POPULARITY
Chief Tammy Cook-Searson, Lac La Ronge Indian Band & Robert Smith, Cross Lake Mayor; Tood Loewen, Alberta Forestry Minister; Christopher Skeete, Quebec Economy Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh; Michal Baranowski, Polish Deputy Trade Minister.
Kevin Cramer, Senator – North Dakota (R); Jim Gallant, Canadian Union of Postal Workers; Jon Hamilton, Canada Post; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
David Cohen, Former U.S. Ambassador to Canada; Abigail Bimman, CTV News; Shachi Kurl, Angus Reid Institute; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
The final days of a campaign can be hectic. The Conservatives had to pull together a couple of advertisements on short notice. Every party is sending their leader on a cross-country tour and volunteers on the ground are pulling out all the stops to ID their supporters in order to get them out to the polls on election day.There's a lot going on in this last week before election day. Ads, tour, get-out-the-vote. So, what's the story on how parties actually get it done?Throughout this election, three veteran party organizers have been joining me on The Writ Podcast to explain the ins and outs of campaigning — and they're back one last time!Laura D'Angelo has worked Tour Central for the Liberals in elections both federally and provincially, and was director of campaign operations for the Liberals in 2019. She is the vice-president, national strategy and public affairs at Enterprise Canada.Melanie Paradis was director of communications for past Conservative Party leader Erin O'Toole and is president of Texture Communications.Cheryl Oates was the executive director of communications and planning for former Alberta premier Rachel Notley. She's principal at GT Executive Advisors and is the co-host of The Discourse podcast.In addition to listening to this episode of The Writ Podcast in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe
What happens when a political insider becomes a mom and builds a thriving business during nap time? In this honest and empowering conversation, Melanie Paradis—founder, speechwriter, and mom of two—joins Stephanie to talk about launching and growing a business while raising young kids. From maternity leave misfires to scaling up fast, Melanie shares what's real, what's possible, and how motherhood shaped her leadership. If you're a founder, a parent, or somewhere in between, this one's for you.Melanie ParadisPresident| Texture CommunicationsMelanie Paradis is an expert ghost-writer of speeches, op-eds and by-line articles for leading industry executives and politicians. Her work has been published in Canada's most-read newspapers, and heard on airwaves and streaming services across the nation. An unflappable media and public affairs advisor, Melanie has worked with executives on Bay Street and politicians on Parliament Hill during high stakes crises and moments of transformation. From responding to environmental crises to delivering tough news about shutting down operations, to winning elections - Melanie is the trusted, steady pen you need. Melanie has over 15 years of experience in crisis communications, media and public relations. She has worked with a variety of clients across industries to manage their brand and stakeholder relationships through crises, and to build advocacy coalitions to help get nation-building projects and policies advanced. She has led media relations, editorial and speechwriting for CEOs in finance, transportation, mining, retail, and everything in between; investment bankers, scientists, farmers, Indigenous communities, and politicians. Even a few international athletes and a world-renowned artist.Prior to striking out on her own, Melanie served in senior communications roles at leading national public affairs and government relations firms. Her previous in-house work at one of the world's largest mining companies and a major Canadian Indigenous organization gives her unique insights into clients' day-to-day communications needs.The book mentioned in the episode is:Material World by Ed ConwayOur Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/womendontdothatRecommend guests: https://www.womendontdothat.com/Our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/womendontdothatRecommend guests: https://www.womendontdothat.com/How to find WOMENdontDOthat:Patreonhttps://www.patreon.com/womendontdothatInstagram - http://www.instagram.com/womendontdothat/TikTok- http://www.tiktok.com/@womendontdothatBlog- https://www.womendontdothat.com/blogPodcast- https://www.womendontdothat.com/podcastNewsletter- https://www.beaconnorthstrategies.com/contactwww.womendontdothat.comYouTube - http://www.youtube.com/@WOMENdontDOthatHow to find Stephanie Mitton:Twitter/X- https://twitter.com/StephanieMittonLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemitton/beaconnorthstrategies.comTikTok- https://www.tiktok.com/@stephmittonInstagram- https://www.instagram.com/stephaniemitton/Interested in sponsorship? Contact us at hello@womendontdothat.comOur Latest Blog:https://www.womendontdothat.com/post/our-first-beacon-north-christmas-party-a-reflection-on-growth-and-gratitude
