Immediately after the 3 p.m. news bulletin on ICI Première, Annie Desrochers presses a button in front of her and dives in. For a few minutes, she focuses her magnifying glass on a subject that has caught her attention. This is the moment when she extends her hand to those who will follow her from their kitchen or their car.
“When you listen to the radio, you become attached to the color of the host,” the host of the 15-18 a balustrade that overlooks the Radio-Canada lobby. This is what will make you stand out. That said, that moment haunts me. There are days when the subject comes late. »
I’ve wanted to meet Annie Desrochers for a long time. I have always loved this host, one of the most seasoned of her generation. With her, no wandering, no superfluous, no unnecessary laughter, just questions that go straight to the point and unparalleled guidance.
“After nine years, I understand my role better, but I’m still at the end of my chair. I’m not completely relaxed when I do this show. »
However, there is a certain confidence that comes with the years. I think it’s the relationship with the listeners that gives me that.
Annie Desrochers, host of the 15-18
Annie Desrochers’ day starts early. And in a whirlwind. Because if the morning show requires us to turn around like a top to deal with current issues, the afternoon show has challenges guided by the omnipresence of live broadcasting in the media, which is acts on television, radio or newspapers.
“I continue to believe that the morning show remains the engine of a station,” she said. But it is true that Homecoming is one of the flagship shows for which we have a lot of expectations in a very competitive market. »
Precisely, on the subject of competition, I ask her how she copes with the pressure of performance which threatens all radio stations, even public ones. “At first, I didn’t understand the purpose of ratings. I don’t have an audience to sell to advertisers. But at the same time, we do radio to be listened to. If my show does well, that allows public radio to do well. »
I was surprised to learn that the modus operandi of the team 15-18 goes as follows: the big meeting of the day, the one which takes place at 11 a.m., brings together the host, the director, the researchers and the designated reporters of the show. This is when the “topics of the day” are determined.
It was only in the studio, a few minutes before going on air, that Annie Desrochers found her faithful collaborators: Catherine Richer (culture), Martin Labrosse (sports), Ève Christian (weather) and Yves Désautels (traffic) . After almost a decade, it’s easier to make the mayonnaise rise just before the musical cue.
“There is an expression that I really like and it is “the artisans of Radio-Canada,” she says. I am a radio craftsman. It sends the image of people who work on what they have to do without certainty, who kid their subjects. That still haunts me. »
Beginnings in Germany
Daughter of a teacher who chose to work on a Canadian Armed Forces military base in Germany in the early 1990s, Annie Desrochers found herself uprooted from her native Laval at the age of 18. There is a small newspaper on site. The young woman tries her luck, without success.
But there is also a radio station managed by Radio-Canada International. This media wants her. These are his first classes. On her return to Canada, on the advice of Normand Harvey, she began a bachelor’s degree in communications at UQAM, radio profile. Then, it will be the obstacle course which begins with “$50 freelances” at Macadam tribesthen the animation of 275-hello.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Annie Desrochers in 2015
For many years, she was the one who held the demanding job at the morning press review. In March 2015, while she was part of the team of It’s not too early !, piloted by Marie-France Bazzo, the public learns with astonishment that the host is leaving the ship. This departure creates a game of musical chairs. Annie Desrochers becomes the interim host.
For three months, speculation ran rampant. Several listeners want the “replacement” to stay in place. The bosses rather chose Alain Gravel. But a surprise awaits Annie Desrochers: she is asked to host the return home.
“It’s true that I would have liked to host the morning show,” she said. But when I was told that it wasn’t me who would go, I told myself that I would probably return to the press review. »
When, later, I was offered the afternoon, I was on my ass. It was completely unexpected and unhoped for.
Annie Desrochers, host of the 15-18
Emergence of Generation X
Annie Desrochers refuses to take for granted this job that she so wanted to do. “I had the ambition to have a career at Radio-Canada, but it was not easy for my generation. The positions were well occupied. »
But things have changed a lot at ICI Première, where the majority of prominent presenters are worthy representatives of Generation X. We only have to think of Patrick Masbourian, Marie-Louise Arsenault, Jean-Philippe Wauthier or Annie Rocks. “We ended up taking our place. That said, we lost giants: Joël Le Bigot, Michel Désautels, Michel Lacombe… There was a transition and there will be another that will happen. And it’s perfect like that. »
When you do a web search on Annie Desrochers, you discover a large number of articles that talk about the mother of five children that she is. After several interviews on the subject, she now opens the floodgates sparingly. “I was tired of it,” she said. Maybe it’s a bit my fault. I agreed to talk about it because I was pregnant and breastfeeding for 11 years of my life. Today I made peace with that. I’m happy to address this to tell young women that it can be done. »
These children, aged 10 to 22, are at the heart of Annie Desrochers’ life. “This job takes up a lot of space. You can easily get carried away. My children keep me in the here and now. That makes me ground a lot. »
Next year, Annie Desrochers will celebrate ten years at the helm of 15-18, a feat for a late afternoon show host. She knows she has many years of radio ahead of her, but oddly enough, the idea of the end is already occupying her thoughts.
“I find it difficult for women to age on air. But hey, I’m still young and this job is the great passion of my life. I can’t imagine doing anything else. When I no longer do this, I wonder what my life will be like. »
15-18Monday to Friday, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., on ICI Première