Murray Brewster
Murray Brewster follows how defence policy, military spending and foreign commitments shape political decisions and national security, treating defence as a core piece of the country’s political story rather than a niche beat. He is a senior defence and security reporter at CBC News, covering the military and foreign policy from Parliament Hill with a long-standing focus on how decisions in cabinet rooms and alliance councils translate into concrete capabilities and risks. His reporting combines on-the-ground war experience with detailed attention to procurement files, alliance pressures and the human consequences of conflict and service.
Defence policy, spending and alliances
Brewster’s recent coverage concentrates on the tension between stated defence commitments and the hard numbers behind spending and capabilities. He reports on U.S. Pentagon pressure for a clear NATO spending road map and a firm decision on the F-35, framing the story around how allies judge the country’s reliability in meeting shared obligations.
In pieces on Canada being at a “defence crossroads,” he lays out the long-term challenges of planning for fighters, submarines and broader national security, emphasizing how short political cycles complicate generational investments.
Alliance politics and great-power pressure are a recurring thread in his work. He tracks U.S. demands and rebukes, shifting NATO roles and how leadership contests within the alliance interact with domestic debates and figures such as Donald Trump. His analysis of Trump’s trade confrontation with Canada treats economic pressure and defence integration as linked fronts, asking what a prolonged confrontation would mean for sovereignty and security.
He also covers how new defence and security pacts with partners such as Ukraine and Denmark reshape long-term obligations, including drone partnerships and Arctic defence ties following moves on Greenland.
Military procurement and capabilities
Brewster frequently reports on major procurement decisions, treating fighter jets, submarines and other platforms as political files with strategic and industrial consequences rather than stand-alone technical purchases.
His coverage of the Gripen fighter jet competition describes how U.S. export controls could give Washington a “red card” over the program, highlighting the leverage embedded in supply chains and technology transfer. In work on the F-35 decision and NATO spending, he connects the choice of aircraft and other systems to alliance expectations, operational requirements and domestic debates over cost and return.
Across these stories he writes with an emphasis on capability gaps and the risk of delay. Articles on long-term defence planning describe how deferring decisions on fighters, submarines and other key assets can leave planners with shrinking options and rising costs.
External profiles identify him as specializing in security and international policy, which aligns with his focus on the strategic implications of procurement choices rather than just the budget line items.
War legacy, veterans and human impact
Brewster’s body of work keeps the human impact of war and service in view alongside policy and procurement. His biography notes that he spent a total of 15 months on the ground covering the Afghan war, a background that informs how he writes about the legacy of overseas missions and the burdens carried by soldiers and veterans. In recent reporting on a firefighter and former soldier reflecting on 9/11, he centres lived experience, trauma and memory rather than only institutional commemoration.
He carries this perspective into coverage of ongoing conflicts and their economic and social effects. Articles on Canada’s support for Ukraine and comparisons between the two countries’ situations examine the strains of war economies, annexation and long-term recovery, not just battlefield dynamics.
His work on century-long pacts and veterans’ stories shows an interest in how decisions made during conflict reverberate through individual lives and national debates for decades.
Experience and long-view reporting
Brewster has covered the military and foreign policy from Parliament Hill for more than a decade, giving him a long view on how successive governments handle defence files. Before joining the CBC in his current capacity, he spent many years covering defence issues and politics for a wire service and led a national broadcast news bureau, building deep familiarity with both regional and federal angles on the defence beat. Public professional biographies describe him as a senior parliamentary defence and foreign policy writer, and as a journalist specializing in security and international policy.
His archive shows a mix of straight news and clearly labeled analysis, with pieces that step back from daily developments to explain the stakes of major decisions on trade, alliances and military posture. Long-form articles on defence crossroads, NATO roles and procurement challenges suggest a preference for connecting individual events to structural trends, whether that is personnel shortages, alliance politics or industrial constraints.
The combination of beat depth, front-line war reporting and ongoing attention to both policy detail and human consequences marks his coverage as more than generic political reporting.
4 more politics journalists.
Aaron D'Andrea
Aaron D’Andrea is a supervising online journalist at Global News who treats politics as part of a wider news ecosystem, combining breaking-news speed with close attention to how decisions and incidents shape public life. He focuses on high-impact politics and breaking stories for a national audience, especially where provincial power struggles and national politics collide, and how premiers, opposition parties and activist groups can turn local moves into national questions. He reports on digital deception and politics, including deepfake scams targeting public figures, and covers crime and public safety when cases rise to national significance. His background includes covering the 2018 Toronto van attack, local reporting for Metroland Media with award-winning coverage, and earlier work in television production. He now also oversees online content from journalists across the country while still contributing fast, visually driven, fact-first stories.
Abhishek De
Abhishek De is a senior journalist at India Today who turns complex political and security developments into clear, accessible stories. He covers foreign affairs, geopolitics, defence and politics, with a focus on strategy, alliances, military doctrine, domestic power struggles and party accountability. His reporting on Trinamool civic battles and Abhishek Banerjee puts internal party dynamics, civic governance and institutional power at the centre of the story. He has also worked on news desks in print and digital media and has filed on politics, health and sports. His style is direct and controlled, with clean structure, tight language and strong explanation.
Adam MacVicar
Adam MacVicar focuses on how local government decisions become budgets, transparency fights and changes for residents. He is Global Calgary’s city hall reporter, covering municipal governance and politics, Alberta’s referendum on its place in Canada, independence campaigns, investigations and party politics. His beat also includes major civic projects, transit, public spaces, redevelopment and housing affordability. He has reported on leaked budget documents, property tax pressures, closed-door meetings, a proposed lobbyist registry, the RCMP corruption probe into city hall and allegations of voter fraud in a provincial party leadership race. He has covered the Olympic Plaza transformation, the Green Line LRT route, the Symons Valley Centre library and housing supply. His work uses leaked documents, economic analysis and reporting from council chambers and project sites. He has worked with Global Calgary since 2017, after earlier radio and television news roles.
Aishwarya Dudha
Aishwarya Dudha reports on how politics, justice and public decisions affect vulnerable people. She works for CBC News, covering immigrants, Indigenous communities, people with disabilities and families facing loss. Her beat includes crime, policing, courts, housing, homelessness, climate policy, economic decisions, local development, sport, health and disability. She has previously worked for CBC News Network and Global News. Dudha connects official decisions and events to lived experience. She centres under-represented voices and examines the human stakes of homicides, trials, institutional failures, public infrastructure, industrial projects and community safety. Her reporting combines timelines, policy and public response with family perspectives, testimony, workplace details and local context. She also profiles athletes and community efforts, keeping personal stories central while showing how law, economics and public systems shape daily life.