Canadian Newsmaker of the Year
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Canadian Newsmaker of the Year has been voted every year since 1946 by the Canadian Press. The award usually goes to politicians, as evidenced by Pierre Trudeau's record 10th award in 2000 breaking a tie with Lester B. Pearson's nine wins.
In 1999 a Newsmaker of the Century was chosen, rather than a Newsmaker of the Year.
[edit] List of Newsmakers of the Year
- 1946 - Igor Gouzenko, Soviet embassy clerk who exposed Soviet espionage
- 1947 - Barbara Ann Scott, first North American to win World Figure Skating Championship
- 1948 - William Lyon Mackenzie King, retired as the longest reigning Prime Minister in the Commonwealth
- 1949 - Louis St. Laurent, popular politician who won election as Prime Minister
- 1950 - Lester Pearson, diplomat
- 1951 - Lester Pearson
- 1952 - Lester Pearson
- 1953 - Lester Pearson
- 1954 - Marilyn Bell, marathon swimmer
- 1955 - Lester Pearson
- 1956 - Lester Pearson
- 1957 - John Diefenbaker, won unexpected minority government in election
- 1958 - John Diefenbaker, won largest majority government in Canadian history in the 1958 election
- 1959 - John Diefenbaker, Prime Minister and Joey Smallwood, Premier of Newfoundland
- 1960 - John Diefenbaker
- 1961 - James Coyne, resigned as governor of the Bank of Canada
- 1962 - Réal Caouette, Social Credit politician who helped vote out Diefenbaker government
- 1963 - Lester Pearson, became Prime Minister after winning the 1963 election
- 1964 - Lester Pearson, oversaw Flag Debate as Prime Minister
- 1965 - Lucien Rivard, convicted drug smuggler who escaped from prison for 136 days
- 1966 - John Diefenbaker, refused to surrender PC leadership
- 1967 - Lester Pearson, oversaw Canadian Centennial festivities as Prime Minister
- 1968 - Pierre Trudeau, became Prime Minister after winning the 1968 election
- 1969 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1970 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1971 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1972 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1973 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1974 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1975 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1976 - René Lévesque, won 1976 provincial election to become Quebec's first sovereignist premier
- 1977 - René Lévesque, killed a homeless man, and his mistress was exposed, leading to his divorce
- 1978 - Pierre Trudeau
- 1979 - Joe Clark, became Prime Minister after winning the 1979 election
- 1980 - Terry Fox, averaged 42 km a day on an artificial leg during his Marathon of Hope
- 1981 - Terry Fox, died at age 22
- 1982 - Wayne Gretzky, hockey player nicknamed "The Great One", scored a record 92 goals in a single season
- 1983 - Brian Mulroney, won leadership convention to lead PC Party
- 1984 - Brian Mulroney, became Prime Minister after winning a record 211 of 282 seats in the 1984 election
- 1985 - Steve Fonyo, cancer victim who lost a leg and ran a marathon similar to Terry Fox
- 1986 - Rick Hansen, world-class cross-country wheelchair athlete
- 1987 - Rick Hansen
- 1988 - Ben Johnson, set world record in the 100 meter at the 1988 Summer Olympics, but was subsequently disqualified for steroid use
- 1989 - Michael Wilson, Minister of Finance responsible for the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement
- 1990 - Elijah Harper, Manitoba MLA who filibustered to stop the Meech Lake Accord
- 1991 - Brian Mulroney, implemented the Goods and Services Tax and dealt with the aftermath of Meech's failure
- 1992 - The referendum on the Charlottetown Accord
- 1993 - Kim Campbell, short-lived Prime Minister who was the first woman to hold that office
- 1994 - Jacques Parizeau, became Premier of Quebec in the 1994 Quebec election
- 1995 - Lucien Bouchard, Leader of the Opposition and key player in the referendum on sovereignty
- 1996 - Donovan Bailey, sprinter ran 100 meter dash in record 9.84 seconds, winning Olympic gold
- 1997 - Sheldon Kennedy, child abuse victim who went public in his campaign against abuse
- 1998 - Jean Chrétien, Prime Minister
- 1999 - Pierre Trudeau voted Canadian Newsmaker of the 20th century (no newsmaker named for 1999 itself)
- 2000 - Pierre Trudeau, events of the 6 days that marked his passing and state funeral
- 2001 - Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance leader was challenged by many in his own party
- 2002 - Jean Chrétien
- 2003 - Paul Martin, became Prime Minister after winning the Liberal Party of Canada leadership convention, 2003
- 2004 - Paul Martin, won Canada's first minority government in 25 years in the 2004 election, and was linked to the sponsorship scandal
- 2005 - John Gomery, judge linked to the sponsorship scandal.
