| Max Keeping | |
|---|---|
| Born | Winston Maxwell Keeping[1][2] 1 April 1942 Grand Bank, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada |
| Occupation | Newscaster |
| Years active | 1950s-2010 |
| Awards | Gemini Humanitarian Award (2003) Order of Canada (1991) Order of Ontario (2007) |
Winston Maxwell Keeping, CM, O.Ont, D.U., LLD known as Max Keeping, is a Canadian broadcaster. He is the former Vice-President of news and public affairs at CJOH where he was anchor of the local evening news broadcast from 1972 until his retirement in 2010. He currently acts as the station's Community Ambassador.
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Keeping was born in Grand Bank, Newfoundland on 1 April 1942, and began his news career in the late 1950s.[1] His early work was as sports director of the St. John's Evening Telegram, a post that he occupied at the age of 16. He then worked with the radio station VOCM and CJCH in Halifax.
Keeping moved to Ottawa in 1965, when he became a parliamentary reporter first for CFRA radio, and then for CTV news. He assumed the role of news anchor at CJOH in November 1972, making him one of the longest-serving 6 o'clock news anchors in North America.
Keeping returned to Newfoundland in the fall of 1972 to run as a Progressive Conservative in the October federal election, in the riding of Burin—Burgeo. He came in second place behind the Liberal incumbent, Don Jamieson, with 25% of the vote. After the federal election, he returned to his former post at CJOH.
In his more than 40 years in Ottawa, Keeping has become a local celebrity. He has played an active role in many charitable drives, both through his news station, and outside. He is the long-time Master of Ceremonies of the CHEO telethon. It is estimated that he has participated in the collection of more than $100 million in charitable donations in the Ottawa area. This earned him a 2003 Gemini Humanitarian Award. Most recently Keeping accepted a Doctorate of the University degree from the University of Ottawa and an honorary post as Patron for Learning for a Cause, a non-profit educational initiative which publishes and promotes the creative writing of high school students.
In 2003, Keeping announced on-air that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.[3] He has since made a full recovery.[4][5]
Keeping announced on 3 December 2009 that he would retire as news anchor after 26 March 2010. On the same newscast, it was announced that his replacement would be Graham Richardson of CTV News's parliamentary bureau, who appeared on the air with Keeping and fellow anchor Carol Anne Meehan to make the announcement. After retirement, Keeping started a new job as the television station's "community ambassador."[6]