Monita Rajpal
(born 20 February 1974) is a Canadian journalist. She is a former
news presenter
for
Citytv
and
CNN International
.
Monita Rajpal
|
---|
Rajpal at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit in 2016
|
Born
| (
1974-02-20
)
20 February 1974
(age?50)
|
---|
Occupation
| Television presenter
|
---|
Website
| http://monitarajpal.com/
|
---|
At CNN, she anchored
CNN Today
,
World One
, the art programmes
Art of Life
and
Icon
,
CNN NewsCenter
, and
TalkAsia
. She worked for CNN between 2001 and 2014, first in Atlanta at the
CNN Center
, next in London, and finally in Hong Kong. Since leaving CNN, she blogs on her news and lifestyle blog, The Citrine Room.
In her second year of college, Rajpal wished to work at a
part-time job
, so she did a two-month contract as a
switchboard operator
at the
CHUM-City Building
.
[1]
After she graduated from
Ryerson Polytechnic University
(now Toronto Metropolitan University) with a degree in radio and television arts in 1996,
[2]
Rajpal started a six-month contract to be a
receptionist
at ChumCity.
[1]
She responded to phone calls and led visitors on building tours.
[3]
On the final day of her contract, Stephen Hurlbut, the vice president of programming, requested that she continue working for several weeks to conduct research.
[1]
Rajpal became Hurlbut's assistant at
CP24
as the channel was being launched in 1997.
[1]
She then became a reporter and anchor for CP24
[1]
and
Citytv
, where she reported on stories for the "primetime nightly news" such as
federal elections
, teacher strikes, and homelessness in Toronto.
[4]
While situated in his Toronto hotel room in February 2001, a
CNN
executive was browsing through the television channels and saw Rajpal.
[1]
He extended an Atlanta-based
CNN International
anchor position to Rajpal, who accepted
[1]
and started working at CNN in 2001.
[5]
She worked about 12 hours daily at the
CNN Center
, reading news publications like
The Economist
and
The New Yorker
.
[4]
While based in Atlanta, she had interviewed
Ehud Barak
, a former
Prime Minister of Israel
;
Andres Pastrana Arango
, the then-
President of Colombia
; and
Moses Blah
, who had just taken office as
President of Liberia
.
[4]
She covered news stories about the
war on terror
,
Catholic Church sexual abuse cases
, Liberian strife, former American president
Jimmy Carter
's visit to Cuba, and
presidential elections in France
.
[2]
[6]
Rajpal moved to London in late 2004 where she anchored the European edition of
CNN Today
and the art programme
Art of Life
.
[2]
[7]
In 2010, Rajpal hosted the CNN art culture programme
Icon
.
[5]
The show's first three episodes discussed Paris fashion and art, guitarist
Les Paul
's legacy, and advertising.
[5]
In 2011, she co-anchored
World One
, a daily CNN International news programme while based in London.
[8]
[9]
In late 2012, Rajpal moved from London to Hong Kong.
[9]
[10]
She hosted two shows that had their first broadcasts at the beginning of 2013:
CNN NewsCenter
and
TalkAsia
.
[9]
CNN NewsCenter
is a news programme that discusses international headlines, while
TalkAsia
is a weekly programme that interviews an internationally known person for 30 minutes.
[9]
Notable people she has interviewed for CNN include
Mikhail Gorbachev
,
[3]
Vicente Fox
,
[2]
Al Gore
,
[3]
Tom Ford
,
[5]
and
I. M. Pei
.
[5]
Rajpal left CNN on 4 July 2014.
[11]
Personal life
edit
Rajpal was born on 20 February 1974
[1]
[12]
[13]
[14]
in Hong Kong to "a Chinese mother of Indian origin and an Indian father".
[2]
Her maternal grandfather moved from
Punjab
to
Shanghai
at 16 years old. Her mother was raised in Shanghai and became an electronics company executive.
[9]
Rajpal is
Sikh
[15]
and has a brother.
[2]
Rajpal grew up in Hong Kong and at age 14 immigrated with her family to
North York
in
Toronto
, Canada.
[3]
She attended
A. Y. Jackson Secondary School
where she took part in its
Amnesty International
club.
