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MEDIA MATTERS
Everybody Loves GeorgeStroumboulopoulos, that is. Now that his program is on the main network, The Hour and its host prepare for a new set of challengesBy Robert Ballantyne | Posted on September 18, 2006
“It’ll work really well or it will fail miserably,” he joked, only half-kidding. Considering he was hyped as the second coming of CBC News, he had every reason to be nervous. Stroumboulopoulos’ hiring was already met with skepticism, described in the media as a desperate attempt by the CBC to appeal to youth, and the network’s pre-launch, hard sell promotion didn’t help. “It’s not a newscast. It’s not a magazine show. This time, it’s personal,” read a breathless CBC promo. When the show finally premiered on Jan. 17, 2005, with expectations heightened, the hype left a bad taste in some journalists’ mouths. “BS seems to be the show’s organizing principle,” wrote Eye Weekly’s Adam Nayman. “From correspondent segments that play like pale imitations of The Daily Show (admittedly not a bad model if you’re trying to please cynical teenagers) to ill-conceived features… The Hour’s attempts at ‘infotainment’ fall flat.” The Globe and Mail was particularly harsh, too, with TV critic John Doyle calling the show “condescending crap” and describing Stroumboulopoulos as “a huge kid doing a grownup’s job.” Even within the CBC, This Hour Has 22 Minutes threw barbs saying, “The CBC trying to be young and hip is like an old lady wearing a thong — it’s embarrassing for everyone.” It was a rough start, to be sure. Though, ironically, after CBC’s big push and the resulting backlash, The Hour became an underdog of sorts. It’s mix of news and divisive commentary from Stroumboulopoulos was delivered with verve, was quickly paced, and worked more often than it didn’t. And despite the critical darts, the show gradually became Newsworld’s top-rated original program in its second season, attracting 263,000 viewers a night on a cable network that normally struggles to reach six-figure-sized audiences. As a result, the once hesitant Stroumboulopoulos is much more at ease with his place at the CBC. The Hour is entering its third season as an established hit, big enough to air on the main network following The National in October. The 34-year-old Stroumboulopoulos is clearly not only a popular guy on TV, but inside the CBC as well. At the 2006-2007 CBC TV Season Preview, Stroumboulopoulos was one of the most requested media interviews and when it was Popjournalism’s turn in the queue, he was delayed slightly as he had to converse with a colleague and then as we headed in to the interview room, he got an approving shout out from CBC Sports’ Scott Russell from the opposite end of the hallway. Once we got into the interview room, Stroumboulopoulos states the obvious: “Everyone here has been really supportive.” |
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When I first met George Stroumboulopoulos almost two years ago, he had just left his VJ duties at MuchMusic to helm his own show at CBC Newsworld. In less than a month, his four-days-a-week, news-oriented talk show, The Hour was going to debut and he was a bit jittery about it.
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