User:Rolf Dinsdale

Rolf Dinsdale is a Canadian politician, musician and media executive.

Rolf was born in Ottawa in 1966, and grew up in both Ottawa and Manitoba. His father was the Honourable Walter Dinsdale, Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament for Brandon-Souris from 1951-1982 and a Diefenbaker-era Cabinet Minister, and the family divided their time between the Nations Capital and Manitoba. His grandfather was George Dinsdale, who served Brandon as Alderman, Mayor and MLA. Rolf's maternal grandfather LB Gusdal was the pioneering cottager at Clear Lake, which later became part of Riding Mountain National Park, and Rolf has spent most of his summers here at the Gusdal-Dinsdale seasonal cottage, and considers this his true home.

Rolf has been an active musician and songwriter all his life and has performed, recorded and toured extensively. Songs he has written have appeared on radio, television and in feature films. He was a member of Toronto-based SFH, a satirical "geriatric" punk-rock band led by Liberal strategist and media pundit Warren Kinsella. They have been lauded for their authentic first-wave Punk sound, and the humorous and insightful political and social commentary of their songs - and for raising funds and promoting awareness of noble causes (Haiti Earthquake Relief, the Free Pussy Riot campaign, etc).

Rolf began a career in media as a writer for The Ottawa Xpress newspaper, contributing articles on the arts and politics. He has since gone on to a successful career as a Media Executive, serving as Advertising Director at Shift Magazine, Associate Publisher of The Walrus Magazine, VP Sales at Segal Communications (where he led Facebook's business development in Canada) and VP Digital Sales for GlassBOX TV / Blue Ant Media. Rolf has been at the forefront of media evolution and innovation, having been involved in Internet Media, Social Media and Mobile Media from the very earliest days. He also operates a media and marketing consultancy - Transmitter Media, who have worked with The CBC, Exclaim Media, Sony, Alliance and other clients.

Rolf is also active in electoral politics, and has worked on many campaigns - civic, provincial, federal and leadership campaigns. He is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada and is currently seeking the nomination to be the candidate in Brandon-Souris.

He has one daughter (Maia Dinsdale, 12/12/2004, with Kristiana Painting - they divorced in 2010) and currently divides his time between homes in Toronto and Manitoba.