December 15, 2021 • 23 mins
CBC journalist and anchor Michael Serapio talks to Dr. Bondar about strong women in his life, finding your passion, racism and homophobia in journalism, and curiosity through the eyes of a child.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Roberta Bondar (00:02):
The celebration of the 30th anniversary of my
historic spaceflight continuesback here on Earth with this
podcast series Sharing Spacewith Dr. Roberta Bondar. Now
this is an opportunity for youto join me while I explore life,
creativity, flexibility, andchange with my guests, some of
the most famous and globallywell respected Canadians. In
(00:24):
each of these podcasts, we willhear a special guest express
personal views about the presentand the future. And if you have
a deep passion for explorationand inquiry, whether it's
through the arts, sciences, orathletics for example, the
storytelling in this series isfor those who wander, and those
who wonder. Join me now toexplore how some of the most
(00:47):
notable Canadians exercise theircreativity and curiosity in a
wide array of fields. Unlikethose of the night sky, these
stars are within reach. So let'stap into their energy as they
enlighten us.
Michael Serapio is theunderstated elegance of voice
and considered interpretation ofthe complex and often contorted
(01:09):
and mixed up world in which welive. He has overcome pressures
and obstacles born in anotherland surrounded by language not
recognized as an official NorthAmerican one, and aspiring to a
non traditional professionalgoal. He has set and has met
many challenges, refocusing frombeing a successful high level
producer to return to his loveof being immersed in the news.
(01:31):
Now he enriches our lives as ahighly prized anchor on CBC News
World. What we actually hearthough, is Michael's clear
vision through his story thread,unbiased research, insight, and
in depth understanding of how wewill hear and assimilate the
difficult and the sublime of theworld inside and outside of our
heads. And those ties. How abouthis name? What's in a name, you
(01:56):
might ask? Well, it's one storythread that closes the space
between a star like Michael, anda Star Voyager like me, he is a
comfort for all of us. Let'sbegin. Hi, Michael, welcome to
the podcast.
Michael Serapio (02:09):
Thanks, Roberta.
Roberta Bondar (02:12):
One of the ideas that we've been exploring with
this series is the idea ofcuriosity. And that might be a
good way to begin our ownconversation today. When did you
start getting curious about thenews?
Michael Serapio (02:29):
Well, that one goes a long way back. I was not
born in Canada, my familyimmigrated here and I was three
years old, English was not myfirst language. And one way in
which I did learn about Englishand learn how to speak English
was watch, watching the news.
And that was just something mydad did naturally. And so I
would join him. And I was justfascinated by the storytelling,
(02:50):
and again, learning a newlanguage. And as I got older, it
was a really good entree for mydad and I to talk about
political issues and socialissues and, and challenges and
what was happening around theworld. And that was, you know, I
think it was a little bit oflearning English, it was
certainly about spending timewith my father. And that just
(03:11):
was this little seed that grewinto this huge interest and be,
becoming part of the news.
Roberta Bondar (03:18):
Do you know, I can relate to learning another
language by watching the news orsomething. I remember when I was
in France, and I was learningFrench, I would sit and watch
the old black and white FlashGordon's, which were all done
for the French kids. And thenthat's how I spruced up my space
(03:38):
language in French so, but...
Michael Serapio (03:40):
[Laughter] That's wonderful.
Roberta Bondar (03:43):
Did you think or know that you'd always want to
be doing this, like, I alwaysknew that I want to be a
spaceman like nothing had flownoff the planet in those days. So
that's a spaceman thing. Butwhat about a journalist? That's
kind of a, that's a big word tospell for a little kid?
Michael Serapio (03:57):
Yeah, absolutely. And, and no, I
actually, even though I enjoyedwatching the news with my father
it, it didn't actually occur tome till much later in high
school. And a lot of that had tothe fact that my parents, both
of whom have scientificbackgrounds. My dad was an
engineer, before retiring, mymother was pre-med in
university, went on to become amed tech because my grandfather
(04:20):
unfortunately passed away, sothey didn't have the funds to go
to med school. But they bothhave science backgrounds, and
they really wanted me to be adoctor, which I understand, you
know, it's, of course, the Asianparents dream, "Oh, my child's
going to be a doctor."[Laughter] So they planted that
seed into your head. And so fora very long time in my life, for
much of my younger years, Ithought it was, that was my
(04:42):
path. But you know, I didn'treally have much of a passion
for it. And it wasn't untillater that I was able to put a
finger on what was my passion.
You know, I did try to do myparents path right through to
high school. But you know, I'llbe honest, I was maybe at best a
B plus student in math andscience. And that was with a lot
(05:05):
of effort. And I think a lot ofthat just, I think about that
now. And I think, why, sure, Icould have applied myself more.
But again, it just wasn't mypassion.
Roberta Bondar (05:14):
So what happened?
Michael Serapio (05:16):
Well, it was, you know, my amazing grandmother
on my father's side. And mygrandmother, you know, I have
this recurring theme in my lifeof strong women, and my
grandmother is certainly one ofthem. And she, just a bit of
background on her, she, she, asa young teenager, fled the
(05:38):
Japanese invasion of thePhilippines. And so she, her
father, my great grandfather,her mother and her sister, were
fleeing. And in that flight, mygreat grandfather had a heart
attack, and he passed away, hersister died of dysentery. And it
was just her and her mother. Andluckily, she met my grandfather,
(06:03):
who was a doctor outside ofManila, and her mother had
health issues. And at thatpoint, all these women, young
girls who are unmarried, werebeing taken to become, you know,
the euphemism "comfort women"into these rape houses in the
Philippines for Japanesesoldiers. So my grandfather,
married my grandmother. So shekind of always had this inner
(06:26):
strength. And then she, later inlife went to the United States
where she became a practicalnurse. So she never stopped
pursuing her dreams. And, and,and aside, she was actually a
movie star in the Philippinesfor a time as well. So she had
this amazing life. And she cameup from Texas, because that's
where she ended up settling. Andwe were watching the news. And
(06:48):
for her, it was ABC News. Sheloved ABC News. And we were
watching it together. And I musthave been about 15 at the time,
maybe 16. And, and I said toher, isn't that amazing? What,
what a great, what a great jobthat would be, what a great crew
would that be? And mygrandmother said, "Well, why
don't you do it?" I said, "Oh,no, no, no, no, there's no
Filipino men in front of thecamera, there's no men of colour
(07:11):
in front of the camera, they'dnever let that happen." And she
looked at me and said, "So bethe first. If, if they can do
it, you can do it, just do it."And it was this click in my head
that all these things I wasinterested in, politics,
geography, world issues, currentevents was something that I
could put together in a career,if I found the inner strength to
(07:33):
pursue it, and that came from mygrandmother.
Roberta Bondar (07:36):
Boy, there's a lot there. [Laughter] A lot
there. It's, I was born into afamily that didn't see anything
different one person to thenext. Except, of course, back in
the 40s, and 50s it was allgender issues. I think that the
city that I was in was not verydiverse, to have a lot of
(07:57):
experience that way. But we, Idon't know why people just can't
see people as people. I neverhave understood it. But let's
talk about racism. Did it everget in the way? I mean, beyond
the internal dialogue in yourown head? How do you think that
played out?
Michael Serapio (08:15):
Oh, huge, huge, and it breaks my heart a little
bit, you know. I, I was going toschool and starting my career in
the 90s. And at the time, Ithink to myself, well, and we
were you know, we're, we were atthis great moment in history and
you're part of that wherebarriers were falling down all
around us. And I thought what a,what a great era to be pursuing
(08:38):
what I'm pursuing. Because,again, boundaries are falling,
but I encountered boundaries,mainly around racism. Also
homophobia down the road, butmainly around racism. I had
professors at university, whobasically said, "Oh, you'll be
great behind the scenes, greatbehind the scenes." And it was
this idea that I could never bein front of the camera. One of
(09:02):
the first news directors I spokewith said, "Well, if you want to
be on camera, you should get eyesurgery to make your eyes
bigger." I had a boss, one of myfirst bosses, when she out of
the blue found out I wasFilipino, she proceeded to tell
me why she did not hire aFilipina nanny, and instead
(09:23):
hired a British au pair becauseshe said she didn't want her
children to have a horribleaccent. And this was
unsolicited. So those thingscertainly got in the way and
and, you know, I pushed throughthe best way I could, but
absolutely it got in the way.
Roberta Bondar (09:40):
I just find the idea that you have to change
your appearance to meet somebodystandards, or whatever the heck
they are, they're not reallystandards, they're biases. Gosh,
that must have been reallydiscouraging for you.
Michael Serapio (09:53):
It was, but as I said, I pushed through you
know, I knew I was going to be ajournalist. And you know, I'm
also an immigrant kid, I don'tpay for an education [Laughter]
without the intent of working inwhat I studied, you know, it
wasn't a luxury thing that Icould throw aside and start
something again. And so I, so Ipursued it. And I was a producer
and I was a really goodproducer. I was the executive
(10:17):
producer of Canada AM before Iwas 30, I was around 28 at the
time. I was a senior specialistproducer, I was a parliamentary
hill producer, I did a lot ofwonderful things. And in each
one, I tried to get somethingand I actually had put to bed
this idea that I could actuallydo what I want to do, be a
(10:37):
reporter and anchor, because I,no one was supportive around it.
And so I just accumulated theskills that I could and do what
I could as a journalist, just atthe very least, to prove myself
as a journalist. And, andluckily along the way, I did get
opportunities.
Roberta Bondar (10:55):
You mentioned women in the media at that time.
What about men of colour? Iunderstand from your earlier
comments that there is a paucityof men, but were there any men
of colour for role models foryou? Or mentors or anything?
Michael Serapio (11:08):
Yeah, a few and far between. I, again, it was by
the time the 90s came around,there were there were
particularly African Americanmen in American media. And you
know, the joke was, if youwanted diversity, watch the
weekend because all the peopleof colour, essentially had to
work the weekends. And, and sothere were, the Canadian
(11:29):
examples were fewer and fartherbetween. There were women of
colour. Not, not certainly menof colour, who were anchoring.
Citytv in Toronto was, was theexception. But yeah, there was
no huge male example. There werecertainly more Asian women, I
think of Der Hoi-Yin wasprobably the first Chinese
(11:52):
Canadian business reporter onCBC National, I think of Wei
Chen, who helped launch what wasat the time CBC News World as a,
was a banker, and there wasTerilyn Joe on CTV. Those were
the the women of colour, theAsian woman of colour that I
would see, but there wasn't alot of men of colour, and
certainly zero Asian men ofcolour that I could recall from
(12:15):
the time.
Roberta Bondar (12:17):
Well, it's, it's amazing that you, I mean,
you're, you're now a role modelfor other people.
Michael Serapio (12:22):
I hope so.
Roberta Bondar (12:24):
So where did you find your inspiration, Michael?
Michael Serapio (12:27):
Um, well, you know, luckily, I had allies. You
know, I think of Robert Hurst atCTV News who gave me a chance. I
think of Sidney Cohen at CanadaAM, who gave me a chance. Tom
Haberstroh. These are names thatmean nothing to anyone out
there, but were real, the reallife changers for me. Tina
Cortese at CityNews, when I gotthere. But also beyond I found
(12:51):
inspiration, you amongst them,you know, I talk about people
pushing barriers and boundaries.
And of course, you being thefirst Canadian woman in space
was a part of that. And again,it's there wasn't a lot of men
of colour. So I looked for allyship, and examples of where
barriers were falling. And youare a big part of that. The
success of women oftentimes, atleast gave me hope that other
(13:14):
barriers would fall because youknow, women like you, I think,
Michelle Douglas in the CanadianForces. Again, my life is
defined by these examples ofstrong women, and I'm really
glad that I'm speaking with you,because you are one of those
strong women who, who gave mehope. Because if, if that
(13:34):
barrier falls, perhaps the worldopens up their mind to something
else. You know, I had onejournalism professor who worked
at CBC News. And he talked abouthow Barbara Frum really changed
the world because so manyCanadians were trained to
hearing only a male voice, aman's voice, giving, asking the
(13:55):
questions, giving the news andBarbara Frum changed that and
like Barbara Frum, you help pushboundaries. And that's where I
found inspiration, and thenmaybe, you know, with my own
space link, that's, that's,that's part of the reason why I
looked at something like you asbeing a great role model and a
trailblazer for me.
Roberta Bondar (14:18):
So tell us, tell us about the space link.
Michael Serapio (14:22):
Well, I'm not an alien first and foremost.
[Laughter][Laughter] But I was born, I was
born in July, and which the, youknow, the, the the anniversary
of, of the moon landing, whichof course a huge accomplishment.
For my parents, especially mydad, you know, they were living
in the Philippines at the time.
(14:44):
But having been, I guess, partlya, you know, an American colony
for a time and of course, thegreat space race, they were very
much invested in the story. Andso my dad just had this huge
fascination with space. And sowhen I was born in July, my
parents, well, really my dad, hesays to my mom, well let's name
(15:05):
him after the astronauts. So I'mnamed for all the astronauts of
Apollo, Apollo 11. So, soMichael Collins, Edwin Aldrin,
Neil Armstrong, I'm named afterthem. So my actual full name is
Michael Edwin Neil, Nicholas,which is my mother's maiden
name, Serapio. And because myparents are Catholic, we are
(15:26):
Catholic, I was Michael becauseof course St. Michael had the
the marquee in Catholicism interms of saint names. So as
opposed to Neil being the firstman to walk the moon, I'm named
after Michael Collins.
Roberta Bondar (15:39):
And you shared that story with your daughter?
Michael Serapio (15:43):
Not yet, although, you know, I'm dying to
because she has, she is actuallyalso born in July. So I don't
know if this is the connectionaround and I don't know if you
know anything about astrology,[Laughter] but people who are
born in July sorry, forgive me.
But, people who are born in Julyare, you know, every every sign
has a planet well, canceriansdon't have a planet they have
(16:03):
the moon. And so I you know, Iit's, it's great that the moon
landing happened in July, and Iwas born in July, my daughter
was born in July. But shenaturally has this fascination
with the moon. And so whenever,particularly in the daytime,
because she goes to bed soearly. She's only four. When we
walk around, and she sees themoon in daytime, she'll always
say, "Daddy, Daddy, look at themoon, look at the moon, look at
(16:25):
the moon." And so you know,she's too young to know the
story. But I can't wait to sharethat story with her because she
obviously has a naturalfascination around celestial
bodies. [Laughter] So it'ssomething that I will definitely
be sharing with her.
Roberta Bondar (16:40):
Well, I can recommend one of the first,
actually the first book, that myparents bought, for me was A
Golden Guide to the Stars, whichI still have. So...
Michael Serapio (16:48):
How wonderful.
Roberta Bondar (16:49):
Yeah, I suspect there's a telescope in your
daughter's future.
Michael Serapio (16:54):
I, you know what, I don't doubt it at all,
she would absolutely love that.
And you know, it's one of thethings I do hope that I get to
teach her, you know. It's, Isaid, it's funny, I don't know
if I've shared this with you,but my husband, his family, they
own a cottage on the Americanside, because he's, my husband
is Canadian-American. And so hisfather and his brother, they
(17:15):
live in the Upper Peninsula ofMichigan, and that's where their
cottage is and so we crossedthrough the Sault to get to
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, toget to their cottage in the
Upper Peninsula. And yeah, Idon't know if I shared this with
you, but we often go to RobertaBondar Park in Sault Ste. Marie,
Ontario, and walk around. And soyou know, beyond the moon, I
(17:38):
just want her to really havethis connection with the natural
world. And I think a little bitabout that is, you know, growing
up in a city like Toronto, andbeing you know, immigrant kids
in Toronto, it's very much anurban experience. And so we, I
didn't really have a connectionwith, with the great Canadian
outdoors until I was probablyabout my late teens, early 20s.
