Background
Bassett was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Bassett was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
As well, she graduated from teacher"s college and taught English and French at Humberside Collegiate Institute.
From 1999 until 2005 she was the chair and Chief Executive Officer of TVOntario/TFO, Ontario"s provincial public television network. She has been a controversial figure at times, but is also a highly regarded pioneer in Canadian broadcasting. She received a Bachelor of Arts from Queen"s University and a Master of Arts from York University in 1973.
Bassett first entered Canadian public life as a journalist for the Toronto Telegram in the 1960s.
She later joined CTV, where she became a prominent reporter and documentary producer, including a stint with W5, after marrying Baton Broadcasting owner John Bassett in 1970. In the federal election of 1993, Bassett ran as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the Toronto riding of Saint Paul"son
She lost to Liberal Barry Campbell by over 15,000 votes. On October 10, 1997, she was appointed Minister of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation in the government of Mike Harris.
In the 1999 provincial election, Bassett was defeated in the new provincial riding of Saint Paul"s by Liberal candidate Michael Bryant.
She was one of several Toronto Progressive Conservatives defeated in the city due to the unpopularity of Harris" government. Cabinet positions
After the election, Bassett was appointed as head of TVOntario by Mike Harris. Her mandate was to refocus the network on educational programming.
However, Bassett successfully found ways to ensure that the network"s most popular non-educational programs, such as Saturday Night at the Movies and Studio 2, could continue to air.
Bassett"s position again became controversial when Eves became Premier of Ontario in 2002, with media critics noting the potential conflict of interest inherent in Bassett remaining as head of TVOntario while simultaneously in a common law relationship with the provincial premier. However, Bassett was popular within TVOntario, and the controversy soon subsided.
She remained chair and Chief Executive Officer of TVOntario until September 29, 2005, when the Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty separated the two positions. Bassett"s successors were film producer Peter O"Brian as chair, and former Astral Media executive Lisa de Wilde as Chief Executive Officer.
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Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario.
Bassett was elected in the provincial election of 1995, defeating Liberal candidate Carolyn Bennett (later a federal Member of Parliament) by about 3,500 votes. She served as the Progressive Conservative Member of Provincial Parliament (Master in Public Policy) for Saint Andrew—Saint Patrick for the next four years. Despite the Harris government"s right-wing reputation, Bassett is a Red Tory, and was one of the most socially progressive members of the Harris cabinet.
In 2016, she was made a member of the Order of Ontario.