W5 Launches 51st Season with New Host Kevin Newman at the Helm this Saturday, Oct. 1 on CTV

TORONTO (September 29, 2016) – Canada’s most-watched documentary series and North America’s longest-running investigative series, W5, returns for its 51^st season with a new host, all-new music, and in stunning 4K, rounding out its award-winning storytelling with a fresh approach and even sharper digital cinematography. Premiering Saturday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, the CTV GO app, and CTVNews.ca, recently announced new Host and Managing Editor Kevin Newman delivers “ENERGY TRAP”, the season’s lead story, investigating furnace sales schemes that are spreading across Canada, followed by an inquisitive report on dangerous and potentially deadly “swatting” hoaxes. “W5 opens its 51^st season diving into two topical and timely issues of which Canadians need to be aware,” said Newman. “We are proud to uphold our ongoing mission and mandate of searching for truth and accountability through our fair and responsible reporting.” In “ENERGY TRAP”, W5 reveals how thousands of unsuspecting Canadians are deceived by high-pressure sales tactics to enter into expensive long-term contracts for heating and cooling equipment. W5 takes viewers inside well-planned sales routines that are sweeping neighbourhoods across the country. W5’s investigation introduces viewers to Canadians dealing with the nightmare of skyrocketing monthly bills associated with these schemes, where salespeople often imply a government affiliation and gain entrance to homes for unnecessary safety inspections. W5 investigates one company facing charges under Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act for dozens of furnace schemes, and interviews a London, Ont. lawyer poised to file a class action lawsuit on behalf of an estimated 10,000 customers who have fallen prey to one furnace sales company’s allegedly fraudulent business practices. In the second story, W5 Senior Reporter Victor Malarek reveals the murky online world of “SWATTING” – an Internet hoax with potentially deadly consequences. Described by law enforcement as “online terrorism”, SWAT teams are unwittingly dispatched to fake emergencies, called in by anonymous hackers. All the swatter needs is the victim’s address, a way to mask their phone number, and a horrifying story of a crime in progress. Malarek speaks with victims who have been swatted and profiles one case that stretched across North America back to a perpetrator in a Canadian suburb. Continually keeping up with new technologies throughout its five decades of trailblazing in the industry, W5 heads into its 51^st season shooting in 4K UHD, the latest standard in digital television and digital cinematography.  W5’s 51^st season introduces a new musical theme by Grammy® and ACADEMY AWARD®-nominated Canadian composer, producer, pianist, arranger, conductor, and recording artist Stephan Moccio. The evocative theme music reflects W5’s investigative journalism and provides a new signature background to the program’s segments. W5 moves into a season of entertaining, informing, and educating Canadians and upholding its commitment to first-rate investigative journalism powered by its unparalleled team: Host and Managing Editor Kevin Newman, Reporters Victor Malarek and Sandie Rinaldo, CTV News’ Chief Anchor and Senior Editor Lisa LaFlamme, and regular contributions from CTV News Special Correspondent Lloyd Robertson. In addition to airing Saturdays at 7 p.m. beginning October 1 on CTV, W5 also airs Saturdays at 10 p.m. on CTV Two and Sundays (see local listings). W5 can also be seen on Investigation Discovery on Tuesdays at 11 p.m. ET, and Wednesdays at 12 noon ET; on demand at CTVNews.ca/W5, on the CTV NEWS GO app, the CTV Mobile channel on Bell Mobile TV, and through video on demand partners, such as Bell Fibe TV (visit CTV.ca for local listings).