The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum » Layoffs at Global News

ED1 · June 12, 2024 6:36 pm

Daily Hive
https://dailyhive.com/canada/global-news-layoffs-cut-journalists-loose

Western Standard
https://www.westernstandard.news/news/breaking-global-news-hit-by-layoffs/55281

Canadian Press
https://www.cheknews.ca/corus-says-global-news-changes-affect-jobs-wont-disclose-how-many-1209253/?amp

Glen Warren · June 12, 2024 7:09 pm

And changes are already apparent on Global's Toronto supper hour newscast...

ED1 · June 12, 2024 7:16 pm

Glen Warren wrote:
And changes are already apparent on Global's Toronto supper hour newscast...

What happened on their show?

Last edited by ED1 (June 12, 2024 7:20 pm)

Glen Warren · June 12, 2024 11:52 pm

Television news was the focus of today's cuts by Corus/Global. Overall, approx. 35 employees are being let go across the various news centres and newsrooms. Mostly longer term, high earners, who were at one point under the former Canwest pension plan (not the greatest, but better than the former Shaw plan).

Affected employees were terminated this morning, and information "Town Halls" were held held in the afternoon to explain the cuts to surviving employees... some of the conference calls were live, and in other markets, they had been recorded. No word if there have been any impacts on Radio...

The Calgary Station/News Manager was quoted as saying that they are looking for multi - talented or multi - disciplined employees. So this means VJs...

As the majority of employees are unionized, there will now be a period of "bumping" if a laid off employee chooses to stay and elects to take an alternate position and a (most likely) lessor pay scale...

Hardest hit centres are in Alberta. Both Edmonton and Calgary will be undergoing production and delivery changes to how weekend morning and evening news shows are produced and delivered to air.

The current linear model, while automated, will now be replaced with Global's MMC or Multi Market Content Delivery method now being used for a number of newscasts across the country. (Global first hatched this idea in 2011/2012, and then ran trials at the CH/E! station in Red Deer).

MMC will see Edmonton pre record the anchor on camera throws to various items/packages for both Edmonton and Calgary Weekend Morning shows. All elements are then dropped onto a timeline for playout. Calgary will later do the same drill for both the Calgary and Edmonton Evening Newscasts. Lethbridge news will also be produced and assembled from Calgary as well.

Toronto has seen three positions eliminated.

Corus/Global maintain that today's cuts are a result of previously existing pressures on News viewership and advertising dollars.

The announcement earlier in the week by Rogers that they have signed a multiyear rights agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery and NBC Universal for specialty channel licensing had no influence on today's layoffs by Global.

ED1 · June 13, 2024 12:10 am

Glen Warren wrote:
The current linear model, while automated, will now be replaced with Global's MMC or Multi Market Content Delivery method now being used for a number of newscasts across the country. (Global first hatched this idea in 2011/2012, and then ran trials at the CH/E! station in Red Deer).

Just a bit of a correction, the MMC format was never implemented at CHCA Red Deer. They went off the air in 2009 before MMC was started. The production control room for CHCA was scrapped and moved to Global Edmonton, with the anchors remaining in Red Deer.

Binson Echorec · June 13, 2024 3:47 pm

All this Corus news makes me wonder how the CEO has managed to stay in place.

The stock performance alone should have been enough to make a change and yet they keep on keepin' on.

67GreenRambler · June 13, 2024 8:03 pm

I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.

RadioAaron · June 13, 2024 8:10 pm

This would all be happening regardless of who was in charge.

TomTV · June 14, 2024 12:40 am

ED1 wrote:
Glen Warren wrote:
And changes are already apparent on Global's Toronto supper hour newscast...

What happened on their show?

I get the feeling that anchor Alan Carter may be one of the three at Global Toronto that got the boot. He was anchoring the news until the reports of the Corus layoffs.

Now that said, he could still stay on, assuming that he has the right to boot another less-senior staffer and take their job -- I believe that's how it works.

