Anchor Gord Leclerc laid off by CTV

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This article was published 13/11/2019 (1823 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Longtime CTV Winnipeg anchor Gord Leclerc is off the air after being abruptly let go by the station after almost 25 years.

Leclerc, who joined the CTV news team in 1995, hosted the station’s 6 p.m. newscast on Tuesday.

Only co-anchor Maralee Caruso was at the desk on Wednesday evening, and all references to him had been scrubbed from the station’s website.

In an emailed statement, Patricia Garcia, Bell Media’s communications manager in Toronto, confirmed Leclerc no longer works at the company. 

“We’re feeling the effects of rapid industry change in many parts of our business, including local TV,” Garcia said. “To ensure we remain competitive, we’re managing the impact on our bottom line while also investing in content and platforms.

“We thank Gord for his contributions to CTV and wish him the best.”

Leclerc could not be reached for comment.

Leclerc started at the station as a reporter and weekend anchor before being promoted to anchor of the weekday 6 p.m. flagship news show. He has been the station’s senior anchor since 2002.

Kelly Dehn is manager of public affairs with the Winnipeg Police Service, but before that was a reporter and managing editor at CTV Winnipeg, said Leclerc is “a classy guy.”

“He was an anchor and a face for CTV Winnipeg and he took that seriously. He’s professional. He was loyal, too. He was very loyal to the company.”

Leclerc contributed a lot of his own time to help charities and organizations, Dehn said.

“I would ask him what he was up to that night and he usually would say he was hosting an event. He took it very seriously,” he said.

One of the charities Leclerc has helped is the Manitoba Motorcycle Ride for Dad.

Ed Johner, a ride spokesman, said Leclerc has been one of their celebrity team captains for several years at the annual fundraiser for prostate cancer research and education.

“Oh man. I’m in shock,” Johner said when he learned that Leclerc had been laid off.

“I’ve always admired Gord as a person and as a professional. He has always been involved even more than he had to be with us. He always did things above the call.

“We also enjoyed having Gord around. I consider him a friend, he’s just a great guy.”

Paul McKie, an area director for Unifor, the union that represents CTV staff, said the company laid off unionized and non-unionized workers at stations across Canada. He said fewer than 10 unionized workers were let go, but couldn’t give an exact number.

“Job loss in local broadcasting continues to be of great concern to Unifor and its continued impact on local news,” McKie said.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca