Denise Bombardier, an acclaimed Canadian journalist, novelist and feminist, died Tuesday at the age of 82, her family said.

Bombardier, known for her staunch feminist views, was one of the first women to rise through the ranks of Canadian media, hosting top political and cultural shows on Radio Canada in the 1970s and 80s and interviewing many celebrities.

Bombardier died in a palliative care clinic in Montreal “following a rapid cancer, surrounded by people who loved her”, her family said in a statement.

“Tenacious, passionate, intelligent, courageous – Denise Bombardier was all that and more,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Twitter.

“Her impact on Quebec was immense and her legacy will live on, there’s no doubt about that.”

Bombardier also had strong ties to France, where she had completed her studies. In 1990, speaking on a popular television talk show, Bombardier confronted Gabriel Matzneff, a writer who celebrated pedophilia in his work.

A video of this exchange went viral when French publisher Vanessa Springora wrote a memoir in 2020 about her traumatic relationship, at age 14, with Matzneff, who is 36 years her senior.

That book prompted prosecutors in Paris to open an investigation against Matzneff on accusations of raping minors.