Ben Mulroney

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Benedict Martin Paul Mulroney (born March 9, 1976) is a Canadian radio and television host. He is the eldest son of Brian Mulroney, the 18th Prime Minister of Canada.

Best known for his 20-year broadcasting career with the Canadian network CTV, Mulroney began as an entertainment reporter on CTV's former morning show Canada AM in 2001, and co-hosted the entertainment news program etalk from 2002 to 2020, Canadian Idol from 2003 to 2008, and CTV's national morning show Your Morning from 2016 to 2021. Mulroney departed etalk in June 2020. A year later, on September 29, 2021, Mulroney departed both Your Morning and CTV to pursue a producing career.

Mulroney currently hosts The Ben Mulroney Show mornings on 640 Toronto, syndicated nationally on Corus Entertainment's talk radio stations. He returned to television in 2025, hosting the 15th season of The West Block on Global Television Network, during Mercedes Stephenson's parental leave.

Early life and education

Mulroney was born in Montreal, Quebec, and grew up in Ottawa, Ontario. He is the second of four children born to former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Mila Pivnički Mulroney, who is of Serbian descent. Mulroney is one of several children of former Prime Ministers who became Canadian media personalities between 1998 and 2001. He is fluent in both French and English.Template:Cn

His older sister, Caroline, is the President of the Treasury Board of Ontario and Minister of Francophone Affairs, and had been an unsuccessful candidate for the 2018 Ontario Progressive Conservative leadership election. Maclean's later revealed that he helped her rehearse scripts during the leadership campaign.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Mulroney attended Lycée Claudel d'Ottawa and the Hotchkiss School, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, with a major in history, from Duke University. He subsequently earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from Université Laval.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During the Oliphant hearings, it was revealed that all the Mulroney children's university educations were paid from the cash that their father received from Karlheinz Schreiber.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Career

In the late 1990s, Mulroney wrote a regular column for the Toronto Sun. At the time, his father, Brian Mulroney, was on the board of directors of Quebecor which owned the Sun chain. <ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Doyle">Template:Cite news</ref>

CTV

He began his career as an entertainment reporter as the Quebec City correspondent for The Chatroom in 2000 on CTV-owned digital channel Talktv and became one of five co-hosts of the show in July 2001.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> From 2001 to 2002, he was entertainment reporter on Canada AM. He hosted Canadian Idol from 2003 to 2008.

etalk

Mulroney is best known as the former host of the entertainment news program etalk from 2002 to 2020, where he covered major events in entertainment, including the Oscars, the Golden Globes, and the Juno Awards. In April 2009, Mulroney added radio show host to his résumé with the launch of the CHUM Radio show, etalk 20.<ref name=top>Template:Cite web </ref> The two-hour radio program was broadcast on 11 radio stations across Canada and counted down the top 20 chart-topping hits and includes celebrity interviews.

In February 2010, Mulroney and other staff from etalk covered the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games for CTV.<ref name=top/>

On June 22, 2020, Mulroney announced his resignation as host of etalk saying, "More than ever, we need more Black voices, more Indigenous voices, more people of colour in the media as well as every other profession – and that is why I have decided to immediately step away from my role at etalk to create space for a new perspective and a new voice."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His resignation came in the wake of a controversy in which his wife was accused of harassing Sasha Exeter, a black influencer.<ref name="resign">Template:Cite news</ref>

Your Morning

In June 2016, he was announced as the cohost, with Anne-Marie Mediwake, of CTV's new morning show Your Morning, which replaced the venerable Canada AM.<ref name="yourmorning">Template:Cite news</ref> He left the program, effective October 1, 2021, in order to "pursue a career as a producer, developing unique projects for both Canadian and global audiences".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

American career

Mulroney joined ABC News in June 2012 as a contributor to Good Morning America. Former ABC News President Ben Sherwood announced that Mulroney would be temporarily substituting for Dan Harris during the weekends, while serving as contributor to Good Morning America.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This followed Mulroney's previous stints as temporary co-host with Kelly Ripa on Live with Kelly.<ref>Ben Mulroney set for GMA, theglobeandmail.com; accessed October 20, 2015.</ref>

Corus

The Ben Mulroney Show

Mulroney has been an on-air contributor at 640 Toronto since October 2023. He appeared regularly on the station's morning show, Toronto Today, as well as filling in for regular hosts such as Greg Brady and John Oakley when they were away.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He hosted Toronto This Weekend until November 2024 when he became host of The Ben Mulroney Show, a mid-morning program on the station that is carried nationally on other Corus news/talk stations across Canada.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The first hour focuses on issues local to the Greater Toronto Area and Ontario and is carried only on 640 Toronto and 980 CFPL in London, while the final two hours of the three-hour program are nationally syndicated on Corus Radio's talk stations. As well as airing live in Ontario, the show is carried in the afternoon or evening on 770 CHQR Calgary, 880 CHED Edmonton, 680 CJOB Winnipeg, and 730 CKNW Vancouver.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>

The West Block

In September 2025, Corus tapped Mulroney to be the temporary host of its weekly political panel show, The West Block on Global Television Network, during Mercedes Stephenson's parental leave.<ref name="west">Template:Cite news</ref> The assignment was criticized due to the Mulroney family's ties to the Conservative Party of Canada. Stuart Benson of The Hill Times questioned "whether Mulroney will be able to sufficiently separate himself from his and his family’s close connections to the Conservative Party and leader Pierre Poilievre in order to be seen as a neutral host of a major Sunday politics show.”<ref name="Banfield">Template:Cite news</ref> Mulroney responded to Benson, saying that "My bias is there for all to see, judge and take into consideration," but that he "knows how to conduct an interview fairly and with respect".<ref name="Banfield"/> Media personality and former Global journalist Rachel Gilmore also questioned Mulroney's impartiality, highlighting his donations to the Conservative Party, which were close to the contribution limit. Mulroney responded by saying “I have never donated to any political party other than the Conservative Party of Canada. I have been clear about this for years. I am proud to support the party that aligns with my values.”<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Personal life

Mulroney at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival

Mulroney became engaged to his girlfriend of one year, fashion designer and stylist Jessica Brownstein, on December 28, 2007, in Montreal.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> They were married on October 30, 2008, in a private ceremony at St. Patrick's Basilica, Montreal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mulroney first met Brownstein when they were both teenagers through his younger brother Mark, who was a student at the all-boys Selwyn House School during the same time she was a student at sister school Miss Edgar's and Miss Cramp's School.<ref>The love story behind Toronto's Ben and Jessica Mulroney</ref><ref>Selwyn House School Yearbook 1996</ref><ref>The ECS Newsletter</ref> They have three children: two sons, who are fraternal twins, and a daughter.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>"Mulroney Baby Girl Arrives For Ben and Jessica", The Huffington Post Canada; retrieved June 18, 2013.</ref> In July 2025, it was reported that the couple had separated.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Ben and Jessica Mulroney attended the 2018 wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and their three children participated as page boys and bridesmaid.<ref>Mulroney children will join Princess Charlotte, Prince George as bridesmaids, page boys Retrieved May 16, 2018</ref>

In 2006, Mulroney was appointed as the National Ambassador for UNICEF Canada.<ref>Template:Cite web Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref>

References

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