(17:58):
And, and that's something thatjust really, really grew. And so
we as a family, we go on hikes,we took at Elise canoeing for
the first time, this summer,which she loved, I love
portaging. And these are thingsI want her to have a connection
with. So in the sky, on theEarth, I really just want her to
have a connection, because arewe not just so blessed to live
(18:19):
in this beautiful, beautifulcountry where we can have all
the modernity and, and thethings that an urban existence
offers you, but also, none of usare that far from this great
land on which we live. And, youknow, I I wish Canadians
actually spent more resourcesand more, you know, time if they
could to explore our own countrybecause there's so many
(18:44):
beautiful things to see andthat's beyond the urban
experience.
Roberta Bondar (18:49):
It's absolutely true, I mean the Space Station,
and neither the Space Stationnor the old Shuttle flies over
the geographic center of ourcountry, which is north of Baker
Lake, inNunavut. People don'trealize that they're used to
seeing a map with the northernpart of Canada looking like a
conehead. [Laughter] There'sthis extraordinary place, I
(19:10):
remember once it took me eighthours to fly from the Eastern
Arctic to the Western Arctic,right across.
Michael Serapio (19:16):
Amazing.
Roberta Bondar (19:17):
It is an amazing country. And you're so right in
what you're saying about yourdaughter because she, she looks
at your enjoyment and yourpleasure and what excites you
and your own passions, andyou're a very curious person.
You have to be curious to be insomething to do with the news, I
mean, you have to have some kindof affinity for it.
Michael Serapio (19:39):
Absolutely.
Roberta Bondar (19:40):
And the curiosity towards the natural
world. I, I really think thatyour curious nature just must
ignite her some way, don't youthink?
Michael Serapio (19:51):
Oh, absolutely.
And I think she, but also, youknow, me and my husband, you
know my husband, he grew upmainly on a farm so he has this
real tie with the natural worldand, and I see it in my daughter
Elise. You know, she, she likestoys, obviously she's a kid. But
boy, she, she can spend a lot oftime just looking at a leaf. Or
(20:12):
this this, this summer, weplanted pumpkin seeds in the
back. And so it's growing andshe just loves going every day
and seeing the leaves grow. Andnow they're starting to change
color. I don't think we're gonnaget pumpkins this season,
because she keeps asking for it.
It's still too early yet. Butshe, she has this wonderful
(20:33):
fascination she, she can look ata flower for such a long time
pointing out different, differencolors, looking to the sky an
asking about stars already athe age of four. You know, bein
on the water, and asking, yoknow, why can we see fish in
some parts of the water andother parts we cannot? Like she
just has these naturalquestions. And I will say, as
(20:57):
difficult as the COVID year hasbeen, it has really, for us as a
family made us look about okay,where are the daytrips we can
o? And where can we be furtherpart from people just, just for
safety sake. But that kind ofisolation, or that that need for
separation that's brought us toareas where even perhaps we
(21:18):
wouldn't have thought of thatare a little bit more remote, a
little bit less traveled. Andit's been this wonderful thing
to watch her have this havethese questions and curiosity.
Because of course, you know, theolder we get, the less, perhaps
curious we get. And so it's niceto see the world with fresh eyes
through
Roberta Bondar (21:38):
Well, I'm very curious about so much stuff
[Laughter] we could, we could goon for a long period of time.
But I think you've, you'vetaught me today that it's,
curiosity is in many areas. Onethinks of curiosity in science
and, and arts as being acreative form. But to be able to
be curious about how one cancommunicate and, and talk about
(22:03):
very important issues, andcertainly pass them on to people
who are younger, to try toformulate them and in some ways
so that they're more, that theyreach more ears and
understanding. That overlappingof ideas, certainly does start
with curiosity. And I want tothank you, Michael, for joining,
joining me today. As I said,maybe we'll do part deux
(22:26):
sometime.
Michael Serapio (22:27):
[Laughter] I would love that.
Roberta Bondar (22:29):
Maybe at some point, you never know, Charlie
Brown and a great pumpkin mightarrive at your house [Laughter]
And that's a whole new thingabout art.
Michael (22:39):
I don't think you'd get my daughter back to bed for days
after that [Laughter] if thatactually happened. But you know
what I would love to do a partdeux and you're very welcome.
And listen, I'm gonna thank youas well. Because I, I love what
I get to do because I reallythink it's just Canadians
speaking with Canadians, becauseI love the fact that we are a
(23:01):
more intimate country and weare, at the end of the day, just
people. But you as a person, asI said, you changed the
trajectory of my life by goingto space. So thank you.
Roberta Bondar (23:13):
That's, that's just lovely. Thank you. Michael,
thank you. Big, big hugs to youand yours and stay safe...
Michael Serapio (23:19):
Thank you.
Roberta Bondar (23:19):
... and stay well and I will be watching you
on TV. Bye bye.
The privilege to engage withother minds and experiences
continues. I would like to thankMichael Serapio for sharing his
unique story with us today. Comeback again in two weeks for the
next Sharing Space with Dr.
