Omayra Issa

Omayra Issa is an award-winning journalist and part of CPAC’s on-air team connecting Canadians to their democracy. As a former national reporter for CBC News, Issa was a correspondent on flagship shows The National and World at Six. She also co-created and co-produced the groundbreaking and innovative series Black on the Prairies, which received international recognition and reached an audience of one million people. Issa’s work led to impactful changes in education policies in Saskatchewan and the initiative garnered several RTDNA Canada and Digital Publishing Awards. As a result, Issa became the first Black woman journalist to present the prestigious Kesterton Lecture in Journalism at Carleton University. Issa began her career at Radio-Canada in Saskatoon and anchored Le Téléjournal Saskatchewan. As a seasoned reporter, she has produced compelling content on television, radio and digital platforms in English and French. Issa was named one of Canada’s Top 100 Black Women to Watch and nominated for a YWCA Women of Distinction Award. She is a former board member of the Canadian Association of Journalists and continues to mentor early-career journalists. With her refreshing outlook, Issa’s voice is helping guide national conversations around inclusion and diversity in newsrooms. With stories and action, she is pushing forward improvements that speak to the foundations of journalism in Canada.