| Nationality: | Canadian |
| Occupation: | journalist, news director |
| Years Active: | 1947–1998 |
| Known For: | news director of CKNW for 32 years |
| Warren Barker | |
Warren Barker (1928 – June 15, 2021) was a Canadian broadcast journalist and longtime employee of CKNW in Vancouver, British Columbia. He first served at CKNW as its news editor[1] before becoming its news director in 1959. He remained news director for 32 years until he retired in September 1991. He was considered to be a "founding father" of the news division at the station. Barker died on June 15, 2021, at the age of 92.[2]
Barker started his career in broadcast journalism in 1947.[3] He served as news director of CKNW for 32 years, starting in 1959.[4] According to the Vancouver Sun, Barker was a "founding father" of CKNW-Radio's news division. Barker retired from CKNW on September 1,[5] 1991[6] but remained a contributor to the station until at least 1998.
Warren Barker was the recipient of multiple awards and credited with the creation of a file system that allowed CKNW to more efficiently track developing news. In 1988, Barker was the recipient of the Earl Bradford Memorial Award of Excellence in Broadcasting.[7] He was the recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation's Bruce Hutchison Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1993 Jack Webster awards.[8] [9] In 1998, he was among seven broadcasters inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame.[10] [11]
The Canadian Press noted in 1998 that Barker was "considered a legend in British Columbia radio news".[12] In an article for The Province, retired broadcaster Ed Murphy stated that Barker was a "workaholic with an obsession that news must be accurate, well-written and properly presented", crediting this, along with the "eight o'clock news service" and his hiring of "first-class newsmen", as a factor in the station's commercial success.[13]