Roberta Bondar podcast when myguest will be hockey legend and
(23:40):
physician Dr. HayleyWickenheiser. Thanks for joining
me.
The celebration of the 30th anniversary of my
historic spaceflight continuesback here on Earth with this
podcast series Sharing Spacewith Dr. Roberta Bondar. Now
this is an opportunity for youto join me while I explore life,
creativity, flexibility, andchange with my guests, some of
the most famous and globallywell respected Canadians. In
(00:24):
each of these podcasts, we willhear a special guest express
personal views about the presentand the future. And if you have
a deep passion for explorationand inquiry, whether it's
through the arts, sciences, orathletics for example, the
storytelling in this series isfor those who wander, and those
who wonder. Join me now toexplore how some of the most
(00:47):
notable Canadians exercise theircreativity and curiosity in a
wide array of fields. Unlikethose of the night sky, these
stars are within reach. So let'stap into their energy as they
enlighten us.
Michael Serapio is theunderstated elegance of voice
and considered interpretation ofthe complex and often contorted
(01:09):
and mixed up world in which welive. He has overcome pressures
and obstacles born in anotherland surrounded by language not
recognized as an official NorthAmerican one, and aspiring to a
non traditional professionalgoal. He has set and has met
many challenges, refocusing frombeing a successful high level
producer to return to his loveof being immersed in the news.
(01:31):
Now he enriches our lives as ahighly prized anchor on CBC News
World. What we actually hearthough, is Michael's clear
vision through his story thread,unbiased research, insight, and
in depth understanding of how wewill hear and assimilate the
difficult and the sublime of theworld inside and outside of our
heads. And those ties. How abouthis name? What's in a name, you
(01:56):
might ask? Well, it's one storythread that closes the space
between a star like Michael, anda Star Voyager like me, he is a
comfort for all of us. Let'sbegin. Hi, Michael, welcome to
the podcast.
Michael Serapio (02:09):
Thanks, Roberta.
Roberta Bondar (02:12):
One of the ideas that we've been exploring with
this series is the idea ofcuriosity. And that might be a
good way to begin our ownconversation today. When did you
start getting curious about thenews?
Michael Serapio (02:29):
Well, that one goes a long way back. I was not
born in Canada, my familyimmigrated here and I was three
years old, English was not myfirst language. And one way in
which I did learn about Englishand learn how to speak English
was watch, watching the news.
And that was just something mydad did naturally. And so I
would join him. And I was justfascinated by the storytelling,
(02:50):
and again, learning a newlanguage. And as I got older, it
was a really good entree for mydad and I to talk about
political issues and socialissues and, and challenges and
what was happening around theworld. And that was, you know, I
think it was a little bit oflearning English, it was
certainly about spending timewith my father. And that just
(03:11):
was this little seed that grewinto this huge interest and be,
becoming part of the news.
Roberta Bondar (03:18):
Do you know, I can relate to learning another
language by watching the news orsomething. I remember when I was
in France, and I was learningFrench, I would sit and watch
the old black and white FlashGordon's, which were all done
for the French kids. And thenthat's how I spruced up my space
(03:38):
language in French so, but...
Michael Serapio (03:40):
[Laughter] That's wonderful.
Roberta Bondar (03:43):
Did you think or know that you'd always want to
be doing this, like, I alwaysknew that I want to be a
spaceman like nothing had flownoff the planet in those days. So
that's a spaceman thing. Butwhat about a journalist? That's
kind of a, that's a big word tospell for a little kid?
Michael Serapio (03:57):
Yeah, absolutely. And, and no, I
actually, even though I enjoyedwatching the news with my father
it, it didn't actually occur tome till much later in high
school. And a lot of that had tothe fact that my parents, both
of whom have scientificbackgrounds. My dad was an
engineer, before retiring, mymother was pre-med in
university, went on to become amed tech because my grandfather
(04:20):
unfortunately passed away, sothey didn't have the funds to go
to med school. But they bothhave science backgrounds, and
they really wanted me to be adoctor, which I understand, you
know, it's, of course, the Asianparents dream, "Oh, my child's
going to be a doctor."[Laughter] So they planted that
seed into your head. And so fora very long time in my life, for
much of my younger years, Ithought it was, that was my
(04:42):
path. But you know, I didn'treally have much of a passion
for it. And it wasn't untillater that I was able to put a
finger on what was my passion.
You know, I did try to do myparents path right through to
high school. But you know, I'llbe honest, I was maybe at best a
B plus student in math andscience. And that was with a lot
(05:05):
of effort. And I think a lot ofthat just, I think about that
now. And I think, why, sure, Icould have applied myself more.
But again, it just wasn't mypassion.
Roberta Bondar (05:14):
So what happened?