Parties proudly present their slate of candidates in every election shortly before dumping some of them. It's an inevitable part of every campaign — rejecting candidates who don't meet a party's vetting standards and ejecting candidates when rival parties have dug up the dirt on them.So, what's the process behind candidate vetting? And how do parties go about compiling, and then using, opposition research?Plus, Pierre Poilievre has been putting on some massive rallies. How are these organized — and are they worth the effort?Throughout this election, three veteran party organizers are joining me on The Writ Podcast to explain the ins and outs of campaigning.Laura D'Angelo has worked Tour Central for the Liberals in elections both federally and provincially, and was director of campaign operations for the Liberals in 2019. She is the vice-president, national strategy and public affairs at Enterprise Canada.Melanie Paradis was director of communications for past Conservative Party leader Erin O'Toole and is president of Texture Communications.Cheryl Oates was the executive director of communications and planning for former Alberta premier Rachel Notley. She's principal at GT Executive Advisors and is the co-host of The Discourse podcast.In addition to listening to this episode of The Writ Podcast in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe
Women's fertility is a third rail in Canadian politics. We all learned this again last week, when Pierre Poilievre made a comment about biological clocks that sparked outrage. If you followed the controversy in the mainstream media only, you might not know that a number of women were glad to see Poilievre raise the issue of fertility — including my guest on today's show.Melanie Paradis the president of Texture Communications and a veteran Conservative campaigner. Her recent piece for The Line is titled “Poilievre was right to bring up my biological clock.”You can find Tara Henley on Twitter at @TaraRHenley, and on Substack at tarahenley.substack.com
Mark Carney kicked off Canada's election campaign on Sunday and already parties are discovering that their best laid plans can go awry very quickly. So, what goes on behind the scenes when parties draw up their strategies for a campaign and what happens when they have to react to the unexpected?Throughout this election, I'll be joined periodically by three veteran party organizers to explain the ins and outs of campaigning — and help make some sense of just what is happening out on the hustings.Vandana Kattar was the director of operations, outreach and planning for former prime minister Justin Trudeau and was one of the co-hosts of the Race to Replace podcast during the past Liberal leadership contest.Melanie Paradis was director of communications for past Conservative Party leader Erin O'Toole and is president of Texture Communications.Cheryl Oates was the executive director of communications and planning for former Alberta premier Rachel Notley. She's principal at GT Executive Advisors and is the co-host of The Discourse podcast.In addition to listening to this episode of The Writ Podcast in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe
Jeremie Charron, CTV News & Judy Trinh, CTV News; Anne McGrath, NDP Campaign Spokesperson; David Coletto, Abacus Data; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Nojoud Al Mallees.
The federal parties are putting the final touches on their election campaigns. What just recently seemed like an easy victory for the Conservatives is no longer so certain. This week, several public opinion polls had the Liberal ahead and in majority territory. Canada's 45th general election will be an unexpectedly tight race. This week on “It's Political,” Toronto Star Ottawa bureau reporters unpack the strategies of the Liberals, Conservatives, NDP and Greens going into this campaign. Then, three conservative former strategists join Althia to discuss leader Pierre Poilievre's response to new Liberal Leader Mark Carney. Is Poilievre's strategy working? Does it need to change? In this episode: Melanie Paradis, the president of texture communications and a former deputy campaign director to former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole; Rudy Husny, a former Conservative leadership candidate and a former advisor in Stephen Harper's government; Evan Menzies, a vice-president at Crestview Strategy and a former director of communications for the United Conservative Party of Alberta; as well as Toronto Star Ottawa reporters Raisa Patel, Ryan Tumilty and Mark Ramzy. Hosted by Althia Raj. This episode of “It's Political” was produced by Althia Raj and Kevin Sexton. Matt Hearn is our sound engineer. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel. Some of the clips this week were sourced from CPAC, CTV, CBC and Fox News, and the Parliamentary Press Gallery.
