Avery Haines
Avery Hayward Haines is an American-born Canadian investigative television journalist and documentary producer. She is best known as the lead investigative journalist for the long-running CTV News program W5, where her hard-hitting documentaries have earned numerous national awards. Haines's career spans major Canadian newsrooms including CFRB radio, CTV Newsnet, and Citytv, where she established herself as a tenacious reporter and host. Her work, which often involves dangerous international field reporting and deep investigations into injustice, has become a significant part of Canada's current affairs landscape.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Avery Haines was born on 28 November 1966 in New Mexico, United States. Her early childhood included a significant period living in India, where her family resided for six years before returning to North America. This international upbringing provided an early exposure to diverse cultures and perspectives. Haines launched her media career in Toronto as a reporter for CFRB radio, building foundational skills in news gathering and storytelling. Her transition to television news occurred in late 1999 when she joined CTV Newsnet as a fill-in anchor. This role marked her entry into national broadcast journalism, though her tenure there was brief and ended controversially in early 2000.
Citytv and Documentary Work
Haines joined Citytv Toronto as a general reporter for CityNews, where she quickly became a prominent on-air presence. In the fall of 2001, she expanded her portfolio by hosting the television programme Health on the Line, which aired on Life Network and Discovery Health for five seasons. The show was recognized with Gemini Awards for Best Talk Series in both 2002 and 2005, and Haines herself received a Gemini nomination in a hosting category in 2005. Haines left Citytv but returned in September 2010 as a senior reporter and anchor. Beginning 26 January 2012, she wrote and hosted the award-winning programme Inside Story, which earned critical acclaim including a Media Award from the Tema Conter Memorial Trust and a Canadian Medical Association Media Award for an episode on dystonia.
During her second stint at Citytv, Haines began producing and shooting her own documentaries, demonstrating a drive for independent, international investigative work. In 2016, while volunteering on a medical mission in post-Ebola Liberia, she produced a documentary on chimpanzees abandoned by a U.S. research laboratory. She also secured an interview with Jewel Howard Taylor, the wife of former warlord Charles G. Taylor and then vice-president of Liberia, resulting in the documentary My Penpal: The Warlord's Wife. The following year, Haines embedded with Iraqi Special Forces during the final offensive against ISIS in West Mosul, filming from an abandoned mosque that had served as an ISIS headquarters. This dangerous assignment produced the documentary Two Kilometres to Terror: Life and Death Under ISIS.
Both documentaries were nominated for RTDNA Awards. Two Kilometres to Terror: Life and Death Under ISIS won the 2018 RTDNA Dave Rogers Award for Long Feature (Large Market). On 12 October 2017, during the 5 pm newscast, Haines announced she would be leaving Citytv. This concluded her time at the organization where she had produced her own documentaries.
W5 Investigative Journalism and Awards
On 12 October 2017, CTV announced on social media that Haines had accepted a job as a co-host and correspondent on its news magazine, W5. She has since won and been nominated for numerous awards for her national and international long-format investigative documentaries. Her work for W5 has addressed complex social and criminal issues. The documentaries have received significant recognition from Canadian journalism institutions.
Her major award-winning investigations for W5 include several notable documentaries. In 2019, W5 was awarded the RTDNA Dan McArthur Award for Investigative Journalism for W5: No Witnesses. That same year, Haines won the Innocence Canada Tracey Tyler Award for Justice for the Wrongly Convicted for W5: An Indigenous man's quest to clear his name. In 2020, she won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Interviewer, News or Information for The Narco Riviera. Also in 2020, she won a Canadian Screen Award for Best News or Information Program for W5: The Baby in the Snow.
- W5: No Witnesses (2019): An exposé of a global sex abuse cover-up within the Jehovah's Witnesses sect, which won the RTDNA Dan McArthur Award for Investigative Journalism.
- W5: An Indigenous man's quest to clear his name (2019): This documentary earned Haines the Innocence Canada Tracey Tyler Award for Justice for the Wrongly Convicted.
- The Narco Riviera (2020): An investigation into Mexican drug cartel violence risking Canadian tourists, for which Haines won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Interviewer, News or Information.
- The Baby in the Snow (2020): This W5 investigation into a 30-year-old cold case forced the Ontario Provincial Police to reopen it and won the Canadian Screen Award for Best News or Information Program.
