Major changes are taking place in Radio-Canada’s sports department. In addition to losing three senior executives, the department will be dismembered and will be partly under the control of the news sector.
Management announced the news Thursday morning during a one-hour meeting to which only permanent employees were invited, it was learned The Press.
Dany Meloul, Senior Vice-President of French Services at Radio-Canada, revealed that François Messier, who was Director General, Productions and Sports at Radio-Canada, left his position the day after the Paris Olympic Games.
As we reported in July, two other executives in the sports department will also be leaving: editor-in-chief Christian Doucet, who will bow out on October 31, and Catherine Dupont, first director, Sports and Olympic Production, who will leave her position on September 27.
These announcements come after the retirements of seven veteran journalists in the sector: Guy D’Aoust, Robert Frosi, Diane Sauvé, Philippe Crépeau, Jean St-Onge, Jean-François Chabot and Michel Chabot.
The future is worrying
The future of Radio-Canada’s sports department has been a source of concern among staff for several months. Dany Meloul wanted to reassure employees by emphasizing that Radio-Canada would “continue to offer […] information, content, analysis and sporting events”.
The senior vice-president also recalled that Radio-Canada held the broadcast rights to the Olympic Games until 2032. Radio-Canada’s general director of information, Luce Julien, indicated that no layoffs were planned.
But the anxiety remains. The announcements made on Thursday contain several gray areas.
On the one hand, the sports journalism team will be integrated into the general information service. On the other hand, the sports event and Olympic programming will be part of the Culture, Variety and Society sector in television, which will be renamed Culture, Variety, Society and Sports. Over the next few weeks, management will “determine the best reallocation of resources.” The affected employees will be contacted.
Reached by phone, the president of the Syndicat des travailleurs et travailleurs de Radio-Canada (CSN), Pierre Tousignant, speaks of a “feeling of déjà vu.” He recalls that in 2015, when Radio-Canada’s sports sector went from 80 to 14 employees, as a result of measures taken by Stephen Harper’s Conservative government, several sports journalists found themselves covering general news.
“The sports sector will no longer exist as it exists. That’s what employees were told. But maintaining sports expertise is essential. Sports, like culture and the economy, are an integral part of Radio-Canada’s mandate,” comments Pierre Tousignant.
The absence of a successor to François Messier at the helm of the sports department is also a concern for employees. On the production side, the interim will be provided by Martin Bonenfant, who was until now the first director of operations, Information, at Radio-Canada.