[3]
Upon seeing Rajpal present to a crowded assembly hall, the vice principal requested that she deliver the school's morning broadcasts.
[3]
Her guidance counsellor, who knew about her broadcasting work, recommended that she submit a college application to the radio and television arts program at Ryerson Polytechnic University, which she attended.
[3]
Her parents had wanted her to be a physician.
[1]
Her uncle worked at
RTHK
. Her mother listened to radio news broadcasts on the radio all day which introduced Rajpal to the news business.
[9]
She is fluent in
Cantonese
,
English
,
French
, and
Punjabi
.
[4]
[9]
Rajpal said her
pop icons
are the band
U2
, the architect
Frank Gehry
, the artist
Damien Hirst
, and
Oprah Winfrey
.
[5]
Rajpal resides in
Wiltshire
in
South West England
with her husband and their son.
[16]
She blogs on her news and lifestyle blog, The Citrine Room.
[16]
References
edit
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Eckler, Rebecca (4 April 2001).
"Former 'switchette' bound for CNN: Monita Rajpal lands coveted position with media giant"
.
National Post
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Sarkar, John (14 April 2007).
"Seeking cultures"
.
The Economic Times
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Coutts, Matthew (28 October 2010).
"Monita Rajpal: From a T.O. reception desk to CNN's anchor chair, this cable news icon dishes on landing her dream job and growing up in North York"
.
TRNTO
. Post City Magazines. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Walunjkar, Somashukla Sinha (17 August 2004).
"CNN's Indian link: Life as a TV anchor requires stamina. But then if you want to achieve something, you have to give your job your best, says Monita Rajpal"
.
Hindustan Times
.
Press Trust of India
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Taneja, Nikhil (25 September 2010).
"CNN's new show on art and culture: Icon explores the memorable facets of art and transcends boundaries in terms of culture and influence; Monita Rajapal, news anchor with CNN, will host the show"
.
Hindustan Times
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
Gordon, Dave (24 November 2003).
"From Toronto to Atlanta: The former Citytv reporter Monita Rajpal is enjoying her high-profile anchor position at CNN International"
.
Popjournalism
. Archived from
the original
on 18 December 2007
. Retrieved
11 May
2020
.
- ^
Nair, Nandini (30 March 2007).
"CNN anchor Monita Rajpal on the various experiences of anchoring"
.
The Hindu
. Archived from
the original
on 27 May 2007
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
Savin, Monique (6 February 2011).
"CNN anchor's challenge: fitting workouts into 17-hour days"
.
The Globe and Mail
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Bohwongprasert, Yvonne (7 May 2013).
"Firmly Anchored: CNN International's Monita Rajpal has the confidence and experience needed to spearhead two flagship shows"
.
Bangkok Post
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
Laghate, Gaurav (20 January 2013).
"CNN focuses on Asia, strengthens Hong Kong bureau"
.
Business Standard
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
- ^
Rajpal, Monita [@MonitaRajpal] (3 July 2014).
"13yrs & 3 countries. Time to recalibrate & risk. July 4th I fly the CNN nest. Your continued support humbles me. Stay tuned for what's next!"
(
Tweet
). Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Twitter
.
- ^
Rajpal, Monita [@MonitaRajpal] (20 February 2019).
"Quite proud of the fact that my dearest friends are sending me Golden Girls gifs for my birthday. #goals"
(
Tweet
). Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Twitter
.
- ^
Rajpal, Monita [@MonitaRajpal] (20 February 2013).
"Thank you all so much for the lovely birthday wishes! I wish I could reply to each of you. But I'm off to eat cake and celebrate!"
(
Tweet
). Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Twitter
.
- ^
Rajpal, Monita [@MonitaRajpal] (19 February 2013).
"
"@cvillanueva18?: @MonitaRajpalCNN Happy Birthday?:)" thank you but it's not till tomorrow"
(
Tweet
). Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Twitter
.
- ^
Giles, Lee (26 July 2007).
"Sikh names policy must go"
.
Red Deer Advocate
. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
? via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
a
b
Rajpal, Monita (2020).
"Monita Rajpal About"
. Monita Rajpal. Archived from
the original
on 10 May 2020
. Retrieved
10 May
2020
.
External links
edit