Colton Prail, CTV News; Nik Nanos, Nanos Research; David McGuinty, Public Safety Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Inna Sovsun, Ukrainian Member of Parliament; Roman Waschuk, Former Canadian Ambassador to Ukraine; Mike Duheme, RCMP Commissioner; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Steven MacKinnon, Labour Minister; Scott Moe, Saskatchewan Premier; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Nojoud Al Mallees.
Marit Stiles, Ontario NDP Leader; Andrew Enns, Leger; Drew Dilkens, Windsor Mayor & Matthew Shoemaker, Sault Ste. Marie Mayor; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
Arlene Dickinson, District Ventures Capital & Senator Hassan Yussuff, Independent Senators Group – Ontario; Nik Nanos, Nanos Research; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Nathalie Provost, PolySeSouvient; Ranj Pillai, Yukon Premier, R.J. Simpson, North West Territoires Premier & P.J. Akeeagok, Nunavut Premier; Jonathan Wilkinson, Energy Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Jenna Sudds, Families, Children and Social Development Minister; Susan Holt, New Brunswick Premier; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Listen to Vassy's full conversation with Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathon Wilkinson, and Alberta Premiere Danielle Smith on if the government should revisit its set of climate policies following the U.S election. On todays show: Paul Woods, former CFL Journalist and CFL Historian joins Vassy to go over the historic Grey Cup match from last night. Lorne James, Owner of Otter Valley Railroad joins Vassy to discuss the impact the Canada Post strike has on his business and customers. The Daily Debrief Panel with Melanie Paradis, Tom Mulcair, and Sabrina Grover. Derek Burney, Former Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Mulroney and former Canadian Ambassador to the U.S joins Vassy to discuss how important defence spending will be for Canada amid an upcoming Trump administration.
Ontario's Representative to Washington David Paterson; Former Justice Minister Irwin Cotler; the Front Bench with Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Vassy Kapelos, CTV News Chief Political Correspondent; Bureau Chiefs Panel with: Robert Fife & Tonda McCharles; Chief Economists Panel with: Pedro Antunes & Jimmy Jean; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
In this episode, Elizabeth Dubois chats with Melanie Paradis, President of Texture Communications, to dissect the theory of planned behaviour and its application in political communication. With Melanie's extensive background in political strategy and public relations, and her roles on high-profile political campaigns, this discussion explores how psychological principles underpin effective political messaging and voter engagement strategies.Additional Resources: Elizabeth relies on The Theory of Planned Behaviour: Reactions and Reflections and Knowledge and the Prediction of Behavior: The Role of Information Accuracy in the Theory of Planned Behavior to explain the theory. Melanie underlines the role of third-party advertising as it relates to elections and advocacy in Canada. You can learn more about this through an article published by Policy Options titled Third parties strive to become a driving force in elections. Melanie describes the Conservative Party of British Columbia's "I'm trying something new" advertisement, released in October 2024, as an example of an advertisement targeting swing voters.Throughout the episode, both Elizabeth and Melanie refer to foreign interference and how misinformation and disinformation are impacting the Canadian political communications environment. Similar themes were discussed in the Wonks and War Rooms episode Propaganda, Government Comms, and Disinformation with Shuvaloy Majumdar. Melanie makes several references to the 2017 Conservative Party of Canada leadership race, where Andrew Scheer beat 13 other candidates by a narrow margin. You can learn more about this leadership race, and the lessons learned from it, in Eric Grenier's analysis titled What the 2017 Conservative leadership race told us about what it takes to win. Check out www.polcommtech.ca for annotated transcripts of this episode in English and French.
Carla Qualtrough, Sport Minister; Kathy Le, CTV News; Todd Battis, CTV Atlantic Chief Anchor; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Geoff Meggs & Judy Trinh.
Vassy Kapelos, CTV News Chief Political Correspondent; Yasir Naqvi, Health Parliamentary Secretary; Judy Trinh, CTV News; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello
Gary Anandasangaree, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister; Leah Gazan, NDP – Manitoba; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
David Heurtel, Former Quebec Cabinet Minister & Catherine Loubier, Quebec's former top representative to the U.S. Catherine Loubier; Nik Nanos, Nanos Research; The Front Bench with: Michele Cadario, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Joel-Denis Bellavance.