RadioActive · June 14, 2024 6:16 am

Financial Post:

Corus shares may be worth 'zero' after Rogers-Warner deal, TD says

zed · June 14, 2024 7:26 am

67GreenRambler wrote:
I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.

Doug Murphy (I know... who?) is actually the CEO. He's the one that needs to go, the company has done nothing but decline under his leadership.

RadioAaron · June 14, 2024 9:43 am

zed wrote:
67GreenRambler wrote:
I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.
Doug Murphy (I know... who?) is actually the CEO. He's the one that needs to go, the company has done nothing but decline under his leadership.

Shaw saddled Corus with Canwest, then pushed them out to sea -- freeing up Shaw to get top dollar in a now clean deal from Rogers.

I's a completely un-winnable situation, by design.

RadioActive · June 14, 2024 11:03 am

TomTV wrote:
ED1 wrote:
Glen Warren wrote:
And changes are already apparent on Global's Toronto supper hour newscast...

What happened on their show?
I get the feeling that anchor Alan Carter may be one of the three at Global Toronto that got the boot. He was anchoring the news until the reports of the Corus layoffs.

Now that said, he could still stay on, assuming that he has the right to boot another less-senior staffer and take their job -- I believe that's how it works.

His bio is still up on the Global news website, for whatever that's worth.

I'm actually surprised it was only Global that was hit. I really expected any cuts would be at Corus Radio first, since many of their stations aren't exactly at the top of the ratings. Or are those still to come?

Radiowiz · June 14, 2024 3:45 pm

RadioActive wrote:
I'm actually surprised it was only Global that was hit. I really expected any cuts would be at Corus Radio first, since many of their stations aren't exactly at the top of the ratings. Or are those still to come?

Gotta start somewhere, maybe, but also, if the radio side wants to go up for sale, it has to look presentable, not gutted.

chrishch · June 14, 2024 7:15 pm

Farah Nasser announced at the end of Global National on June 14, 2024 that she is leaving Global News. Coincidence?

ED1 · June 14, 2024 7:55 pm

CAJ has a post on their website saying they got word that Farah Nasser was one of those who were laid off from Global Toronto this week,

https://caj.ca/journalism-job-losses-at-global-news-undercut-canadians-right-to-know/

RadioActive · June 14, 2024 8:00 pm

I'm frankly surprised to hear they let her do one more newscast knowing she's been cut.

I've worked with Farah in the past and she would never do anything stupid on air. But it's very unusual these days for someone to know they've been fired and still be allowed to remain on air. At least she got the chance to say goodbye to viewers.

ED1 · June 14, 2024 8:16 pm

Global's let a few on-air talent who were let go say goodbye. Jamie Orchard from Global Montreal comes to mind a couple of years ago. The entire staff at CHCA Red Deer also got to say goodbye after that whole station shut down back in 2008.

Brad · June 14, 2024 8:38 pm

I've been checking the different Global websites to see if anyone has been removed, but personality pages certainly are not very up to date. To be fair, same with CTV and CP24.

If you to go Global National.com, Farah was never on the personalities page, although she is on the home page behind Dawna.

But if you look at Global Toronto, and go down past the local personalities to National, Farah is listed there, but it still says Global Toronto evening anchor, even though she left to join the national newscast. I did notice on the Toronto page that Minna Rhee is no longer there. Her socials say lifestyle reporter with Global, but she's not on the personalities page. I don't think Corus is going to update these pages, since they already seem to be out of date.

Last edited by Brad (June 14, 2024 8:39 pm)

mic'em · June 15, 2024 7:50 am

Carter would do well as a radio talk show host . His noon show on AM640 was actually not bad. I would give him a listen if he ends up back on radio.

Walter · June 15, 2024 9:08 am

mic'em wrote:
Carter would do well as a radio talk show host . His noon show on AM640 was actually not bad. I would give him a listen if he ends up back on radio.

I got to enjoy Carter on 640. He liked to poke Doug Ford, 'Folks!', which was amusing and warranted.