- The Invisible Man (2021): An investigation into international romance fraud schemes, winner of the Canadian Screen Award for Best News or Information Program.
- A Town Divided (2022): A documentary on an Ontario pastor defying COVID-19 health laws, which won Haines the Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Interviewer.
- Narco Avocados (2024): This investigation won the Canadian Screen Award for Best News or Information Segment and the RTDNA award for Best News Information Program.
- Narco Jungle: The Darién Gap (2025): This documentary won the prestigious Canadian Hillman Prize for Broadcast and the Canadian Screen Award for Best News or Information Program.
In 2023, Haines won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Interviewer, News or Information. In 2025, she also won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Interviewer, News or Information. In February 2024, Bell Media announced that W5 would conclude as a regular television series after 58 seasons, due to cutbacks at the company. CTV News relaunched the brand as an investigative journalism unit, with Haines presenting long-form stories on the CTV National News and other CTV News platforms, and documentary specials under the branding W5's Avery Haines Investigates.
Awards and Recognition
Avery Haines's body of work has been consistently honoured by Canada's major journalism institutions. Her awards span her entire career. In 2002 and 2005, her television programme Health on the Line won Gemini Awards for Best Talk Series. Her work for Citytv's Inside Story won awards including a Media Award from the Tema Conter Memorial Trust in 2013. Her period at W5 has been marked by numerous awards including multiple Canadian Screen Awards and RTDNA awards.
| Year | Award | For | Awarding Body |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002, 2005 | Gemini Award, Best Talk Series | Health on the Line | Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television |
| 2013 | Media Award, Best In-depth TV Reporting | Inside Story | Tema Conter Memorial Trust/RTDNA |
| 2018 | RTDNA Dave Rogers Award, Long Feature | Two Kilometres to Terror | RTDNA |
| 2019 | RTDNA Dan McArthur Award, Investigative Journalism | W5: No Witnesses | RTDNA |
| 2020 | Canadian Screen Award, Best Host/Interviewer | W5: The Narco Riviera | Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television |
| 2021 | Canadian Screen Award, Best News Program | W5: The Invisible Man | Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television |
| 2022 | Canadian Screen Award, Best Host/Interviewer | W5: A Town Divided | Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television |
| 2025 | Canadian Hillman Prize for Broadcast | Narco Jungle: The Darién Gap | Hillman Foundation |
Beyond these major honours, Haines has received numerous other nominations from the RTDNA and Canadian Screen Awards. For example, she was nominated for a Gemini in a hosting category in 2005. In 2014, Inside Story was nominated for three Canadian Screen Awards. In 2015, she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Local Reportage. Her work has had impact, such as forcing the Ontario Provincial Police to reopen a cold case.
Personal Life
Avery Haines comes from a creative family deeply involved in the arts. Her father was Paul Haines, a poet and librettist known for his collaborative work with composer Carla Bley on the avant-garde jazz opera Escalator over the Hill. Her sister is Emily Haines, the lead singer and songwriter for the popular Canadian indie rock band Metric, which has achieved international success. Haines is married to her partner, Mel. They wed in 2016. She publicly came out as being in a same-sex relationship shortly after the Orlando nightclub shooting that occurred eight weeks and one day after her wedding, stating she felt compelled to live openly in the face of tragedy. Her personal experiences and artistic family background have informed her empathetic and often human-focused approach to storytelling, particularly when dealing with subjects of injustice or marginalization.
2000 Controversy and Dismissal from CTV Newsnet
Early in her television career, Haines was involved in a significant professional controversy that led to her dismissal from a national network. On 15 January 2000, while taping a report introduction for CTV Newsnet, she made an on-air error and began to stutter. After regaining her composure off-camera but while still being recorded, she made an impromptu and sarcastic joke about diversity hiring. She stated, "I kind of like the stuttering thing. It's like equal opportunity right? We've got a stuttering newscaster. We've got the black, we've got the Asian, we've got the woman. I could be a lesbian-folk-dancing-black-woman stutterer. In a wheelchair ... with a gimping, rubber leg. Yeah, really. I'd have a successful career, let me tell you." Although she re-taped the segment correctly, a CTV technician later mistakenly aired the tape containing the error and the comment. The remarks, intended as a private aside, were broadcast and sparked immediate controversy for being offensive and flippant. CTV Newsnet fired Haines on 17 January 2000, just two days after the incident. This event marked a major setback early in her national television career, which she later overcame through dedicated and award-winning work at Citytv and CTV, rebuilding her reputation as a serious journalist.
