Sun News Network went off the air at 5 a.m. EST Friday after failing to find a new owner.
Programming on the channel was replaced with a Sun TV logo.
“This is an unfortunate outcome; shutting down Sun News was certainly not our goal,” said Julie Tremblay, President and CEO of Media Group and Sun Media Corporation. “Over the past four years, we tried everything we could to achieve sufficient market penetration to generate the profits needed to operate a national news channel. Sadly, the numerous obstacles to carriage that we encountered spelled the end of this venture.”
The channel was known for controversial personalities such as Ezra Levant, who in one memorable on-air rant called former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau a “slut” who “banged anyone.”
During daytime hours, its programs often drew just a few thousand viewers. It also suffered heavy financial losses due to low ratings, losing $14.8-million in 2013, and $46.7-million over one three-year span. Its fate became particularly shaky last October when Postmedia Inc. (parent company for the National Post) announced plans to buy Quebecor’s English-language newspaper holdings—a critical source for Sun News content.