MJ Vancouver · June 15, 2024 1:15 pm

RadioActive wrote:
TomTV wrote:
ED1 wrote:

What happened on their show?
I get the feeling that anchor Alan Carter may be one of the three at Global Toronto that got the boot. He was anchoring the news until the reports of the Corus layoffs.

Now that said, he could still stay on, assuming that he has the right to boot another less-senior staffer and take their job -- I believe that's how it works.

His bio is still up on the Global news website, for whatever that's worth.

I'm actually surprised it was only Global that was hit. I really expected any cuts would be at Corus Radio first, since many of their stations aren't exactly at the top of the ratings. Or are those still to come?

The day of the announcement Dawna Freisen was absent from Global National and they had Chris Gailus from Global BC filling in, which got me thinking as well. But there seems to be nothing indicating Dawna was cut.

RadioActive · June 16, 2024 5:14 pm

TomTV wrote:
ED1 wrote:
Glen Warren wrote:
And changes are already apparent on Global's Toronto supper hour newscast...

What happened on their show?
I get the feeling that anchor Alan Carter may be one of the three at Global Toronto that got the boot. He was anchoring the news until the reports of the Corus layoffs.

Now that said, he could still stay on, assuming that he has the right to boot another less-senior staffer and take their job -- I believe that's how it works.

Toronto Mike says Alan Carter was indeed one of the casualties at Global. Which is a real shame. He was one of the better personalities/anchors there.

Corus Cuts at Global News Claim Farah Nasser and Alan Carter

mic'em · June 17, 2024 6:43 am

1010 should grab him for the afternoon drive.

RadioActive · June 17, 2024 6:59 am

mic'em wrote:
1010 should grab him for the afternoon drive.

That is an intriguing suggestion, especially since he's well known in the market and did radio for many years on AM640. They need someone permanent in that chair and it's long overdue that they stop with the "guest host" insanity on the second most important shift in radio - especially in the #1 market in Canada. I would definitely give him a listen.

RadioActive · June 17, 2024 7:19 am

67GreenRambler wrote:
I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.

You may be interested to know that he's just been promoted. It comes in a press release that indicates the current president and CEO has decided to take "early retirement." (Given the recent stock fall, you have to wonder if the decision was really his or not.)

As for Reeb, he's obviously not being blamed for the recent disasters at Corus.

"The Board is pleased to appoint Troy Reeb and John Gossling as Co-Chief Executive Officers. These appointments are effective immediately and reflect the strength of Corus' leadership bench and a forward focus on managing through a challenging environment...

"In his new role, Mr. Reeb will also directly oversee all revenue, marketing, sales and distribution aspects of the Company."

OK, then.

I wish Mr. Reeb luck. Given the past few years, he's going to need it.

Press release

zed · June 17, 2024 7:53 am

zed wrote:
67GreenRambler wrote:
I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.
Doug Murphy (I know... who?) is actually the CEO. He's the one that needs to go, the company has done nothing but decline under his leadership.

It looks like they took my advice from earlier in this thread. DO you think they read the big yellow board? LOL

Listener · June 17, 2024 8:08 am

I am so sorry to hear about Alan Carter! Indeed, it would be great to have him on 1010. I would certainly listen.

RadioActive · June 17, 2024 9:03 am

zed wrote:
zed wrote:
67GreenRambler wrote:
I have the same thought regarding Troy Reeb. In normal companies when managers fail to achieve - they're gone. I suppose if you keep the performance measurement adequately nebulous you can skate around for years, as he has.
Doug Murphy (I know... who?) is actually the CEO. He's the one that needs to go, the company has done nothing but decline under his leadership.
It looks like they took my advice from earlier in this thread. DO you think they read the big yellow board? LOL

It may have been in the planning for a while, but it is, indeed, hard to see this as a coincidence, given everything that's happened to Corus these past few weeks and months.

Glen Warren · June 17, 2024 9:10 am

Corus is referring to Doug Murphy's exit as a retirement... and he will be replaced by John Gossling and Troy Reeb.

The CEO will be split with Gossling and Reeb being Co - CEOs.