Fox News North FAIL: Rick Mercer turns down Sun TV, opts to stick with CBC
Earlier this week, the nascent Sun News started off with a bang, holding an inaugural press conference that informed the world how hip and edgy it is going to be—how it would chart new frontiers in Canadian media by complaining about how lame the CBC is. It turns out that not all of the CBC sucks: after successfully luring Krista Erickson from Mother Corp., Sun News is now one for two in CBC poaching. Rick Mercer says that he turned down a job after a meeting with Kory Teneycke, the brains behind the new network.
The Freep has the story:
“Since we’re talking about a conservative television network, I’ll quote a great conservative and say I decided to dance with the one that brung me,” he said, borrowing a phrase from former prime minister Brian Mulroney.
While he was “very intrigued by this notion of starting a new network,” Mercer ultimately felt he had no reason to jump.
As the Freep notes, having the lefty scorn of Mercer on its lineup would be a bit like learning that Fox News was trying to nab Jon Stewart. Of course, if they had managed to snag Mercer, we could have expected “Funnyman abandons sinking ship CBC” or some such.
The only question left is which major CBC personality Sun News will try to poach next. (We’re looking at you, Rex.) That’s what they say: if you can’t beat ‘em, grab all their talent.
• Mercer says he turned down Sun TV, decided to ‘dance with one that brung me’ [Winnipeg Free Press]
THIS CITY
Obsessive coverage of Toronto, straight to your inbox