Michael Serapio (05:16):
Well, it was, you know, my amazing grandmother
on my father's side. And mygrandmother, you know, I have
this recurring theme in my lifeof strong women, and my
grandmother is certainly one ofthem. And she, just a bit of
background on her, she, she, asa young teenager, fled the
(05:38):
Japanese invasion of thePhilippines. And so she, her
father, my great grandfather,her mother and her sister, were
fleeing. And in that flight, mygreat grandfather had a heart
attack, and he passed away, hersister died of dysentery. And it
was just her and her mother. Andluckily, she met my grandfather,
(06:03):
who was a doctor outside ofManila, and her mother had
health issues. And at thatpoint, all these women, young
girls who are unmarried, werebeing taken to become, you know,
the euphemism "comfort women"into these rape houses in the
Philippines for Japanesesoldiers. So my grandfather,
married my grandmother. So shekind of always had this inner
(06:26):
strength. And then she, later inlife went to the United States
where she became a practicalnurse. So she never stopped
pursuing her dreams. And, and,and aside, she was actually a
movie star in the Philippinesfor a time as well. So she had
this amazing life. And she cameup from Texas, because that's
where she ended up settling. Andwe were watching the news. And
(06:48):
for her, it was ABC News. Sheloved ABC News. And we were
watching it together. And I musthave been about 15 at the time,
maybe 16. And, and I said toher, isn't that amazing? What,
what a great, what a great jobthat would be, what a great crew
would that be? And mygrandmother said, "Well, why
don't you do it?" I said, "Oh,no, no, no, no, there's no
Filipino men in front of thecamera, there's no men of colour
(07:11):
in front of the camera, they'dnever let that happen." And she
looked at me and said, "So bethe first. If, if they can do
it, you can do it, just do it."And it was this click in my head
that all these things I wasinterested in, politics,
geography, world issues, currentevents was something that I
could put together in a career,if I found the inner strength to
(07:33):
pursue it, and that came from mygrandmother.
Roberta Bondar (07:36):
Boy, there's a lot there. [Laughter] A lot
there. It's, I was born into afamily that didn't see anything
different one person to thenext. Except, of course, back in
the 40s, and 50s it was allgender issues. I think that the
city that I was in was not verydiverse, to have a lot of
(07:57):
experience that way. But we, Idon't know why people just can't
see people as people. I neverhave understood it. But let's
talk about racism. Did it everget in the way? I mean, beyond
the internal dialogue in yourown head? How do you think that
played out?
Michael Serapio (08:15):
Oh, huge, huge, and it breaks my heart a little
bit, you know. I, I was going toschool and starting my career in
the 90s. And at the time, Ithink to myself, well, and we
were you know, we're, we were atthis great moment in history and
you're part of that wherebarriers were falling down all
around us. And I thought what a,what a great era to be pursuing
(08:38):
what I'm pursuing. Because,again, boundaries are falling,
but I encountered boundaries,mainly around racism. Also
homophobia down the road, butmainly around racism. I had
professors at university, whobasically said, "Oh, you'll be
great behind the scenes, greatbehind the scenes." And it was
this idea that I could never bein front of the camera. One of
(09:02):
the first news directors I spokewith said, "Well, if you want to
be on camera, you should get eyesurgery to make your eyes
bigger." I had a boss, one of myfirst bosses, when she out of
the blue found out I wasFilipino, she proceeded to tell
me why she did not hire aFilipina nanny, and instead
(09:23):
hired a British au pair becauseshe said she didn't want her
children to have a horribleaccent. And this was
unsolicited. So those thingscertainly got in the way and
and, you know, I pushed throughthe best way I could, but
absolutely it got in the way.
Roberta Bondar (09:40):
I just find the idea that you have to change
your appearance to meet somebodystandards, or whatever the heck
they are, they're not reallystandards, they're biases. Gosh,
that must have been reallydiscouraging for you.
Michael Serapio (09:53):
It was, but as I said, I pushed through you
know, I knew I was going to be ajournalist. And you know, I'm
also an immigrant kid, I don'tpay for an education [Laughter]
without the intent of working inwhat I studied, you know, it
wasn't a luxury thing that Icould throw aside and start
something again. And so I, so Ipursued it. And I was a producer
and I was a really goodproducer. I was the executive
(10:17):
producer of Canada AM before Iwas 30, I was around 28 at the
time. I was a senior specialistproducer, I was a parliamentary
hill producer, I did a lot ofwonderful things. And in each
one, I tried to get somethingand I actually had put to bed
this idea that I could actuallydo what I want to do, be a
(10:37):
reporter and anchor, because I,no one was supportive around it.
And so I just accumulated theskills that I could and do what
I could as a journalist, just atthe very least, to prove myself
as a journalist. And, andluckily along the way, I did get
opportunities.
Roberta Bondar (10:55):
You mentioned women in the media at that time.
What about men of colour? Iunderstand from your earlier
comments that there is a paucityof men, but were there any men
of colour for role models foryou? Or mentors or anything?
Michael Serapio (11:08):
Yeah, a few and far between. I, again, it was by
the time the 90s came around,there were there were
particularly African Americanmen in American media. And you
know, the joke was, if youwanted diversity, watch the
weekend because all the peopleof colour, essentially had to
work the weekends. And, and sothere were, the Canadian
(11:29):
examples were fewer and fartherbetween. There were women of
colour. Not, not certainly menof colour, who were anchoring.
Citytv in Toronto was, was theexception. But yeah, there was
no huge male example. There werecertainly more Asian women, I
think of Der Hoi-Yin wasprobably the first Chinese
(11:52):
Canadian business reporter onCBC National, I think of Wei
Chen, who helped launch what wasat the time CBC News World as a,
was a banker, and there wasTerilyn Joe on CTV. Those were
the the women of colour, theAsian woman of colour that I
would see, but there wasn't alot of men of colour, and
certainly zero Asian men ofcolour that I could recall from
(12:15):
the time.
