Veteran Canadian journalist Bill Cameron, whose illustrious career spanned many decades in print, on television and radio, has died of cancer. He was 62.

"He was one of the last of the classic journalists," CBC senior executive documentary producer Mark Starowicz told The Canadian Press.

"The man was a terrific writer, a terrific correspondent, an anchor, a documentary writer and a documentary director," said Starowicz, who hired Cameron in 1983 for CBC's news magazine program The Journal.

"A lot of people are good at one of those things. I can't think of anyone else that's good at all of those things."

Cameron died around midnight Friday night of cancer of the esophagus that spread to his brain and liver, a CBC spokeswoman told The Canadian Press.

Born in 1943, in Vancouver, Cameron is likely best known for his work on the CBC program The Journal.

He got his break in the business at CBC Radio in the 1960s. Later, he worked as an editorial writer and columnist for the Toronto Star and as an associate editor at Maclean's magazine.

Cameron later worked for Global TV as host of Newsweek from 1978 to 1983 and also as anchor on Toronto's Citytv before joining The Journal.

He joined CBLT, CBC's flagship station in Toronto where he anchored the evening newscast and won a Gemini Award for his work there.

In 1995, Cameron joined Newsworld in Halifax as host of CBC Morning News. In 1999, he moved back to Toronto to host Sunday Report and daily newscasts for Newsworld and Newsworld International.

Cameron's career was long and illustrious. He wrote fiction, plays and poetry and worked as an educator at Ryerson University.  His print experience also includes Saturday Night magazine and the National Post.

He is also well known for his public parting of ways with the CBC in the midst of budget cuts in the late 1990s.

"I don't want to sound maudlin, but there's an awful lot of my life there," he said at the time. "I still believe in it and I feel a little homeless, wandering around in the big, wide world."

Cameron also said: "The kind of broadcasting that I wanted to do, I don't think they can do now. ... I wasn't being asked to use my creativity enough to keep me awake."

Cameron is survived by his wife, Cheryl Hawkes, a freelance journalist, and their three children.

With files from The Canadian Press