Monita Rajpal

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Monita Rajpal
Rajpal at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit in 2016
Born ( 1974-02-20 ) 20 February 1974 (age 50)
Hong Kong
Occupation Television presenter
Website http://monitarajpal.com/

Monita Rajpal (born 20 February 1974) is a Canadian journalist. She is a former news presenter for Citytv and CNN International .

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.

Career [ edit ]

Rajpal at the Copenhagen Fashion Summit in 2016

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 ]

  1. ^ 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 .
  2. ^ 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 .
  3. ^ 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 .
  4. ^ 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 .
  5. ^ 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 .
  6. ^ 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 .
  7. ^ 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 .
  8. ^ 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 .
  9. ^ 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 .
  10. ^ 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 .
  11. ^ 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 .
  12. ^ 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 .
  13. ^ 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 .
  14. ^ 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 .
  15. ^ 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 .
  16. ^ 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 ]

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