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A leading Canadian newscaster has recounted her shock at the outpouring of support after she was fired last year, in a move believed to stem from her decision to stop dyeing her hair.
Lisa LaFlamme, 58, was fired by CTV News on June 29 after the company made a “business decision” to abruptly end her contract after 35 years.
She cannot speak about the circumstances surrounding her departure, due to a confidentiality agreement, but she said the response caught her by surprise, saying it far exceeded the reaction to her reports.
“Most of the feedback I got was not about months in Baghdad or Afghanistan, or any other story, but about letting my hair go gray, bar none,” LaFlamme said. The New York Times.
“And I will say this, 98 percent positive, except for a couple of men and one woman, it’s funny that I can actually remember that, but they were summarily destroyed on social media because women support women.”
Lisa LaFlamme, 58, was fired from the Canadian news network CTV in June. On Friday, she said that she was amazed by the outpouring of support she received.
LaFlamme said she started dyeing her hair when she was 20, but stopped during the pandemic and found it liberating.
LaFlamme said she was amazed at the support. In response to CTV’s decision, Wendy’s Canada temporarily changed its mascot’s hair from red to gray, and Dove Canada ran ads on its behalf.
The Globe and the Mail published an open letter from prominent Canadians in their newspaper, condemning the company for firing her because of “the color of her hair.”
Senators, celebrities and a UN official expressed anger over the decision.
“People are incredibly nice,” he said Friday.
‘The support has been amazing. It has really been a shock to me.
LaFlamme told the newspaper that she began dyeing her hair when she was 20 years old and took over-the-counter Nice ‘n Easy hair dye with her on her reporting trips.
The veteran reporter recalled dyeing her hair in the women’s toilets at the Kandahar airfield and in a Baghdad bunker.
At the start of the pandemic, she was forced to start using spray dye.
“There was hair dye on my pillowcases, and I also had menopause and night sweats, and the pillowcases were disgusting,” she said.
LaFlamme appears at the 2015 Canadian Screen Awards
LaFlamme won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Newscaster in August 2022 (pictured with her award in August)
Wendy’s Canada was the first company to step forward with direct support for LaFlamme, changing the iconic red logo to gray and calling the journalist a ‘star’
Dove Canada also launched a campaign called Aging is Beautiful after LaFlamme announced her departure from CTV. The company wrote: ‘We should all be able to do it [age] on our own terms and without any consequence’
When the second wave of lockdowns began in Canada, LaFlamme stopped dyeing her hair, inspired by an older sister and female boss.
She said, live on air, that she felt liberated.
However, The Globe and Mail reported that the decision was not well received by the then head of CTV, who asked in a meeting who had approved the decision to “let Lisa’s hair go grey”.
LaFlamme was angry that she couldn’t leave on her own terms, and instead posted a video on Twitter in August.
“I guess this is my farewell to CTV,” he said.
“While it is overwhelming to leave CTV National News in a way that is not my choice, please know that reporting to you has been life’s greatest honor.”
LaFlamme is seen in his Twitter video, waving goodbye to viewers.
Bell Media, which owns CTV, said the narrative was incorrect but declined to provide the true reasoning behind it.
Mirko Bibic, CEO of Bell Media, defended the decision
“The narrative has been that Lisa’s age, gender or gray hair played into the decision. I am pleased that this is not the case and wanted to make sure you heard it from me,” CEO Mirko Bibic wrote in LinkedIn.
“While I would like to say more about Bell Media’s decision, we are bound by a mutual separation agreement negotiated with Lisa, which we will continue to abide by.”
Some pointed out that Peter Mansbridge and Lloyd Robertson, both male presenters with gray hair, still have jobs.
Another pointed out that Bell Media treated one of its senior staff members poorly, saying, “Imagine how they treat people below.”
Bell Media has faced previous criticism for allegedly having a toxic workplace, including allegations of sexual harassment, bullying and inappropriate behavior.
Bibic also addressed this in his statement, saying that the media company has “begun an independent review” and will interview all newsroom employees during the process.