Debra Arbec is the host of CBC Montreal News at 6, bringing viewers the local news of the day. Her passion lies in politics and hearing and sharing people’s stories. Arbec also produces CBC’s Montreal A to V series, taking viewers along as she explores the city’s 19 boroughs, discovering what makes each of them unique.
From the anchor desk and in the field, over the last few decades, Arbec has covered many of the biggest news stories in the province. At CBC, that included co-moderating the first and only televised English provincial leaders' debate, in 2018. She was behind the anchor desk during the election-night shooting at the Parti Quebecois victory rally, the devastating Lac Megantic train disaster, the floods of 2017 and 2019 and of course, the pandemic.
In 2024, Arbec won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Local Anchor after three previous nominations. She has also received several RTDNA awards for her reporting. After a months-long investigation, she broke the story about how the Montreal-based UN aviation agency ICAO, tried to cover up a 2016 cyberattack. The story won her a nomination for a CAJ award, which recognizes the best in Canadian investigative journalism.