Roberta Bondar (12:17):
Well, it's, it's amazing that you, I mean,
you're, you're now a role modelfor other people.
Michael Serapio (12:22):
I hope so.
Roberta Bondar (12:24):
So where did you find your inspiration, Michael?
Michael Serapio (12:27):
Um, well, you know, luckily, I had allies. You
know, I think of Robert Hurst atCTV News who gave me a chance. I
think of Sidney Cohen at CanadaAM, who gave me a chance. Tom
Haberstroh. These are names thatmean nothing to anyone out
there, but were real, the reallife changers for me. Tina
Cortese at CityNews, when I gotthere. But also beyond I found
(12:51):
inspiration, you amongst them,you know, I talk about people
pushing barriers and boundaries.
And of course, you being thefirst Canadian woman in space
was a part of that. And again,it's there wasn't a lot of men
of colour. So I looked for allyship, and examples of where
barriers were falling. And youare a big part of that. The
success of women oftentimes, atleast gave me hope that other
(13:14):
barriers would fall because youknow, women like you, I think,
Michelle Douglas in the CanadianForces. Again, my life is
defined by these examples ofstrong women, and I'm really
glad that I'm speaking with you,because you are one of those
strong women who, who gave mehope. Because if, if that
(13:34):
barrier falls, perhaps the worldopens up their mind to something
else. You know, I had onejournalism professor who worked
at CBC News. And he talked abouthow Barbara Frum really changed
the world because so manyCanadians were trained to
hearing only a male voice, aman's voice, giving, asking the
(13:55):
questions, giving the news andBarbara Frum changed that and
like Barbara Frum, you help pushboundaries. And that's where I
found inspiration, and thenmaybe, you know, with my own
space link, that's, that's,that's part of the reason why I
looked at something like you asbeing a great role model and a
trailblazer for me.
Roberta Bondar (14:18):
So tell us, tell us about the space link.
Michael Serapio (14:22):
Well, I'm not an alien first and foremost.
[Laughter][Laughter] But I was born, I was
born in July, and which the, youknow, the, the the anniversary
of, of the moon landing, whichof course a huge accomplishment.
For my parents, especially mydad, you know, they were living
in the Philippines at the time.
(14:44):
But having been, I guess, partlya, you know, an American colony
for a time and of course, thegreat space race, they were very
much invested in the story. Andso my dad just had this huge
fascination with space. And sowhen I was born in July, my
parents, well, really my dad, hesays to my mom, well let's name
(15:05):
him after the astronauts. So I'mnamed for all the astronauts of
Apollo, Apollo 11. So, soMichael Collins, Edwin Aldrin,
Neil Armstrong, I'm named afterthem. So my actual full name is
Michael Edwin Neil, Nicholas,which is my mother's maiden
name, Serapio. And because myparents are Catholic, we are
(15:26):
Catholic, I was Michael becauseof course St. Michael had the
the marquee in Catholicism interms of saint names. So as
opposed to Neil being the firstman to walk the moon, I'm named
after Michael Collins.
Roberta Bondar (15:39):
And you shared that story with your daughter?
Michael Serapio (15:43):
Not yet, although, you know, I'm dying to
because she has, she is actuallyalso born in July. So I don't
know if this is the connectionaround and I don't know if you
know anything about astrology,[Laughter] but people who are
born in July sorry, forgive me.
But, people who are born in Julyare, you know, every every sign
has a planet well, canceriansdon't have a planet they have
(16:03):
the moon. And so I you know, Iit's, it's great that the moon
landing happened in July, and Iwas born in July, my daughter
was born in July. But shenaturally has this fascination
with the moon. And so whenever,particularly in the daytime,
because she goes to bed soearly. She's only four. When we
walk around, and she sees themoon in daytime, she'll always
say, "Daddy, Daddy, look at themoon, look at the moon, look at
(16:25):
the moon." And so you know,she's too young to know the
story. But I can't wait to sharethat story with her because she
obviously has a naturalfascination around celestial
bodies. [Laughter] So it'ssomething that I will definitely
be sharing with her.
Roberta Bondar (16:40):
Well, I can recommend one of the first,
actually the first book, that myparents bought, for me was A
Golden Guide to the Stars, whichI still have. So...
Michael Serapio (16:48):
How wonderful.
Roberta Bondar (16:49):
Yeah, I suspect there's a telescope in your
daughter's future.
Michael Serapio (16:54):
I, you know what, I don't doubt it at all,
she would absolutely love that.
And you know, it's one of thethings I do hope that I get to
teach her, you know. It's, Isaid, it's funny, I don't know
if I've shared this with you,but my husband, his family, they
own a cottage on the Americanside, because he's, my husband
is Canadian-American. And so hisfather and his brother, they
(17:15):
live in the Upper Peninsula ofMichigan, and that's where their
cottage is and so we crossedthrough the Sault to get to
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, toget to their cottage in the
Upper Peninsula. And yeah, Idon't know if I shared this with
you, but we often go to RobertaBondar Park in Sault Ste. Marie,
Ontario, and walk around. And soyou know, beyond the moon, I
(17:38):
just want her to really havethis connection with the natural
world. And I think a little bitabout that is, you know, growing
up in a city like Toronto, andbeing you know, immigrant kids
in Toronto, it's very much anurban experience. And so we, I
didn't really have a connectionwith, with the great Canadian
outdoors until I was probablyabout my late teens, early 20s.
