A news anchor was reportedly fired because of gray hair and people are upset

A news anchor was reportedly fired because of gray hair and people are upset

Canadian news anchor Lisa LaFlamme was recently fired from CTV News and there are claims that the network's decision to let her go had something to do with her appearance. In particular, reports suggest that she was fired for letting her hair go gray, sparking a conversation about sexist, age-appropriate beauty standards.

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After 35 years at CTV, the former chief news anchor and editor-in-chief was fired on August 15, 2022; According to a press release, it was a “business decision” based on “changing viewer habits.” LaFlamme posted her own response to the news on Twitter the same day, saying she was "blindsided" by the decision a video This now has more than 4.6 million views, 88,000 likes and 10,000 retweets. "At 58, I still thought I had a lot more time to tell more of the stories that impact our daily lives," she said in the clip.

While the news was initially disappointing for many of LaFlamme's fans, things took a turn when rumors began to surface about why she was fired. CTV News head Michael Melling reportedly asked why LaFlamme let her hair turn gray before she was fired, according to a senior CTV official who was there at the time, The Globe and Mail reports.

LaFlamme stopped coloring her hair in 2020, and she received positive feedback from viewers who did the same during the COVID-19 pandemic, The Globe and Mail notes. She even explained her decision to change her look on-air during a network special. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, she was unable to get her hair done. "I finally said, 'Why bother? I'm going gray,'" she explained at the time, according to the publication. “Honestly, if I had known the lockdown could be so liberating on that front, I would have done it much sooner.”

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LaFlamme certainly isn't the only person who was relieved to stop coloring their hair. Recently, celebrities like Andie MacDowell and Sarah Jessica Parker have shared their thoughts about letting their hair go gray - a decision that tends to make news despite not being newsworthy at all. "I thought, please, please applaud someone else's courage to do something," Parker told Allure after making headlines for being seen in public with gray hair.

Although the president and CEO of BCE and Bell Canada (the parent company of CTV News) denied in a recent LinkedIn post that the decision to terminate LaFlamme's contract was due to her age, gender or hair color, many people have expressed outrage over the situation. A quick one Search on Twitter reveals countless posts about LaFlamme and how age-related beauty standards have no place in 2022.

Even some major companies showed their support for LaFlamme online. Canadian Wendy's Twitter account posted a picture of its logo, which depicts its mascot Wendy with gray hair. Pigeon Canada shared a video with text reading: "Women with gray hair are pushed out of the workplace. So Dove is going gray." It unveiled a gray dove logo, different from its usual gold color, and urged followers to show their support by posting a black and white profile picture. Dove also announced that it is donating $100,000 to Catalyst, a nonprofit that helps build inclusive workplaces for women.

While LaFlamme's departure from her position as a news anchor still raises many questions, one thing is clear: People are tired of adhering to outdated, age-related beauty standards, especially in the workplace. It's 2022 and there are far more newsworthy events than a woman showing signs of aging in public. (In case you need a refresher, read all about Jane Fonda's positive outlook on aging.)