Ceola Wilson, who was known for her direct and unapologetic approach to journalism, has died. She was 64.

Ceola Berneice Wilson experienced the growth of the news industry for 40 years while shifting between print media, radio and television.

She made a name for herself with trailblazing television documentaries, which ranged from interviewing one of Bermuda’s first heart transplant recipients to talking to maximum security prison inmates about life behind bars.

Ms Wilson attended Warwick Academy and graduated from Long Island University, New York, in 1984.

She later joined VSB Radio and went on to the Bermuda Broadcasting Company, where she cut her teeth as a news reporter and anchor.

Rick Richardson, a former news director at Bermuda Broadcasting and later its chief executive, mentored Ms Wilson during her ten-year stint at the company.

He said: “She was very bright and understood community, the value of having good news stories and good information for the community.

“If you’re in broadcast, you have to anchor your news, read, deliver bulletins — and when Ceola came in, she read well and she understood the leads. She could spot the lead story anywhere.”

Mr Richardson had Ms Wilson intern at WBLF/WLIV radio station in Harlem, New York, where she honed her on-air reading skills.

He said that when she returned she was “an entirely different person” as a news anchor.

Mr Richardson said: “She was talented, tenacious, dedicated and fearless. That was Ceola throughout — she took her craft and profession seriously.

“She wanted to hold those in power to account. It didn’t matter, she wanted to hold whoever was in power to account. Ceola asked the hard questions always.”

Ms Wilson’s passion, in her own words, was in long-form storytelling — something that became evident in her documentaries.

Her first television documentary appeared in 1993 and focused on Calvin Ming, Bermuda’s second recipient for a heart transplant, as well as his eight-month recovery from surgery.

During a 2012 interview with The Royal Gazette, when she worked at the newspaper, she said: “This was my first real overseas assignment, we flew to Pittsburgh and were given full access to the top medical representatives on Mr Ming’s case.

“To this day we are still good friends.”

In 2007, Ms Wilson became the first electronic journalist to record interviews in Bermuda’s maximum security prison at Westgate.

The 90-minute television documentary, titled Life Behind Bars, focused on prisoners serving life sentences for murder — many of whom were young men at the time.

The presentation was the first in a series examining social issues affecting Bermuda and was followed by A Pay Cheque Away From Homelessness, which examined the challenges faced by single mothers and child support issues.

Apart from documentaries, Ms Wilson led the radio talk show Night Talk with cohost Ashfield DeVent.

Although the programme was on only briefly in 1999, it returned later and became an award-winning radio show.

Mr DeVent described his former cohost as “a no-nonsense reporter” who “often put the fear of God in, particularly, politicians”.

He said: “She was known to be difficult, straight-to-the-point and I think often times she might have irritated some politicians. But she was very good at it.

“I actually think Ceola and her career would have done much better in a bigger place. I think Bermuda was too small for her.”

Mr DeVent said he was often amazed by how quickly she wrote her stories and the level of knowledge she always seemed to have.

He added that the two had known each other since grade school and had been “good friends”, although he noted that she was “quite sharp with her tongue”.

Mr DeVent said: “Often times, people have said she was one of the best reporters on the island.

“She was intelligent and she had a memory for news like an elephant.”

Ms Wilson later transitioned to print journalism, where she worked with the Gazette and wrote as a columnist for the Bermuda Sun.

She then began her own news outlet, Bermuda Real, which offered videos and articles centred around news, sports and entertainment, as well as the talk show One On One.

In 2012, Ms Wilson noted how she had seen the industry shift over the years as technology made journalism much more instantaneous.

She said: “I think overall it was most interesting to be around when there were typewriters and see the whole business evolve technologically with the advent of computers and digital technology.

“When I started out, there was no such thing as the internet and e-mail and cellphones.

“Now you can be anywhere and everywhere at the click of a mouse.”

Trevor Lindsay, who runs the news network TNN, described Ms Wilson as a woman who “never pretended to be anything other than exactly who she was”.

Sharing a tribute on Facebook, he wrote: “We will not see another Ceola. Her brilliance in broadcasting, her fearless voice and her unforgettable spirit leave a space that cannot be filled.”

Mr Lindsay said that he met Ms Wilson more than 53 years ago through mutual friends before they both entered broadcast journalism.

He said Ms Wilson was the first reporter he worked with when he joined the Bermuda Broadcasting Company in 1991.

“Ceola was the one who took me into the field,” Mr Lindsay wrote. “She didn’t sugar-coat anything. She told me exactly what to expect, what challenges were coming and what she expected of me.

“She was raw, direct, sometimes rude, sometimes downright disrespectful — and unapologetically she was. But she was also brilliant. One of the most brilliant female reporters Bermuda has ever seen.

“Her mind was sharp, her instincts unmatched and her presence unforgettable.”

Mr Lindsay said he adopted the nickname “Winnie” for Ms Wilson from their shared boss, Mr Richardson.

The name came from Winnie Mandela, the activist and second wife of anti-Apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.

Mr Lindsay said: “I called her Winnie from then on. She, in turn, called me Deja — short for déjà vu — because every time we reunited as a team, it felt like we had never missed a step.

“She never called me by my name. I was always Deja. Always her friend.”

Mr Lindsay admitted his friendship with Ms Wilson was not “polished or pretty”. He had even briefly blocked her access to his social-media account for using his stories and photographs on her website.

However, he said: “Even when life handed her challenges that mirrored my own, I never gave up on her. I never turned my back.

“Whatever she needed, I was there. Because beneath that tough exterior was a woman of depth, intelligence and fierce loyalty.”

Mr Lindsay said: “I pray her son grows to fully understand just how extraordinary his mother was. She was a force. A pioneer. And to me, she was family.

“To her son and grandchild, you were her world. I offer my sincere condolences to you and the entire family.

“I thank God for the time I had with her. I will miss her deeply. Goodbye, Winnie. For ever my friend.”

Ewart Brown, a former premier, said he was “deeply saddened” to learn of Ms Wilson’s death.

He said: “Ceola was unique among Bermudian journalists. She answered to no one but herself. That independence was not merely a professional trait — it was her hallmark.

“She approached her work with conviction, asked the questions others avoided and remained steadfast in her commitment to reporting as she believed it should be done.

“I extend my sincere condolences to her family and friends during this difficult time. May they take comfort in knowing that her work made a lasting impact on Bermuda.”

• Ceola Berneice Wilson, a broadcaster, journalist and documentarian, was born August 30, 1961. She died in February 2026, aged 64