(17:58):
And, and that's something thatjust really, really grew. And so
we as a family, we go on hikes,we took at Elise canoeing for
the first time, this summer,which she loved, I love
portaging. And these are thingsI want her to have a connection
with. So in the sky, on theEarth, I really just want her to
have a connection, because arewe not just so blessed to live
(18:19):
in this beautiful, beautifulcountry where we can have all
the modernity and, and thethings that an urban existence
offers you, but also, none of usare that far from this great
land on which we live. And, youknow, I I wish Canadians
actually spent more resourcesand more, you know, time if they
could to explore our own countrybecause there's so many
(18:44):
beautiful things to see andthat's beyond the urban
experience.
Roberta Bondar (18:49):
It's absolutely true, I mean the Space Station,
and neither the Space Stationnor the old Shuttle flies over
the geographic center of ourcountry, which is north of Baker
Lake, inNunavut. People don'trealize that they're used to
seeing a map with the northernpart of Canada looking like a
conehead. [Laughter] There'sthis extraordinary place, I
(19:10):
remember once it took me eighthours to fly from the Eastern
Arctic to the Western Arctic,right across.
Michael Serapio (19:16):
Amazing.
Roberta Bondar (19:17):
It is an amazing country. And you're so right in
what you're saying about yourdaughter because she, she looks
at your enjoyment and yourpleasure and what excites you
and your own passions, andyou're a very curious person.
You have to be curious to be insomething to do with the news, I
mean, you have to have some kindof affinity for it.
Michael Serapio (19:39):
Absolutely.
Roberta Bondar (19:40):
And the curiosity towards the natural
world. I, I really think thatyour curious nature just must
ignite her some way, don't youthink?
Michael Serapio (19:51):
Oh, absolutely.
And I think she, but also, youknow, me and my husband, you
know my husband, he grew upmainly on a farm so he has this
real tie with the natural worldand, and I see it in my daughter
Elise. You know, she, she likestoys, obviously she's a kid. But
boy, she, she can spend a lot oftime just looking at a leaf. Or
(20:12):
this this, this summer, weplanted pumpkin seeds in the
back. And so it's growing andshe just loves going every day
and seeing the leaves grow. Andnow they're starting to change
color. I don't think we're gonnaget pumpkins this season,
because she keeps asking for it.
It's still too early yet. Butshe, she has this wonderful
(20:33):
fascination she, she can look ata flower for such a long time
pointing out different, differencolors, looking to the sky an
asking about stars already athe age of four. You know, bein
on the water, and asking, yoknow, why can we see fish in
some parts of the water andother parts we cannot? Like she
just has these naturalquestions. And I will say, as
(20:57):
difficult as the COVID year hasbeen, it has really, for us as a
family made us look about okay,where are the daytrips we can
o? And where can we be furtherpart from people just, just for
safety sake. But that kind ofisolation, or that that need for
separation that's brought us toareas where even perhaps we
(21:18):
wouldn't have thought of thatare a little bit more remote, a
little bit less traveled. Andit's been this wonderful thing
to watch her have this havethese questions and curiosity.
Because of course, you know, theolder we get, the less, perhaps
curious we get. And so it's niceto see the world with fresh eyes
through
Roberta Bondar (21:38):
Well, I'm very curious about so much stuff
[Laughter] we could, we could goon for a long period of time.
But I think you've, you'vetaught me today that it's,
curiosity is in many areas. Onethinks of curiosity in science
and, and arts as being acreative form. But to be able to
be curious about how one cancommunicate and, and talk about
(22:03):
very important issues, andcertainly pass them on to people
who are younger, to try toformulate them and in some ways
so that they're more, that theyreach more ears and
understanding. That overlappingof ideas, certainly does start
with curiosity. And I want tothank you, Michael, for joining,
joining me today. As I said,maybe we'll do part deux
(22:26):
sometime.
Michael Serapio (22:27):
[Laughter] I would love that.
Roberta Bondar (22:29):
Maybe at some point, you never know, Charlie
Brown and a great pumpkin mightarrive at your house [Laughter]
And that's a whole new thingabout art.
Michael (22:39):
I don't think you'd get my daughter back to bed for days
after that [Laughter] if thatactually happened. But you know
what I would love to do a partdeux and you're very welcome.
And listen, I'm gonna thank youas well. Because I, I love what
I get to do because I reallythink it's just Canadians
speaking with Canadians, becauseI love the fact that we are a
(23:01):
more intimate country and weare, at the end of the day, just
people. But you as a person, asI said, you changed the
trajectory of my life by goingto space. So thank you.
Roberta Bondar (23:13):
That's, that's just lovely. Thank you. Michael,
thank you. Big, big hugs to youand yours and stay safe...
Michael Serapio (23:19):
Thank you.
Roberta Bondar (23:19):
... and stay well and I will be watching you
on TV. Bye bye.
The privilege to engage withother minds and experiences
continues. I would like to thankMichael Serapio for sharing his
unique story with us today. Comeback again in two weeks for the
next Sharing Space with Dr.
Roberta Bondar podcast when myguest will be hockey legend and
(23:40):
physician Dr. HayleyWickenheiser. Thanks for joining
me.
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