Days before Lisa LaFlamme’s firing, CTV staff mourned the ‘shocking’ death of senior director Allan Myers

A newsroom that found itself in the spotlight this week after Bell Media terminated CTV National News anchor and chief editor Lisa LaFlamme’s contract turned out to be already recovering from a very different kind of loss. .

On Friday night, journalists working late saw a Facebook post that said Allan Myers, the beloved 59-year-old senior editor of CTV National News, had died.

Staff were quick to confirm the information, and CTV managers wrote an email Saturday to share the news that family members had confirmed Myers’ death.

“A wonderful friend and colleague to so many, Allan and his remarkable work will always be close to our hearts,” according to the note to staff from CTV Vice President Michael Melling and Managing Editor David Hughes.

On Monday morning, LaFlamme announced in a Twitter video that Bell Media had “surprised” her by terminating her contract. Public reaction was instant, with critics citing sexism and ageism as factors. LaFlamme had been anchoring the network’s national news show since 2011, part of an award-winning 35-year career on CTV.

For friends and colleagues who adored both LaFlamme and Myers, it’s been a rough few days.

“We were still reeling from Allan, and then we found out about Lisa’s departure at the same time as the audience. It was a double whammy,” said CTV producer Christy Somos, who worked with both LaFlamme and Myers.

We hope that Myers will be celebrated as a “brilliant maverick” and remembered for his many contributions to film and television, and his “infectious and boisterous” energy.

“He used to call me Doodlebug and we would argue lovingly and act out a scene from Devil Wears Prada. He pulled off Miranda Priestly’s icy voice,” said Somos, adding that the two enjoyed talking together about queer culture, fashion, and food.

Lis Travers, former general manager of CTV, emphasized that Myers’s death is a separate event from any discussion surrounding LaFlamme’s sudden departure, but said it was “two shocks in one week,” which naturally made handling the issues more difficult. colleagues.

Myers was found dead in his apartment, his family found out Wednesday, Travers confirmed. She was a close friend of Myers and has been in contact with the Myers family. She said family members are choosing not to share any more information at this time.

“We are all devastated and heartbroken. She was an amazing person. He was a genius,” Travers told the Star.

He said he would never forget seeing Myers in the CTV National control room for the first time.

“I felt like I was watching an aerobics class. He was amazing. So fast. He had never seen anything like it… and that’s why we called him the ‘director’”.

Bell Media expressed its condolences.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of one of our team members and offer our condolences and support to his family and colleagues,” a Bell Media spokesperson said in an email to the Star.

Myers had no children and is survived by his parents, three brothers and “a host of nieces and nephews,” Travers said.

A former CTV employee, who requested anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said it was well known in the newsroom that Myers was dealing with some health issues that meant he wasn’t “always physically ready to direct.” . ”

In recent years, Myers has poured his prodigious creative energies into many other aspects of television production for CTV National News, Travers said. He explained that the role of senior director encompassed functions that included, but were not limited to, directing.

“I was on big projects like redesigning the look of the sets and I was very involved in the graphics. He was exceptionally creative and found ways to do things that didn’t necessarily have to cost a fortune, which was highly encouraged in these times,” he said.

In addition to working in broadcast television, Myers lived in the US before rejoining CTV in 2014, after first working at CTV as a tape editor in the 1980s. filmography his work as director of National Geographic included the “Inside Base Camp” series about world explorers and “China’s Lost Girls,” a 2004 documentary featuring Lisa Ling investigating China’s strict reproductive policies.

Myers loved the food and returned to Italy time and time again.

Travers says there is a monument in the planning to commemorate Myers’ life.

Joanna Chiu is a reporter for the Star in British Columbia. She covers global and national affairs. Follow her on Twitter: @joannachiu

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