Bell Media president Wade Oosterman to retire, to be replaced by Sean Cohan

Bell Canada head office is seen on Nun's Island, Aug. 5, 2015, in Montreal. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

MONTREAL — Bell Media says its president Wade Oosterman, who also serves as vice-chair of parent company BCE Inc., is set to retire at the end of the year, to be replaced by Sean Cohan, who is joining the company in November.

In a press release, the company says Cohan will join the BCE leadership team on Nov. 1, while Oosterman will remain in his role until January 2024 to ensure a smooth transition.

In a statement, BCE president and CEO Mirko Bibic thanked Oosterman for his "leadership in making Bell a strong competitor in Canadian communications and media," including having played a key role in the transformation of Bell Media.

Earlier this year, BCE announced it was closing or selling nine radio stations as the company planned to "significantly adapt" how it delivers the news and cut 1,300 positions — including a six per cent reduction at Bell Media.

Oosterman said in a memo to staff at the time that Bell Media faces "strong economic and inflationary pressures, a pullback in advertisers' budgets, and a challenging regulatory environment that has been too slow to adjust."

Cohan, who will also serve as an executive officer to BCE, spent 15 years at A+E Networks including as president of international and digital media, and most recently was chief growth officer and president at Nielsen, a global measurement and data analytics company.

BCE is the parent company of CTV News through its Bell Media division.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2023.