Barbara Frum
Barbara Frum was a prominent Canadian journalist born on September 8, 1937, in Niagara Falls, New York. She began her career in journalism after writing an exposé about a fraudulent charity, which led to her work with the Toronto Star and other national newspapers. Frum gained significant recognition as co-host of the CBC radio program *As It Happens*, where she became known for her interviewing skills and commitment to social issues. In 1982, she hosted *The Journal*, a highly respected news-magazine show, and garnered numerous awards, including the National Press Club of Canada Award and an appointment to the Order of Canada.
Despite being diagnosed with leukemia in 1974, Frum continued to work for nearly two decades, maintaining a rigorous schedule until her death on March 26, 1992. Her legacy is honored through various tributes, such as the renaming of the Toronto Public Library in her name and the annual Barbara Frum Lecture co-sponsored by the University of Toronto and CBC. Frum's family includes her three children, two of whom have pursued careers in writing and politics, reflecting her impact on Canadian culture and journalism.
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Subject Terms
Barbara Frum
Journalist
- Born: September 8, 1937
- Birthplace: Niagara Falls, Ontario
- Died: March 26, 1992
- Place of death: Toronto, Ontario
Contribution: Barbara Frum was a well-known radio and television journalist who combined personal warmth and a great interest in people with a tough, truth-seeking interview style, most notably on Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Radio’s As It Happens from 1971 to 1982, and later on CBC Television’s The Journal from 1982 to 1992.
Early Life and Education
Barbara Rosberg Frum was born September 8, 1937, in Niagara Falls, New York. Her father, Harold Rosberg was born in Kielce, Poland, in 1905 and immigrated with his parents to Canada in 1913. Florence, Frum’s mother, who was born and raised in New York City, married Frum’s father in 1913, the same year she relocated to Canada.
Career in Journalism
Frum married high-school sweetheart Murray Frum when she was nineteen, had three children, and spent her days as a homemaker, mother, and volunteer. She attended the University of Toronto and received a BA in history in 1959.
Frum was also involved in charity and volunteer work with inner-city children in Toronto, and after realizing that several charitable organizations were not delivering on their claims, Frum became determined to effect change through journalism.
With the encouragement and support of her husband and mother, Frum wrote an exposé of a fraudulent Toronto charity and submitted it to the Toronto Star. The article led to a career as a freelance writer with the paper, where she specialized in social-issue stories. She wrote columns for national newspapers, including the Globe and Mail and Toronto Star, and made television appearances as well.
Career in Radio and Television
Frum’s career took off in 1971 when she became co-host of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) radio program As It Happens. As an interviewer, Frum revealed her true talent and was soon regarded as one of Canada’s top journalists in a field still dominated by men. She won numerous awards, including the 1975 National Press Club of Canada Award for Outstanding Contribution to Canadian Journalism and the 1976 Woman of the Year in the literature, arts, and education category of the Canadian Press. Frum was named to the Order of Canada in 1979.
As co-host of As It Happens, Frum interviewed a wide range of people—heads of state, farmers, unemployed workers, fishermen, and mothers. She treated every guest with the same level of courtesy, interest, and honesty.
In January 1982, CBC Television launched The Journal with Frum as its host. The show soon became the most respected and popular news-magazine show on Canadian television.
Frum’s Legacy
Although Frum was diagnosed with leukemia in 1974, she kept her illness private, telling only her family and a few close friends. She continued to work twelve to fourteen hours days until succumbing to the disease almost twenty years later.
Frum died on March 26, 1992, in Toronto at the age of fifty-four, but her legacy lives on through various tributes: The Toronto Public Library was renamed the Barbara Frum Library; the atrium at CBC headquarters was named in her honor; the University of Toronto and the CBC co-sponsor an annual Barbara Frum Lecture; as a tribute to Frum’s love of gardening, a daylily was named for her.
The Frums raised three children: Linda Frum is a Canadian author and politician who wrote a memoir of her mother in 1997. In 2009, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed her to the Senate of Canada. David Frum is a journalist, author, and political activist who became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 2007. He is a former speech writer and special assistant to President George W. Bush. Matthew is of First Nations background and was adopted by the Frums as a baby during what would later be termed the Sixties Scoop. As an adult, Matthew was drawn to his aboriginal heritage and initiated contact with his biological parents.
Murray Frum died of lung cancer at eighty-one in May of 2013.
Bibliography
“Barbara Frum.” Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica-Dominion, n.d. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.
“Barbara Frum, Journalist, 54.” New York Times. New York Times Company, 28 Mar. 1992. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.
Brown, Michael. “Barbara Frum: 1937–1992.” Jewish Women’s Archive. Jewish Women’s Archive, 1 Mar. 2009. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.
Busbee, Patricia. Two Worlds: Lost Children of the Indian Adoption Projects. Greenfield, MA: Blue Hand, 2012. Print.
Crysdale, Joy. Fearless Female Journalists. Toronto: Second Story, 2010. Print.
Frum, David. “Margaret Thatcher vs. Barbara Frum.” Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast Company, 8 Apr. 2013. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.
Frum, Linda. Barbara Frum: A Daughter’s Memoir. Toronto: Random House Canada, 1997. Print.
Lamontagne, Manon. “Barbara Frum.” Jewish Virtual Library. The American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise, n.d. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.
Wojna, Lisa. Greaet Canadian Women: Nineteen Portraits of Extraordinary Women. Edmonton: Folklore, 2005. Print.