Reporting Style and Impact
Avery Haines has cultivated a distinctive reporting style characterized by a willingness to undertake physically dangerous assignments and a deep commitment to investigative rigour. Her documentaries often involve traveling to global conflict zones, as seen in her embed with Iraqi forces in Mosul and her work in Liberia, placing her at personal risk to capture the story. She frequently pursues stories about systemic failures, wrongful convictions, and exploitation, giving a voice to victims and holding powerful institutions accountable through meticulous research and compelling interviews. The impact of her work is frequently tangible and extends beyond the broadcast. Her investigation into the cold case of "the baby in the snow" directly led to the Ontario Provincial Police reopening the case, while her cartel investigations have drawn increased law enforcement scrutiny in Mexico. By blending fearless field reporting with meticulous research, Haines has produced documentaries that not only inform but also often catalyze change, reflecting the highest ideals of Canadian investigative journalism and ensuring her work has a lasting effect.
Questions about Avery Haines
What is Avery Haines known for?
Avery Haines is best known as an award-winning investigative journalist and documentary producer for CTV's W5. She is renowned for her hard-hitting, long-form investigations into topics such as international drug cartels, wrongful convictions, and institutional cover-ups. Her work has earned numerous Canadian Screen Awards and RTDNA honours, including the Hillman Prize in 2025. Since 2024, her documentaries have aired under the banner "W5's Avery Haines Investigates" on CTV News platforms following the show's format change.
Where did Avery Haines work before W5?
Before joining W5 in 2017, Avery Haines had a extensive career in Canadian media. She began as a reporter for CFRB radio in Toronto. She later worked as a fill-in anchor for CTV Newsnet until her dismissal in 2000. Her longest tenure was at Citytv Toronto, where she served as a general reporter, hosted the show Health on the Line, and later returned as a senior reporter and anchor to host the award-winning programme Inside Story. It was at Citytv that she began producing her own international documentaries in Liberia and Iraq.
What awards has Avery Haines won?
Avery Haines has won many prestigious awards. These include multiple Canadian Screen Awards for Best Host or Interviewer and Best News or Information Program for documentaries like The Narco Riviera and The Invisible Man. She has won RTDNA awards, including the Dan McArthur Award for Investigative Journalism for W5: No Witnesses and the Dave Rogers Award for her Iraq documentary. In 2025, she won the Canadian Hillman Prize for Broadcast for Narco Jungle: The Darién Gap. Earlier in her career, her show Health on the Line won Gemini Awards for Best Talk Series.
Why was Avery Haines fired from CTV Newsnet in 2000?
Avery Haines was fired from CTV Newsnet in January 2000 after a controversial off-hand comment was accidentally broadcast. Following an on-air stutter during a taping, she made a sarcastic joke about diversity hiring, listing stereotypes including "a lesbian-folk-dancing-black-woman stutterer. A technician mistakenly aired the tape containing this remark, which was deemed highly offensive. CTV terminated her employment two days later on 17 January 2000, marking a major early career setback that she later overcame through her subsequent work.
Is Avery Haines related to Emily Haines from Metric?
Yes, Avery Haines is the sister of Emily Haines, the lead singer of the band Metric. Their father is the poet and librettist Paul Haines, who co-wrote 'Escalator over the Hill' with Carla Bley. Avery Haines is an American-born Canadian television journalist. Her career includes significant investigative work for CTV's W5. She has won numerous awards for her documentary journalism, including multiple Canadian Screen Awards.
What happened to the W5 TV show?
In February 2024, Bell Media announced that W5 would conclude as a regular television series after 58 seasons due to company cutbacks. CTV News subsequently relaunched the brand as an investigative journalism unit. Under this new structure, Avery Haines presents long form stories on the CTV National News and other CTV News platforms. Documentary specials now air under the branding 'W5's Avery Haines Investigates'. Haines has been with W5 since October 2017, winning many awards for her investigative documentaries with the program.
Sources and further reading
- Avery Haines (Wikipedia)
- Avery Haines, CTVNews (ctvnews.ca)
Checked by the Yadude Books desk. Last updated 2026-11-03.
