Veteran Canadian broadcast and production executive Michelle van Beusekom is taking the helm of Knowledge Network as president and CEO, vowing to help it “boldly embrace the full potential” of its public mandate.

Van Beusekom (pictured) starts at the British Columbia public broadcaster on Feb. 6, according to a news release. She replaces Rudy Buttignol, who stepped down as president and CEO last summer after an audit revealed significant inequities when it came to commissioning at Knowledge Network between fiscal 2015/16 and 2021/22, and sparked calls for new leadership.

Van Beusekom has more than 25 years of experience, with senior leadership positions at the National Film Board of Canada, where she was executive director, programming and production; the Documentary Organization of Canada, where she was executive director; and Uvagut TV (Canada’s first national broadcaster in an Indigenous language) as a senior advisor.

She’s also held managerial positions at Women’s Television Network and CBC.

In a statement, van Beusekom heralded Knowledge’s “mandate to serve all British Columbians with a commercial-free alternative source of media that reflects their lives, inspires, challenges and informs them.”

“Knowledge also plays an important role in strengthening B.C.’s talented and diverse community of screen-based storytellers through the commissioning of bold and original works,” she added. “I am both excited and humbled to be joining Knowledge at this critical juncture and moment of great opportunity — as it moves forward on recent commitments to sustained transformation that will advance reconciliation, racial equity and intersectional inclusion in all areas of Knowledge’s activity. I look forward to working with the talented Knowledge team, B.C.’s independent production community and viewers and supporters from across the province as we boldly embrace the full potential of Knowledge’s public mandate.”

Van Beusekom joins Knowledge Network “after an extensive search,” Knowledge Network Corporation board chair Satwinder Bains said in the release, which praised van Beusekom’s commitment “to public media and its role, responsibility and untapped potential to drive creative innovation and be an industry leader in all aspects of equity, diversity, social inclusion and citizen-engagement.”

“With leadership roles in the broadcast, production and cultural sectors, she brings a wealth of experience to strengthen public broadcasting in a rapidly changing media environment,” added Bains. “Her career-long commitment to, and passion for, public media will help propel Knowledge forward, ensuring programming supports the diverse and evolving interests of British Columbians.”