Vassy Kapelos


Vassiliki Kapelos is a Canadian political journalist, currently the host of Power & Politics on CBC News Network. She formerly worked as the Ottawa bureau chief for Global News and the host of that network's Sunday morning political affairs show, The West Block.

Early life and education

Kapelos graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a Bachelor of Arts in 2004. She then graduated from Dalhousie University with a Master of Arts in 2006. Kapelos is of Greek ethnic origin.

Career

Kapelos first began reporting in Swift Current and worked for the Global Television Network's stations in Saskatoon and Edmonton, including as the Edmonton station's provincial political affairs reporter. In that role, she became best known for breaking the story about the large severance package paid out to Premier Alison Redford's outgoing chief of staff in 2013, which ultimately forced Redford to introduce a new sunshine list for public employees. In that same year, she was part of the reporting team for the series "Code Red", an investigative series on the ambulance industry in Alberta, which drew on revealing interviews with paramedics and other sources and an in-studio interview with Alberta Minister of Health Fred Horne to reveal an under-resourced industry that was endangering Alberta residents. The series forced the provincial government to initiate a review of the system as a whole, and won the 2013 Edward R. Murrow Award for Best News Series in the international category.
Kapelos transferred to the Ottawa bureau in 2013, becoming bureau chief in 2016 and host of The West Block in 2017 following the retirement of Tom Clark. In February 2018, she left Global to join CBC News Network as the new host of Power & Politics.