As CTV News’ Ottawa-based national correspondent, Rachel Aiello has become synonymous with authoritative coverage of Canada’s political and legal landscapes. Her reporting portfolio spans three key areas:
Successful outreach to Aiello requires:
“The true measure of legislation lies in its implementation, not its proclamation.” - From Aiello’s 2024 analysis of healthcare funding reforms
We’ve followed Rachel Aiello’s work as one of Canada’s most trusted voices in political and legal reporting. With a career spanning over a decade, Aiello has cemented her reputation through incisive coverage of Parliament Hill, judicial appointments, and legislative intricacies. Her ability to distill complex policy debates into accessible narratives has made her a go-to source for Canadians seeking clarity on the intersection of law and governance.
Aiello’s journey began with foundational reporting on municipal politics, where she honed her skills in tracking policy implementation. By 2017, her coverage of private members’ bills for The Hill Times demonstrated her knack for legislative analysis. Her transition to CTV News in 2019 marked a turning point, with her Capital Dispatch newsletter becoming essential reading for political insiders.
This May 2024 analysis dissected the constitutional implications of opposition challenges to parliamentary leadership. Aiello meticulously traced the historical precedent for speaker resignations while contextualizing the current political climate. Her sourcing from constitutional experts and anonymous caucus members revealed the delicate balance between parliamentary procedure and partisan strategy.
In this 2017 deep dive, Aiello exposed the legislative chess game surrounding private members’ bills. Through interviews with 15 MPs across party lines, she revealed how backbenchers leverage these bills for both policy change and personal branding. The piece remains a masterclass in explaining obscure parliamentary processes to general audiences.
Aiello’s 2024 coverage of opposition policy proposals balanced economic analysis with political strategy. By comparing the NDP’s tax framework with similar international models, she provided voters with tools to assess its feasibility. Her inclusion of reactions from labor unions and business groups exemplified her commitment to multidimensional reporting.
Aiello prioritizes how legislation affects constituents over political theater. A successful pitch might examine the real-world impact of recent judicial appointments on court backlogs, supported by provincial-level data. Her coverage of COVID-19 emergency measures demonstrates this approach, where she tracked policy execution across multiple jurisdictions.
She frequently incorporates legal scholarship into her court reporting. Pitches should connect emerging constitutional challenges with peer-reviewed studies, particularly those addressing digital privacy rights or Indigenous sovereignty. Her citation of University of Ottawa research in coverage of the Emergencies Act inquiry underscores this preference.
Stories about unlikely legislative alliances resonate strongly with Aiello’s reporting. A compelling pitch might explore cooperation between Conservative backbenchers and NDP members on criminal justice reform, mirroring her 2023 analysis of cross-aisle support for rural broadband initiatives.
While specific accolades aren’t publicly documented, Aiello’s prominence is evident through her regular appearances on CTV’s flagship political programs and invitations to moderate policy panels at the Canadian Political Science Association’s annual conference. Her work is frequently cited in academic papers examining media coverage of parliamentary procedure.
At PressContact, we aim to help you discover the most relevant journalists for your PR efforts. If you're looking to pitch to more journalists who write on Politics, here are some other real estate journalist profiles you may find relevant:
