What to know
- CityNews Queen’s Park reporter Tina Yazdani was abruptly fired Monday morning, leaving Torontonians confused.
- Two of her stories criticizing Doug Ford’s government have also disappeared from CityNews’ website, prompting social media comments questioning Rogers Sports and Media’s commitment to transparency.
After several years working for CityNews, Queen’s Park reporter Tina Yazdani has been fired from its parent company, Rogers Sports and Media.
On Monday, just after 2 p.m., Yazdani posted about being let go from her position on X, writing, “I am no longer employed by CityNews. I am proud of my journalism at CityNews and I stand by my reporting. I will have more to say on this later but for now please stay tuned and thank you for those who have supported me.”
According to Ahmad Elbayoumi, a reporter for Policorner, Yazdani’s biography has been removed from CityNews’ website and emails sent to her Rogers address are receiving an auto-reply saying she is “no longer” with the company.
Now Toronto reached out to CityNews Toronto for a statement on her firing but did not receive one in time for publication.
Two stories Yazdani worked on about Doug Ford’s government have also disappeared from the CityNews website. One of the wiped stories was about Ontario’s education minister and the letter he sent to school boards ensuring their graduation ceremonies don’t express any political views. Her firing came just days after she was caught in a heated exchange with the province’s education minister Paul Calandra, who said “Don’t interrupt me. Let me finish and then I’ll get to you.”
Yazdani’s firing is eliciting strong online reactions, with social media users questioning Rogers Sports and Media’s commitment to transparency. Many users are speculating if she was let go for asking too many “tough questions.”
One person writes, “Did the Doug Ford Government push Rogers/CityTV to fire an amazing reporter — Tina Yazdani — who just asked too many tough questions?”
Another X user praised Yazdani’s reporting, writing, “Absolutely horrible. Her reporting on Queens Park and her questions to our provincial government officials is likely the best out there. Shame on CityNews.”
Meanwhile, it seems Yazdani has joined the team at The Trillium — at least temporarily — as the news outlet published an article on Monday with her byline on Ford’s plan to limit Toronto District School Board (TDSB) trustees.