Catherine McKenna, Former Environment Minister; Genevieve Beauchemin, CTV News & Jeff Keele, CTV News; Keir Giles, Chatham House Senior Fellow; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
Jimmy Jean, Desjardins & Jean-François Perrault, Scotiabank ; Christiane Fox, Deputy Clerk of the Privy Council; Alex Silas, Public Service Alliance of Canada; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
Chuck Todd, NBC News; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello
Gary Anandasangaree, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister; Natan Obed, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami; John McKay, Liberal – Ontario; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Karl Bélanger & Rachel Aiello.
Jagmeet Singh, NDP Leader; Annie Bergeron-Oliver, CTV News; Witold Dzielski, Polish Ambassador to Canada & Kaspars Ozolins, Latvian Ambassador to Canada; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis & Gurratan Singh.
Jyoti Gondek, Calgary Mayor & Mike Savage, Halifax Mayor; Heather Wright, CTV News; Marit Stiles, Ontario NDP Leader; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello
Sarada Peri, Former Speechwriter for President Barack Obama & Richard Painter, Former Ethics Lawyer for President George W. Bush; Frank McKenna, Former Canadian Ambassador to the U.S.; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Karl Bélanger & Rachel Aiello
Bob Rae, Canada's United Nations Ambassador; Kevin Falcon, B.C. United; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello; Garrett Barry, CTV News.
John Rustad, BC Conservative Leader; Caroline Maynard, Information Commissioner; The Front Bench with: Carlene Variyan, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Douglas Porter, BMO & Stephane Marion, National Bank of Canada; Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Tourism Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Ric McIver, Alberta Municipal Affairs Minister; National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, Assembly of First Nations; The Front Bench with Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello; Joy Malbon, CTV News
Bob Rae, Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations; Yves Giroux, Parliamentary Budget Officer; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Seamus O'Regan, Labour Minister; Danielle Smith, Alberta Premier; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh & Rachel Aiello.
Jerry DeMarco, Environment and Sustainable Development Commissioner; Jean-François Roberge, Quebec French Language Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Bob Rae, Canadian Ambassador to the UN; Katherine Judge, CIBC Capital Markets; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Anne McGrath, Principal Secretary to NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh; Yuliya Kovaliv, Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada; Heather Wright, CTV News; The Front Bench with Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis and Gurratan Singh.
Bob Rae, UN Ambassador; Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Belarusian Opposition Leader; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Peter MacKay, Former Foreign Affairs Minister and Lloyd Axworhty, Former Foreign Affairs Minister; Ralph Goodale, Canada's Ambassador to the United Kingdom; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Philip Landon, Universities Canada and Michael Sangster, National Association of Career Colleges; Mark Regev, Senior Adviser to Israeli PM Netanyahu; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Judy Trinh, CTV News; Jason Kenney, Former Defence Minister; Jason Nixon Alberta Social Services Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh, Rachel Aiello.
Kevin Lamoureux, Parliamentary Secretary to the Government House Leader; Eric Duncan, Conservative, Caucus-Party Liaison and Peter Julian, NDP House Leader; Joy Malbon, CTV News; The Front Bench with: Carlene Variyan, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Michael Bernstein, Clean Prosperity and Emilia Belliveau, Environmental Defence; Shachi Kurl, Angus Reid Institute and Christian Bourque, Leger; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello.
Yves Giroux, Parliamentary Budget Officer; Vassy Kapelos, CTV News Chief Political Correspondent; Gen. (Ret'd) Tom Lawson; Steven Guilbeault, Environment Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Karl Bélanger and Rachel Aiello.
Randy Boissonnault, Employment and Workforce Development Minister; Nate Horner, Alberta Finance Minister; The Front Bench with: Sabrina Grover, Melanie Paradis, Gurratan Singh and Rachel Aiello; Adrian Ghobrial, CTV News
Genevieve Beauchemin, CTV News Nik Nanos – Nanos Research Andrew Scheer, Kody Blois and Rachel Blaney John Manley – Former Deputy Prime Minister & Foreign Affairs Minister The Front Bench with: Melanie Paradis, Rachel Aiello, Karl Belanger and Carlene Variyan