CTV war with CBC

[Dan Say]

Antonia Zerbisias notes in her Friday 19 Aug column
in the Toronto Star

" Canada's largest private network is taking advantage of the
giant gap in the TV news market created when CBC management shut
out its 5,500 Canadian Media Guild members early Monday morning.

Yesterday, CTV began its offensive with two half-page ads, in
this newspaper and in The Globe and Mail, which, like the
network, is owned by Bell Globemedia.

Both informed viewers that they had a 10 p.m. alternative to
CBC-TV's flagship The National, now off the air due to the labour
dispute.

That option is the Atlantic edition of The CTV National News
With Lloyd Robertson on CTV Newsnet, much higher up the cable
dial than CBC Newsworld, its chief rival.

It's the first time I can recall CTV advertising its top-rated
network newscast. "

and in her blog...

Lots of good stuff from [27]Robin Rowland, including the bit
about the CTV billboards ringing the CBC Broadcasting Centre over
the weekend.
My friend's 10 year old niece, who was picketing with her
auntie, noticed the giant ads and said "That's just mean!"

CTV actually made its opening gambit in the network wars
shortly after midnight Sunday. The picket captains said all
was quiet on John St. when suddenly there was the roar of
trucks and a lot of flashing amber lights as a couple of
cherry pickers parked across from the picket headquarters RV.

By morning, the crew had pasted huge billboards of CTV
personalities all along the hydro substation wall on John
Street across from the Toronto Broadcast Centre. When I left
the picket line at 3 p.m. this afternoon the crew was
installing more posters on the Wellington side of the hydro
property. Must have cost CTV a bundle in night overtime for
the billboard company to give the CBC a bit of a finger.