End of an era: CTV Vancouver noon, weekend news shows axed in Bell Media layoffs
A beloved local news show has been scrapped as part of a major layoff announcement Thursday from its parent company, Bell Media.
CTV Vancouver has ended its noon broadcasts, effective immediately, a source tells Daily Hive. It’s unclear the number of jobs this impacts.
The weekend newscasts were also cancelled, according to social media images posted Thursday.
Update from changes to local news at Bell Media pic.twitter.com/tCrK7O6uwt
— jonah (@yyzsportsmedia) February 8, 2024
They are among the many cancellations and changes that have come as a result of the company “adapting and moving forward.”
Those words were used in an open letter from Mirko Bibic, president and chief executive officer at BCE Inc. and Bell Canada.
CTV’s noon show is not the only shocking dismantling Thursday, as the company is also selling 45 radio stations, laying off 4,800 employees, and leaving many holes in local news coverage across the country.
BC Premier David Eby spoke out on the “catastrophic layoffs” and the impact it has on the province with fewer journalists and the blow to local news, especially through the loss of many radio stations.
Calling the move “treacherous to local communities,” the premier added that he thought it was “reprehensible and appalling.”
“They bought them up like corporate vampires and sucked the life out of them,” Eby said.