both print and broadcast. His ongoing work has helped set the national agenda through fearless, rigorous reporting and journalism that has consistently exposed issues of profound national consequence and strengthened the public's understanding of Canada's political institutions.
"At a time when journalism and democracy are under attack, few journalists have had such a direct impact on Canadian democracy as Robert Fife," says Lifetime Achievement Award jury member Hamlin Grange, veteran broadcast journalist and Principal Consultant, DiversiPro. "Among other things, his reporting has forced governments to be held accountable. His stories didn't just inform the public, they changed laws."
Fife will be honoured at the CJF Awards ceremony on June 10 at the Royal York Hotel, Toronto. For tickets, tables and sponsorship opportunities, see contact information below or visit the CJF Awards page.
Currently, the Ottawa Bureau Chief for The Globe and Mail, Fife is one of Canada's most respected political journalists and is known for breaking some of the most consequential political stories in modern Canadian journalism. In 2019, he revealed that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had pressured Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould regarding the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, igniting the SNC-Lavalin affair that led to her resignation. He has also led extensive reporting on allegations of foreign interference in Canadian politics, including claims that China attempted to influence the 2021 federal election. This coverage helped prompt a public inquiry and garnered Fife the 2024 Sidney Hillman Prize.
Earlier in his career, while serving as Ottawa Bureau Chief for CTV, Fife broke the story that Nigel Wright, chief of staff to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, had given Senator Mike Duffy a $90,000 cheque to repay disputed Senate expenses. This led to greater transparency on how senators spend public money. He also received several awards for an investigation into sanitary conditions at XL Foods, resulting in the transfer of food safety inspections from the department of Agriculture to Health.
"Given the constant flow of information, it is easy for a parliamentary journalist to go with the flow and stay in the pack," says national affairs columnist and commentator Chantal Hébert, a member of the Lifetime Achievement Award jury. "Robert Fife, over his decades in journalism, has led the pack by consistently breaking stories that mattered."
Fife has won multiple National Newspaper Awards and Canadian Association of Journalists honours, and is the only journalist in the Parliamentary Press Gallery to have twice received the Charles Lynch Award for outstanding coverage of national affairs. In 2025, he received the Michener-Baxter Award for his decades-long contribution to public-interest journalism, recognizing his leadership, mentorship and influential reporting across outlets including The Globe and Mail, the National Post and CTV News. Later this year, he will receive the Hyman Solomon Award for Excellence in Public Policy Journalism from Public Policy Forum.
"Robert Fife is incomparable," says Rosemary Thompson, former Deputy Bureau Chief of CTV's Parliamentary Bureau in Ottawa and member of the CJF Lifetime Achievement Award Selection Committee, calling Fife a "uniquely talented journalist and one of the best reporters I have ever worked with."
Thomson adds: "His ability to break stories of enormous national consequence is extraordinary, but what truly sets him apart is the way he works: with relentless commitment to the truth, deep respect for sources and a remarkable spirit of collaboration. Canada is a better country because Bob Fife has spent his career reporting on it."
Fife is also author of three books on Canadian politics, including A Capital Scandal: Politics, Patronage and Payoff.
Fife joins a distinguished group of CJF Lifetime Achievement Award winners including: Bob McKeown, Phillip Crawley, Haroon Siddiqui, Michelle Ouillet, Kim Bolan, John Honderich, Thaioronióhte Dan David, Peter Mansbridge, Jean Pelletier, Lloyd Robertson, Michel Auger, Peter Bregg, Jack Sigvaldason, Lise Bissonnette, Joe Schlesinger, Sally Armstrong, Knowlton Nash, June Callwood and Trina McQueen.
The Lifetime Achievement Award selection committee members are:
Chair – Kathy English, chair, The Canadian Journalism Foundation;
The Right Hon. Adrienne Clarkson, co-chair of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, former governor general of Canada (1999-2005);
David Binet, communications executive;
Hamlin Grange, veteran broadcast journalist and principal consultant, DiversiPro;
Chantal Hébert, political columnist, le Devoir, l'Actualité, CBC, Radio-Canada;
Marina Strauss, CJF board member and fund development co-chair and longtime former reporter and columnist at The Globe and Mail; and
Rosemary Thompson, vice president external, Canadian Geographic.
About The Canadian Journalism Foundation
Founded in 1990, The Canadian Journalism Foundation promotes, celebrates and facilitates excellence in journalism. The foundation runs a prestigious awards and fellowships program featuring an industry gala where news leaders, journalists and corporate Canada gather to celebrate outstanding journalistic achievement and the value of professional journalism. Through monthly J-Talks, a public speakers' series, the CJF facilitates dialogue among journalists, businesspeople, academics and students about the role of the media in Canadian society and the ongoing challenges for media in the digital era. The foundation also fosters opportunities for journalism education, training and research.
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SOURCE The Canadian Journalism Foundation
For further information: Natalie Turvey, President and Executive Director, The Canadian Journalism Foundation, [email protected]; For sponsorship opportunities, contact: Josh Gurfinkel, Director of Operations, The Canadian Journalism Foundation, [email protected]
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