Rogers Communications and Vice have announced the first round of hires stemming from their new $100-million partnership announced in October. The new partnership includes a state-of-the-art production facility in Toronto, as well plans for a youth-focused TV channel expected to launch later this year.
Michael Kronish, previously executive producer at Montreal’s Zone3, has been named executive vice-president, television and online, tasked with overseeing all Canadian-produced content for distribution on TV, mobile and online platforms.
Jason Ford, formerly with Red Bull Media House, has also been named VP of production, while Andrea Schmidt joins as executive producer after spending several years with Al Jazeera. Tania Natscheff also joins the company as director of factual programming after spending several years as an executive producer at the CBC.
“Vice Canada is excited to welcome a team that will lead the charge on evolving our offerings,” said managing director Ryan Archibald, in a release. “Their extensive production experience and strong industry relationships will be essential as we prepare to ramp up our content across all screens.”
Vice Canada has also promoted journalist and documentary producer Patrick McGuire to head of content, where he will oversee original digital production. Other additions to the editorial team include Josh Visser, former senior digital reporter at the National Post, as managing editor of Vice.com, and Chris Bilton, former associate editor of The Grid, as deputy editor of Vice.com.
The company has also hired Karon Liu, formerly of The Grid and Toronto alt-weekly Now, as managing editor of its new food-focused website and digital channel, Munchies.
