Toronto Sun

Canadian tabloid newspaper published in Toronto

Toronto Sun

Cover from June 27, 2010.

Type| Daily newspaper
Owner(s)| Postmedia
Editor-in-chief| Adrienne Batra
Founded| 1971
Political alignment| Conservative[1][better source needed]
Headquarters| 365 Bloor Street East
Toronto, Ontario
M4W 3L4
Circulation| 119,048 weekdays
111,515 Saturdays
142,376 Sundays in 2015[2]
ISSN| 0837-3175
OCLC number| 66653673
Website| torontosun.com

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The Toronto Sun is an English-language tabloid[3] newspaper published daily in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The newspaper is one of several Sun tabloids published by Postmedia Network. The newspaper's offices is located at Postmedia Place in downtown Toronto.

The newspaper published its first edition in November 1971, after it had acquired the assets of the defunct Toronto Telegram, and hired portions of the Telegram's staff. In 1978, Toronto Sun Holdings and Toronto Sun Publishing were consolidated to form Sun Publishing (later renamed Sun Media Corporation). Sun Publishing went on to form similar tabloids to the Toronto Sun in other Canadian cities during the late 1970s and 1980s. The Sun was acquired by Postmedia Network in 2015, as a part of the sale of the Sun's parent company, Sun Media.

## History[edit]

In 1971, the Toronto Sun Publishing was created and purchased the syndication operations and newspaper vending boxes from the Toronto Telegram, which ceased operations in the same year. The Toronto Sun also recruited staff from the former Telegram conservative broadsheet newspaper, and published its first edition on 1 November 1971.[4] The Sun is considered a spiritual successor to the Telegram.[citation needed] The Sun is the holder of the Telegram archives.

Publisher Doug Chreighton was originally going to name the new newspaper the Toronto News but Andy Donato, who was asked to design the paper's first front page and decided to call the paper the Toronto Sun instead. Creighton decided it was too late to change it and renamed the paper.[5]

The former Toronto Sun building at 333 King Street East in 2007.

The Toronto Sun was originally published out of leased space at the Eclipse White Wear Company Building at 322 King Street West. In 1975, the newspaper moved into the Toronto Sun Building at 333 King Street East which was eventually expanded to six storeys to house all of the newspaper's operations. In 2010, the building was sold to property development company First Gulf, and the Sun consolidated its operations onto the second floor and remained in the building until it relocated offices in 2016.

In 1978, Toronto Sun Holdings and Toronto Sun Publishing were consolidated to form Sun Publishing. The corporation expanded its tabloid footprint, having established its second tabloid, the Edmonton Sun through a partnership agreement with Edmonton Sun Publishing in 1978. The Albertan was acquired in 1980 and made into the company's third tabloid, the Calgary Sun in 1980.[4]

In 1988, The Washington Post described the Sun as an example of tabloid journalism.[6]

### 21st century[edit]

In 2004, the Sun began its annual George Gross/Toronto Sun Sportsperson of the Year award.[7] By the mid-2000s, the word "The" was dropped from the paper's name and the newspaper adopted its current logo.

The paper, which boasts the slogan "Toronto's Other Voice" (also once called "The Little Paper that Grew") acquired a television station from Craig Media in 2005, which was renamed SUN TV and later was transformed into the Sun News Network until its demise in 2015.

As of the end of 2007, the Sun had a Monday through Saturday circulation of approximately 180,000 papers and Sunday circulation of 310,000.

The Sun was acquired by Postmedia in 2015, with its purchase of Sun Media from Quebecor. Following the acquisition of the Sun newspaper chain by PostMedia in 2015, the Toronto Sun staff and operations moved to 365 Bloor Street East, the same building that houses the National Post. However, the two newspapers maintains separate newsrooms. The move occurred in March 2016.[8]

## Editorial position[edit]

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Editorially, the paper frequently follows the positions of traditional Canadian/British conservatism and neo-conservatism in the United States on economic issues. Editorials typically promote individualism, self-reliance, the police, and a strong military and support for troops. Editorials typically condemn high taxes and, most of all, perceived government waste.

## Circulation[edit]

A Toronto Sun newspaper vending machine in 2015.

The Toronto Sun has seen—like most Canadian daily newspapers—a decline in circulation. Its total circulation dropped by 36 percent to 121,304 copies daily from 2009 to 2015.[9]

Daily average[10]

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

## Notable staff[edit]

### Editors-in-chief[edit]

The Toronto Sun originally had several editors with various responsibilities, none with the title "editor-in-chief"; however, from 1971 to 1976, Peter Worthington was listed on the newspaper's masthead immediately under the publisher, Doug Creighton.

