CBC journalistic talent makes its mark in the Land of the Rising Sun

Maintaining strong ties with other public media around the globe and taking Canadian talent to the world are cornerstones of our development as an organization. A great example of this is our long-standing partnership with Japan's public broadcaster, NHK, where we provide editorial consulting to its Tokyo-based newsroom staff.

To find out more, we met with Kenny Yum, senior director, innovation and partnerships, at CBC News; Michael Dick, director, CBC central region and Indigenous, and former program participant; Elyse Skura, reporter, CBC News and former participant; and Minori Takao, lead producer (in charge of recruitment for the program) and anchor for NHK World's Newsline.

Have expertise, will travel

The program recruits journalists from CBC News, who are posted to Tokyo to act as consulting producers with NHK World for a period of two years (and sometimes as many as four). "While they're over in Japan, our journalists take unpaid leave from their jobs at CBC and work on contract for NHK's 24-hour English-language news network," says Kenny Yum. He adds:

"NHK is looking for people with experience in TV news production, international reporting or overseas production. In their consulting role, they're on the front lines working with executive producers to vet scripts, graphics and stories for broadcast to NHK World's English-speaking target audience. This is crucial, because most of the material is translated from Japanese. Our consultants also provide mentoring and training on journalistic best practices."

For CBC News, the program is a way to offer more career development opportunities to its newsroom staff. With only a handful of foreign correspondent positions up for grabs, journalists looking for overseas experience can now try their hand in the Land of the Rising Sun.

A life-changing experience

Michael Dick, director, CBC central region and Indigenous, lived in Japan from 2013 to 2015 to participate in the program. He looks back fondly on his time at NHK:

"There were so many great moments; it's like a slideshow of amazing memories. I was able to work as a foreign correspondent - a dream come true for someone from a northern First Nation like me. I got to travel the country with NHK and learn more about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I did the English voiceover for Shinzō Abe, Japan's fascinating prime minister, during live broadcasts."

He describes it as a life-changing experience: "It came at a point in my career where I wasn't sure what I wanted to do or even if was going to stay with CBC. I'd been a TV reporter for 12 years and felt as if I was spinning my wheels a bit. But when I went to NHK, I was taught very valuable leadership skills, and this gave me the courage and confidence to take the next step in my career."

Once back in Canada, Michael was able to make the move into leadership roles, initially at the Thunder Bay station and most recently in Manitoba.

A history of collaboration that has grown with time

Maintaining strong ties with other public media around the globe and taking Canadian talent to the world are cornerstones of our development as an organization. A great example of this is our long-standing partnership with Japan's public broadcaster, NHK, where we provide editorial consulting to its Tokyo-based newsroom staff.

To find out more, we met with Kenny Yum, senior director, innovation and partnerships, at CBC News; Michael Dick, director, CBC central region and Indigenous, and former program participant; Elyse Skura, reporter, CBC News and former participant; and Minori Takao, lead producer (in charge of recruitment for the program) and anchor for NHK World's Newsline.

Have expertise, will travel

The program recruits journalists from CBC News, who are posted to Tokyo to act as consulting producers with NHK World for a period of two years (and sometimes as many as four). "While they're over in Japan, our journalists take unpaid leave from their jobs at CBC and work on contract for NHK's 24-hour English-language news network," says Kenny Yum. He adds:

"NHK is looking for people with experience in TV news production, international reporting or overseas production. In their consulting role, they're on the front lines working with executive producers to vet scripts, graphics and stories for broadcast to NHK World's English-speaking target audience. This is crucial, because most of the material is translated from Japanese. Our consultants also provide mentoring and training on journalistic best practices."

For CBC News, the program is a way to offer more career development opportunities to its newsroom staff. With only a handful of foreign correspondent positions up for grabs, journalists looking for overseas experience can now try their hand in the Land of the Rising Sun.

A life-changing experience

Michael Dick, director, CBC central region and Indigenous, lived in Japan from 2013 to 2015 to take part in the program. He looks back fondly on his time at NHK:

"There were so many great moments; it's like a slideshow of amazing memories. I was able to work as a foreign correspondent - a dream come true for someone from a northern First Nation like me. I got to travel the country with NHK and learn more about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I did the English voiceover for Shinzō Abe, Japan's fascinating prime minister, during live broadcasts."

Michael Dick's memories from Japan

He describes it as a life-changing experience: "It came at a point in my career where I wasn't sure what I wanted to do or even if I was going to stay with CBC. I'd been a TV reporter for 12 years and felt as if I was spinning my wheels a bit. But when I went to NHK, I was taught very valuable leadership skills, and this gave me the courage and confidence to take the next step in my career."

Once back in Canada, Michael was able to make the move into leadership roles, initially at the Thunder Bay station and most recently in Manitoba.

On her end, journalist Elyse Skura was not her first time in the field before applying to the program: she worked as a reporter, newsreader and assignment editor for about a decade, including time in Rwanda and Nunavut. She recently returned home after four years at NHK World, in Tokyo: "It's like reverse culture shock," says Skura, who ended up spending the entire pandemic there.

Elyse Skura in Japan.

For Elyse, the program with NHK is all about teaching and mentoring. She feels that by guiding younger colleagues, the experience further sharpened her own skills and allowed her to become a better mentor back home in Ottawa.

"What we do is more teaching than anything, but also just guiding on a daily basis and trying to develop skills within others - something I don't always get a chance to do at CBC. And it's just an amazing opportunity to work in Japan!"

A history of collaboration that has grown with time

Minori Takao is a news anchor for NHK World in New York and has overseen recruitment for the program since 2018. In her view, it's a natural fit for the two public broadcasters to work together.

"CBC and NHK have similar structures, with a headquarters and regional stations located across the country as well as a network of foreign bureaus. Not all public broadcasters are organized this way. So in terms of philosophy or way of thinking, we find that CBC is closer to us than any other public broadcaster we know."

- Minori Takao

The other key driver for the partnership is obviously the English spoken by our journalists. "Because most of our anchors are Japanese, we want a more neutral style of language, and Canadian English fits the bill. It's also about having access to Western news expertise - the way you edit videos, how long the scripts should be and what's easiest for Western or English-speaking audiences to understand," Minori says.

She adds that this ongoing program with CBC is highly valuable, since the work culture is passed on from one journalist to another, ensuring continuity in the newsroom. "We're extremely grateful to have been able to grow this partnership over the years. The program started out with one participant, and now there are five."

A fresh cohort of three journalists recently landed in Tokyo to begin a new chapter in their careers. In addition to experiencing a foreign newsroom, they have to get acclimated to a new city, new culture and new life in their adopted home. All the while, they're adding their own stories to the over two-decade history of collaboration between the Japanese and Canadian public broadcasters.

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