APTN National News is a Canadian television national news program aired by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network. It is broadcast from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The program formerly aired in two daily editions: APTN National News Daytime aired at 12:30 p.m., and APTN National News Primetime aired at 6:30 p.m. The program now produces a single half hour of news each day, which airs at 6 and 11:30 p.m. Eastern Time nightly, Investigates on Mondays and Fridays, Laughing Drum a half hour talk show where comedians review the headlines of the week, Face-to-Face, a long form interview show, InFocus an hour long live interactive talk show, and Nation to Nation a show examine the political relationship between First Peoples and Canada. Each day there are also short headline news updates at the top of the hour during the afternoon. The program's current anchors are Dennis Ward and Cheryl McKenzie. In September 2009, two current affairs shows, APTN InFocus and APTN Investigates launched. In 2019, the news division also launched Nouvelles Nationales d’APTN, a weekly French-language news program anchored by Sophie Claude Miller. In addition to its main newsroom in Winnipeg, APTN National News has news bureaus in Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Thunder Bay, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Iqaluit, Yellowknife and Whitehorse. News and current affairs staff at APTN applied for and received union certification with the Canadian Media Guild from the Canadian Labour Board in 2002. Unionized staff reached its first collective agreement with APTN management in April 2003. On June 8, 2012, award-winning journalist Karyn Pugliese was appointed as the director of news and current affairs for APTN. Pugliese previously worked as the Ottawa correspondent for APTN National News from 2000 to 2006.
Journalists
In addition to the primary anchors, journalists, video journalists, producers and researchers associated with APTN National News include: Trina Roache ; Danielle Rochette, Tom Fennario ; Annette Francis, Jorge Barrera, Kenneth Jackson, Mark Blackburn, Francine Compton ; Willow Fiddler Dennis Ward, Bruce Spence, ; Larissa Burnouf ; Chris Stewart, Brandi Morin ; Tina House, Mark Solnoky ; Kent Driscoll, ; Cullen Crozier ; Shirley Maclean. Journalists and producers associated with APTN Investigates include Holly Moore, Melissa Ridgen, Kathleen Martens, Josh Grummett, Cullen Crozier, Rob Smith, Paul Barnsley. APTN Investigates has won 3 Amnesty International awards for human rights reporting, 2 Canadian Association of Journalists Awards, and in 2016 executive Producer Paul Barnsley was recognized by Journalists for Human rights with a lifetime achievement award for human rights reporting. Journalists and producers associated with APTN InFocus include Cheryl McKenzie and Shirley Maclean. Journalists and producers associated with Nation to Nation include Todd Lamirande and Jorge Barrera.
History
APTN National News first went to air on a daily basis on October 28, 2002 and hosted by Nola Wuttunee until 2006. Prior to the daily launch of APTN National News the newscast on APTN was called In-Vision News and was hosted by Carol Morin. In-Vision News debuted on April 16, 2000. Other previous hosts of APTN National News included Donna Smith, Holly Bernier, Todd Lamirande ; Patrice Mousseau and Dana Foster. APTN National News Contact was hosted by Rick Harp from 2000 to 2005, Madeleine Allakariallak 2005-2007 and Cheryl McKenzie 2007-2009. Previous hosts, producers, reporters, video journalists and researchers with APTN National News, Contact/InFocus/Investigates have included: Winnipeg Newsroom: Maryann Flett ; John Stevens ; Don Langford ; Carol Morin ; Rick Ratte ; Colleen Simard ; Vera Houle ; Greg Taylor ; Rick Harp ; Stephanie Wood ; Rosanna Deerchild ; Nola Wuttunee ; Lorne Olsen ; Tim Fontaine ; Shaneen Robinson ; Madeleine Allakariallak ; Donna Smith ; Holly Bernier ; Neil Coligan ; Mark Halsall ; Jillian Taylor ; Darrell Doxtader ; Patrice Mousseau ; Priscilla Wolf ; Dana Foster ; Tiar Wilson, Meagan Fiddler, Ntawnis Piapot, Halifax Bureau: Maureen Googoo ; Trina Roache ; Asna Adhami ; Jodie Barnaby ; James Hopkin ; Taryn Della ; Tim Fontaine. Montreal Bureau: Emanuel Lowi. Ottawa Bureau: Karyn Pugliese ;David Moses ; Don Young ; Ken Williams ; Greg Taylor ; Janet Leader. Toronto Bureau: Ken Williams ; Nicole Robertson ; Donna Smith ; Judi Halfe ; Harmony Rice ; Nina DeVries ; Wayne Roberts ; Candace Maracle. Saskatoon Bureau: Ken Williams ; Cherish Francis ; Priscilla Wolf. Edmonton Bureau: Nicole Robertson ; Judi Halfe ; Claudia Jones ; Sean Amato ; William Belcourt ; Kelly Chalifaux ; Jeremy Lafond. Vancouver Bureau: Todd Lamirande ; Shirley McLean ; Sonya Rani Anatole ; Wayne Roberts ; Leena Minifie. Iqaluit Bureau: Juanita Taylor ; Wayne Rivers. Yellowknife Bureau: Charles Laird ; Roy Dahl ; Charlene LaBillois ; Janet Leader ; Dene-Za Antoine ; Norm Byatt ; Amos Scott ; Curtis Mandeville. Whitehorse Bureau: Roxanne Livingstone ; Dez Loreen ; Shirley McLean Previous news directors have included Dan David ; Jim Compton, Rita Deverell and Vera Houle Karyn Pugliese.
