Lisa LaFlamme, CTV News, and Bad Executive Decisions

There will be no bittersweet on-air goodbye for (now previous) CTV nationwide news anchor Lisa LaFlamme, no ceremonial passing of the baton to the following generation, no broadcast retrospectives lionizing a journalist with a storied and award-successful career. As LaFlamme introduced yesterday, CTV’s mum or dad enterprise, Bell Media, has made a decision to unilaterally close her contract. (See also the CBC’s reporting of the tale here.)

While LaFlamme herself does not make this declare, there was of training course fast speculation that the network’s conclusion has anything to do with the truth that LaFlamme is a female of a selected age. LaFlamme is 58, which by Television specifications is not exactly youthful — apart from when you review it to the age at which well-liked adult men who proceeded her have left their respective anchor’s chairs: take into consideration Peter Mansbridge (who was 69), and Lloyd Robertson (who was 77).

But an even much more sinister concept is now afoot: rather than mere, shallow misogyny, proof has arisen of not just sexism, but sexism conjoined with company interference in newscasting. Two evils for the value of one! LaFlamme was fired, claims journalist Jesse Brown, “because she pushed again versus a single Bell Media executive.” Brown stories insiders as proclaiming that Michael Melling, vice president of news at Bell Media, has bumped heads with LaFlamme a number of times, and has a background of interfering with information coverage. Brown even more stories that “Melling has regularly demonstrated a lack of regard for gals in senior roles in the newsroom.”

Needless to say, even if a personalized grudge moreover sexism make clear what is likely on, here, it even now will appear to be to most as a “foolish determination,” just one sure to result in the firm problems. Now, I make it a plan not to query the small business savvy of seasoned executives in industries I don’t know nicely. And I advise my pupils not to leap to the summary that “that was a dumb decision” just mainly because it is 1 they really don’t understand. But however, in 2022, it is challenging to consider that the enterprise (or Melling more specifically) did not see that there would be blowback in this situation. It’s a person thing to have disagreements, but it’s one more to unceremoniously dump a beloved and award-winning female anchor. And it’s weird that a senior government at a information business would believe that the real truth would not come out, given that, following all, he’s surrounded by individuals whose career, and personal dedication, is to report the news.

And it’s hard not to suspect that this a less than happy transition for LaFlamme’s substitute, Omar Sachedina. Of training course, I’m guaranteed he’s satisfied to get the job. But although Bell Media’s push release rates Sachedina indicating graceful points about LaFlamme, surely he didn’t want to assume the anchor chair amidst common criticism of the changeover. He’s getting on the position less than a shadow. Most likely the prize is worth the price, but it is also tricky not to envision that Sachedina experienced (or now has) some pull, some skill to impact that way of the transition. I’m not declaring (as some certainly will) that — as an insider who is familiar with the genuine tale — he need to have declined the position as sick-gotten gains. But at the incredibly minimum, it appears fair to argue that he should really have employed his influence to condition the transition. And if the now-senior anchor doesn’t have that kind of influence, we must be anxious in truth about the independence of that purpose, and of that newsroom.

A closing, relevant note about authority and governance in advanced organizations. In any reasonably well-ruled firm, the decision to axe a major, public-dealing with expertise like LaFlamme would involve indication-off — or at the very least tacit approval — from much more than a single senior govt. This implies that 1 of two things is legitimate. Either Bell Media isn’t that kind of perfectly-governed business, or a large variety of people were being included in, and culpable of, unceremoniously dumping an award-successful journalist. Which is worse?