Steve Paikin

Journalist, Broadcaster, Author
Speaker, Moderator, Emcee

Steve Paikin is anchor and senior editor of The Agenda with Steve Paikin. The flagship current affairs program of TV Ontario, the world's largest educational television network debuted in September 2006. Its mission is to cover the provincial, national, and international issues viewers must know, to be well-informed citizens of Ontario at the dawn of the 21st century.

Previously, he co-hosted Studio 2 for 12 seasons (1994-2006) and co-created and hosted Diplomatic Immunity for 8 seasons (1998-2006). Studio 2 was an hour-long Monday to Friday program, which put into context the issues affecting Ontario's citizens. It focused on provincial, national, and international affairs, sports, the arts, culture, and economics. Its motto was "Death to Soundbites," a reference to the 20- and 30-second clip which makes up so much of the news and current affairs programming landscape. Diplomatic Immunity was a weekly program specializing in foreign affairs.

Steve's first book, The Life: the Seductive Call of Politics published in October 2001, is a fascinating exploration of the world of politics and the people who are addicted to it. The Life focuses on why people get into politics and the noble, exciting reasons why they love it so much. In October 2003 the sequel to this surprise best seller, The Dark Side: the Personal Price of a Political Life, Steve explores the personal costs of public life by shinning a light on the politicians who not only experienced the life's exhilarating highs, but felt the crushing lows. Taking a hard-hitting analytical look at the public life, Paikin examines the lives of politicians who fell from grace. Swept up in dramatic events beyond their control, many found themselves powerless to change their destiny. Some were only temporarily thrown off course, but for others, the devastation was profound. Published in March 2005, Public Triumph, Private Tragedy: The double life of John P. Robarts, is a compelling new account of the dramatic life of Ontario's former Prime Minister, from its ambitious beginning to its shocking end.

Steve's other lifelong passion is hockey. In his 2007 book The New Game: How Hockey Saved Itself, Steve examines the many aspects of Canada's favourite sport, addressing the major changes that have taken place in the game of hockey.

In 1993, Paikin completed his first feature-length documentary –Return to the Warsaw Ghetto –on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the ghetto uprising. The documentary won several awards: the Silver Screen Award from the U.S. International Film and Video Festival, plus awards from the Yorkton Film Festival and the Shanghai Film Festival in China.

He has also produced feature-length documentaries on the life of former Ontario Premier William Davis (A Main Street Man); the disintegration of Yugoslavia (Balkan Madness); the Conservative government's controversial education reform Bill 160 (Teachers, Tories, and Turmoil), on the life of former Ontario Premier John Robarts (Chairman of the Board: The Life and Death of John Robarts) and 1985: The Year Ontario Politics Changed Forever which aired on the 20th anniversary if the end of the 42-year Progressive Conservative dynasty, leading to David Peterson's becoming Premier.

Steve began and built his career working as a reporter in private radio, television, and the print media. Immediately before coming to TVO, he spent seven years at CBC-TV working in a variety of positions which included news reporter, Queen's Park correspondent and anchor of the six o'clock news.

Steve Paikin was born in Hamilton, educated at the University of Toronto (Bachelor of Arts) and Boston University (Master of Broadcast Journalism), and lives in Toronto.