Elly Alboim was like the Hollywood casting version of the crusty news editor with the heart of gold.
And across close to five decades as a journalist with the CBC and a journalism professor at Carleton University, he was a no-nonsense mentor to generations of young journalists.
Alboim died of heart failure on Saturday at the age of 78.
Elly Alboim taught journalism at Carleton since 1980, training hundreds of students in television and political reporting. (Earnscliffe photo)
Within hours of Alboim’s passing, news spread literally around the world and tributes began to pour in.
Alboim had an extraordinary impact on Canadian journalism and political life in 45 years spent teaching the subject to undergraduates and masters students at Carleton, 23 years at CBC Television News and another 32 years at Earnscliffe Strategies.
Most of his time at the CBC, from 1970 to 1993, was spent as the network’s Parliamentary Bureau Chief in Ottawa. Beginning in 1977 as Bureau Chief, he oversaw CBC’s coverage of some of the most important events shaping Canadian politics for the past half-century. That included four federal election campaigns, including Joe Clark’s victory in 1979, Pierre Trudeau’s return in 1980 and Brian Mulroney’s tenure from 1984 to 1993. His last event leading CBC’s political coverage was the Progressive Conservative convention that chose Kim Campbell as leader in 1993.
His insights helped shape CBC TV News reporting on everything from the 1980 Quebec referendum to the Trudeau government’s National Energy Program, Canada-United States free trade negotiations and the rise and fall of the Meech Lake and Charlottetown accords.
“Elly had a huge impact on so many ways and in so many fields,” said Peter Mansbridge, the CBC’s longtime anchor and chief political editor. “He impacted every journalist who passed his way, both in the Ottawa bureau he so cherished, and at Carleton with the impact he had on generations of journalists who learned the skills he taught.
“But he was more than a journalist, teacher and leader, he was a mentor that so many depended on to guide them. I was one of those and still live a life that benefited from the lessons he taught me. We were also friends. Our kids grew up together. Summered together. My lasting memories will be of swimming together, campfires together and Elly, yes, crusty old Elly, singing show tunes under a full moon.”
While still at CBC, Alboim began to teach TV news and political reporting at Carleton in 1980 and has been a mentor to hundreds of students. He was succeeded as Bureau Chief by Chris Waddell, who would later join Alboim teaching journalism at Carleton.
“Elly was a huge presence at CBC News for more than two decades. The things he taught so many at CBC had a continuing impact in the decades after he left the public broadcaster through the successes in the careers of so many journalists who spent time reporting from the CBC’s parliamentary bureau under his leadership,” said Waddell, professor emeritus at Carleton.
After leaving the CBC in the fall of 1993, Alboim played a key role at Earnscliffe providing public opinion research and analysis as well as public policy and strategic communications advice to federal government departments and corporations dealing with government. Much of his work involved helping shape the content and communications around federal budgets. He was also a senior advisor to Paul Martin during his years as federal Finance Minister and Prime Minster. Alboim also ran debate preparations for Liberal leader Stéphane Dion and Ontario premiers Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne.
Colleagues have fond memories of the irascible Alboim, who would often remain silent throughout an hour-long faculty meeting, then finally look up from his BlackBerry to succinctly summarize the entire discussion and suggest a way forward. And he was almost always right.
“I had enormous respect for Elly,” said longtime Carleton journalism colleague Mary McGuire, who worked with Alboim for nearly 30 years. “He was incredibly smart, intimidatingly so at times. But his advice to us all, especially about big picture issues, could be so valuable,” McGuire said.
“And yes, while he could be crusty, he could also be incredibly kind. When I retired, he wrote me a note outlining what he saw as my valuable contributions to the school. I was so moved by it and still treasure it.”
Students like fourth-year Journalism undergrad Emma McGrath appreciated Alboim’s direct style. “While he was an unconventional teacher, I appreciated his no-frills style,’’ McGrath said. “There was no wasting time on things that were not important, but he was always ready with incisive answers to any questions sent his way,” said McGrath, who took political reporting with Alboim in the fall term and signed up right away to take this term’s class on political communication. “I feel very fortunate to have been one of his students,” McGrath said.
The current head of Carleton’s journalism program, Allan Thompson, was a student in Alboim’s TV reporting class in 1984 and then a colleague at Carleton for two decades.
“You keep hearing that word, crusty. Yes, he had that Jonah Jamieson quality for sure, right down to the cigar. But don’t be fooled. Elly was a gem, a brilliant mind, a terrific editor and a tireless mentor to our students,” Thompson said. “From his hospital bed on Friday, he was sending email messages to make arrangements for his class. It is difficult to imagine Carleton’s journalism program without Elly.”
Alboim, who was a devoted husband, father and grandfather, leaves his wife Kathy Alboim, three children and seven grandchildren.
A private family funeral will take place this week, with a celebration of life planned for next month. Details will be shared as they become available.
Sunday, February 8, 2026 in Communication News, Faculty In The News, General, Journalism News, News
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