What happened to Lisa Laflamme? Wendy's mascot joins other brands in 'going grey' amid CTV news anchor controversy

The recent contract termination of Canadian journalist Lisa Laflamme has several global brands showing their support against the decision.

On August 15, the 58-year-old news anchor announced on her Twitter handle that she has been ousted from one of Canada's most-watched news shows, CTV National News, after 35 years of service.

Following the announcement, The Globe and Mail suggested that one of the contributing factors in her contract termination was her greying hair, thereby sparking allegations of ageism and sexism against one of Canada's largest media organizations.

On August 25, fast food chain company Wendy's (Canada) took to its Twitter handle to update a new profile picture featuring its mascot in grey hair instead of its iconic red one, in solidarity with the 58-year-old news anchor.

Captioning the image, the brand used Lisa LaFlamme's name in a hashtag before writing:

“Because a star is a star regardless of hair colour.”

On August 22, the personal-care brand, Dove (Canada), launched #KeepTheGrey, a campaign in support of women turning older. Furthermore, Dove also announced a donation to Catalyst, an NGO working to support inclusive work environments for all women.

In their Twitter post about the campaign, the company wrote:

"Age is beautiful. Women should be able to do it on their own terms, without any consequences. Dove is donating $100,000 to Catalyst, a Canadian organization helping build inclusive workplaces for all women. Go grey with us, turn your profile picture greyscale and #KeepTheGrey."

Despite the rumors about age being a factor in the contract termination, on August 27, a LinkedIn post by the CEO of Bell Media's Parent company dismissed all such speculations.

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Lisa Laflamme "shocked and saddened" by termination of contract

Laflamme made the announcement about the contract termination in a 2-minute video that she posted on her Twitter handle on August 15. In the video, she said:

“I’m still shocked and saddened. At 58, I still thought I’d have a lot more time to tell more of the stories that impact our daily lives.”

Lisa has been the face of CTV National News since 2011.

During the pandemic, Lisa LaFlamme dropped the idea of dyeing her grey hair, a move which gained her a lot of praise.

However, on August 18, news outlet the Globe and Mail published that Michael Melling, a senior executive at CTV News had enquired "who had approved the decision to ‘let Lisa’s hair go grey.’”

The outlet also reported that Melling and LaFlamme had contradicting journalistic issues before the former told the news anchor that her contract was being terminated.

On August 27, Mirko Bibic, the head of Bell Media's parent company, took to his LinkedIn account and stated that Lisa Laflamme's contract did not end on the basis of her age, gender or grey hair. He wrote:

"The narrative has been that Lisa’s age, gender or grey hair played into the decision. I am satisfied that this is not the case and wanted to make sure you heard it from me. While I would like to say more on the Bell Media decision, we are bound by a mutual separation agreement negotiated with Lisa, which we will continue to honour."

Moreover, the CEO said that they have begun "an independent review involving confidential interviews with all newsroom employees who choose to participate" to address the working environment concerns in the organization.

Lisa LaFlamme has spent the last 35 years working for CTV News, reporting from combat and disaster zones. She recently bagged the award for Best News Anchor at the Canadian Screen Awards.