* Peter Worthington (1976–1982)
* Barbara Amiel (1983–1985)
* John Downing editor (1985–1997), no editor-in-chief until 1995
* Peter O'Sullivan (1995–1999)
* Mike Strobel (1999–2001)
* Mike Therien (2001–2004)
* Jim Jennings (2004–2006)
* Glenn Garnett (2007)
* Lou Clancy (2007–2009)
* James Wallace (2009–2013)
* Wendy Metcalfe (2013–2015)
* Adrienne Batra (2015–present)

### Current staff[edit]

* Adrienne Batra, editor-in-chief, former comment editor and municipal affairs columnist
* Mark Bonokoski, columnist, editorial writer
* Andy Donato, editorial cartoonist
* Tarek Fatah, columnist
* Brian Lilley, provincial, national affairs columnist
* Steve Simmons, sports columnist

### Former staff[edit]

* Charles Adler, QMI columnist
* David Akin, columnist
* Barbara Amiel, editor and columnist
* Joan Barfoot, reporter
* Christie Blatchford, columnist (deceased)
* Mark Bourrie, reporter
* Jim Brown, manager (deceased)
* Dalton Camp, columnist (deceased)
* Gordon Chong, columnist (deceased)
* Sheila Copps, columnist
* Michael Coren, QMI columnist
* Danielle Crittenden, reporter, columnist
* John Downing, city hall columnist, editor-in-chief
* Mike Filey, Toronto history columnist
* Doug Fisher, Parliament Hill columnist (deceased)
* Allan Fotheringham, national affairs columnist (deceased)
* David Frum, columnist
* W. Gifford-Jones, M.D. (pseudonym for Ken Walker), medical columnist[11]
* Edward Greenspan, lawyer, columnist (deceased)
* George Gross, corporate sports editor, columnist (deceased)
* Max Haines, "Crime Flashback" feature (deceased)
* Paul Hellyer, columnist and founding investor (deceased)
* Jim Hunt, sports writer (deceased)
* Ajit Jain, columnist
* George Jonas, columnist (deceased)
* Warren Kinsella, political columnist
* Linda Leatherdale, business editor, columnist
* Ezra Levant, QMI columnist
* Sue-Ann Levy, political columnist, former municipal affairs columnist
* Bob MacDonald, columnist (deceased)
* Heather Mallick, columnist
* Salim Mansur, columnist
* Eric Margolis, international affairs columnist, contributing editor
* Rachel Marsden, columnist
* Lois Maxwell (Moneypenney), columnist (deceased)
* Judi McLeod, education reporter
* Ben Mulroney, columnist
* Ted Reeve, sports columnist (deceased)
* Sid Ryan, columnist
* Paul Rimstead, columnist (deceased)
* Laura Sabia, columnist (deceased)
* Morton Shulman, columnist (deceased)
* Joey Slinger, columnist
* Walter Stewart, columnist (deceased)
* John Tory, mayor of Toronto, former Rogers executive
* Garth Turner, business editor
* Sherri Wood, columnist (deceased)
* Peter Worthington, columnist, former editor (deceased)
* Lubor J. Zink, columnist (deceased)

## See also[edit]

* Media in Canada
* List of media outlets in Toronto
* List of newspapers in Canada
* List of the largest Canadian newspapers by circulation

## References[edit]

1. ^ "World Newspapers and Magazines: Canada". Worldpress.org. 2007. Retrieved November 2, 2007.
2. ^ "2015 Daily Newspaper Circulation Spreadsheet (Excel)". News Media Canada. Retrieved December 16, 2017. Numbers are based on the total circulation (print plus digital editions).
3. ^ "From 1971: When the Toronto Sun rose after the Telegram fell". CBC News. November 1, 2018. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
4. ^ a b "Sun Media Corportaion". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Historica Canada. October 20, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
5. ^ Blizzard, Christina (November 1, 2021). "'BEST JOB I'VE EVER HAD': Paul Godfrey says Sun is truly one-of-a-kind". Toronto Sun. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
6. ^ Farhi, Paul (August 15, 1988). "SEX! CRIME! VIOLENCE!". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
7. ^ Elliott, Bob (December 14, 2008). "Doc delivers as role model: Our Sportsperson of the Year a champion on and off the pitching mound". Toronto Sun. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
8. ^ "Sun brand will remain strong in Postmedia: Godfrey". Woodstock Sentinel-Review. April 14, 2015.
9. ^ "Daily Newspaper Circulation Data". News Media Canada. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
10. ^ "Daily Newspaper Circulation Data". News Media Canada. Retrieved December 16, 2017. Figures refer to the total circulation (print and digital combined) which includes paid and unpaid copies.
11. ^ "GIFFORD-JONES: Farewell Sun readers". Toronto Sun.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Toronto Sun.

* Official website
* "Toronto Sun Family".
* "Into the Sunset Day Oners (pt. 1)". YouTube. July 25, 2021. Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. "Former Toronto Telegram employees who launched tabloid on Nov. 1, 1971 and are no longer with us"

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