Deborah Bernstein is exiting her post as exec director of arts and entertainment at CBC, just as former Alliance Atlantis Communications exec Kirstine Layfield steps in as the net’s new top programmer.

On Feb. 10, network boss Richard Stursberg informed CBC staffers that Bernstein – who greenlit such titles as Da Vinci’s Inquest, This Is Wonderland and both Trudeau MOWs – will bow out on March 3, ending 20 years at the CBC.

In an internal memo obtained by Playback, Stursberg praises Bernstein as ‘a nurturing leader, who hires good people and creates an environment where they can do their best,’ although a source close to both execs blames the split on internal friction and their different management styles.

The news arrived in lockstep with word that the network is canceling both Wonderland and the first-season spin-off Da Vinci’s City Hall (see story, page 1).

Meanwhile, Layfield is now CBC’s new executive director of network programming, replacing Slawko Klymkiw and moving Stursberg’s overhaul of the public broadcaster into high gear. She was previously VP of lifestyle programming at AAC, in charge of programming its Life Network, HGTV, Food Network Canada and Discovery Health Channel.

‘I have a mandate to make sure that programming is relevant to as many Canadians as possible,’ says Layfield. ‘I’ve been building audiences wherever I’ve been.’ Layfield also held top spots at Hallmark Entertainment and Paragon Entertainment, and did a stint as general manager of Trio and Newsworld International, a pair of U.S.-based cable channels co-owned by the CBC until 2000.

She returns to CBC with an eye to boosting viewership, using her expertise in judging audience trends and preferences.

‘This is consistent with our strategy to make programs people want to watch,’ says Stursberg. The network boss is under pressure for a comeback after the CBC’s ill-fated lockout last fall and, more so now, with a Conservative government in power.

One of Layfield’s last acts at AAC was to take her programming team on a day trip to nearby suburban Oakville – to judge the lives and aspirations of ordinary Canadians outside the Toronto bubble.

It’s a chance ‘to be invited into someone’s home. You need to be able to figure out how to get that invitation,’ she says. ‘I’ve always been audience-centric. I’ve always wanted to look outside.’

Layfield says she accepts that CBC employees have a specific mission as the country’s public broadcaster, and that they go about their jobs differently than at private-sector rivals. But she feels the net’s mandate will not be turned to advantage if its in-house creative and production does not pursue as many eyeballs as possible.

‘The CBC does have a different mandate. But in the end, you have to be relevant to your audience… If the message doesn’t get out to the most number of people you possibly can, the message is lost,’ she argues.

Perhaps to soften the blow of an outsider replacing Klymkiw, Stursberg also announced a number of in-house promotions, including Christine Wilson, who is now deputy program director. She was previously senior director of strategy and planning.

Marcela Kadanka, meanwhile, will take over for Bernstein until a permanent replacement can be found.

At AAC, Karen Gelbart will replace Layfield as senior vice-president of content, for lifestyle channels, on Feb 27.

­­-With files from Sean Davidson

www.cbc.ca