Omar Sachedina鈥檚 promotion to chief anchor at CTV National 亚洲天堂 should have been a win for representation in Canadian media, but observers say the controversy surrounding his predecessor Lisa LaFlamme鈥檚 departure overshadowed a momentous occasion.

It was 鈥渁 stolen moment鈥� in which both a decorated woman and an accomplished man of colour have been robbed of significant benchmarks in their careers, said Brent Jolly, president of the Canadian Association of Journalists.

鈥淭his should be something that was being celebrated,鈥� he said.

鈥淎nd yet, unfortunately, the synchronizing of the announcements doesn鈥檛 do him as much service as it could.鈥�

Bell Media issued a press release Monday saying that after 35 years LaFlamme was leaving the broadcaster. Less than half an hour later, Sachedina was named as her replacement.

The ousted lead anchor turned to social media where she said in a video she was first informed of the decision on June 29, adding she felt 鈥渂lindsided鈥� by what was described by executives as a 鈥渂usiness decision.鈥�

For LaFlamme, she lost a career milestone when she was pulled from the airwaves without an official sign-off on the CTV broadcast she led for more than a decade.

The gravity of Sachedina鈥檚 new position in the upper ranks of Canadian television was also diminished.

He is an experienced political reporter of Indian descent from Uganda taking the helm at Canada鈥檚 most-watched evening newscast, but that was largely buried in the controversy around LaFlamme鈥檚 sudden ousting from the network.

Sachedina marched through appearances on Bell Media-owned channels where the interviewers largely avoided the controversy around his appointment, while he spoke optimistically about the future of the newscast.

Neither LaFlamme nor Sachedina responded to requests for comment. Bell Media did not respond to questions about its handling of the announcement.

Nana aba Duncan, an associate professor and Carty Chair of Journalism, Diversity and Inclusion Studies at Carleton University, said the announcement was handled poorly and tossed Sachedina into a position where he鈥檇 face heightened scrutiny.

鈥淣ow there鈥檚 this added pressure that this person is maybe being put there for a diversity reason, and that鈥檚 unfair to him,鈥� she said.

LaFlamme also didn鈥檛 get the respect she deserves, Duncan said.

Usually, an outgoing anchor would have the chance to say goodbye to their viewers in a live sign-off, along with a retrospective on their work. It happened when Peter Mansbridge was afforded nearly a year of runway before he signed off at CBC while Lloyd Robertson was toasted for more than 40 years at CTV when he retired in 2011.

鈥淭here鈥檚 usually time, and that time wasn鈥檛 taken here,鈥� Duncan said. 鈥淭o me, it shows a lack of care and fairness for both of them.鈥�

Leaders need to be aware that employees are becoming more conscious of how they鈥檙e being treated 鈥� or mistreated 鈥� in the workplace, Duncan said.

Employers need to recognize a younger generation of journalists are coming into the job more attuned to mental health in the workplace and less likely to accept 鈥渢hat鈥檚 just how it is鈥� reasoning, she added.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just in journalism, but everywhere,鈥� she said.

鈥淧eople who are going into the workforce are looking for their employers to care 鈥� not just to say that they care, but to genuinely show it in some way. And this flies in the face of that.鈥�

However, Duncan said she remains hopeful that progress can be made in journalism.

鈥淲e have to change it systemically,鈥� she added.

鈥淎nd that means folks at the top have to start thinking about how people are brought on and how people leave.鈥�

鈥擠avid Friend, The Canadian Press