Pamela Wallin (born April 10, 1953) is a Canadian senator, former television journalist, and diplomat. She was appointed to the senate on January 2, 2009, where she initially sat as a Conservative. Early life and career Wallin was born in Wadena, Saskatchewan, and is of Swedish descent. Wallin spent much of her formative years in Wadena but completed her high school in Moose Jaw. In 1973, she graduated with a degree in psychology and political science from the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus (now the University of Regina) and began her career as an officer at the Saskatchewan Federal Penitentiary. Politically, she was a member of The Waffle, a left-wing faction in the New Democratic Party that existed in the early to mid-1970s. Journalism In 1974, she began her career in journalism, joining CBC Radio's news division. In 1978, she joined the Ottawa bureau of the Toronto Star where she remained for two years. In 1980 she joined CTV and became cohost, with Norm Perry, of Canada AM. In 1985, CTV named her its Ottawa bureau chief. She later rejoined Canada AM, hosting alongside J. D. Roberts. In 1992, CBC Television hired Wallin in a highly publicized move. For many years, The National had been followed by a 40-minute nightly newsmagazine hosted by Barbara Frum, called The Journal. However, as a result of Frum's death in March 1992, the CBC wanted to revamp and reposition its entire approach to news programming. In the fall of that year, Wallin and Peter Mansbridge debuted as the co-hosts of Prime Time News. Instead of Mansbridge reading the news on The National, followed by Frum introducing documentary and current affairs features and interviewing newsmakers on The Journal, the new show integrated the two former programs and featured Wallin and Mansbridge as equal co-hosts of the entire package. As well, the new show aired at 9 p.m., one hour earlier than the old National/Journal tandem. The show fared poorly in the ratings and by 1994 had returned to its old format and time slot, with Mansbridge reading the news, followed by Wallin hosting a magazine segment which eventually took on the name The National Magazine. In April 1995, Wallin was dropped as host of The Magazine, and was succeeded in June by Hana Gartner. Following her dismissal from CBC News, Wallin briefly returned to CTV as part of its coverage of the 1995 provincial election