TV

Meet the New Global News Morning Team

B.C.'s most-watched morning news broadcast introduces its new team

B.C.’s most-watched morning news broadcast introduces its new team

It only took two minutes of having Sonia Sunger and Paul Haysom, the two newest additions to B.C.’s Global News Morning, in a room before they began finishing each other’s sentences. The banter was fast and easy, with Sunger explaining how the two had worked together years ago: “We’d been in the trenches together on BC1, breaking news, where it was basically just him and I—me presenting, researching, him producing and researching—just being a two-person team and putting some great stuff to air. We had some really good moments together, but we also became friends over that time. He’s someone that I could just shoot the…”

“… breeze,” Paul finishes, to both of their delight.

It’s a small thing, a joke the two pointed to as a sign of their undeniable chemistry, but the laughter did little ?to hide the obvious—they enjoy each other, as morning news viewers have been finding out for themselves. With Haysom’s arrival, Global News Morning has its final piece for what it sees as a new era for the broadcaster’s early show.

Sunger and Haysom are part of a new on-air team that includes longtime Global BC meteorologist Mark Madryga doing the weather, Jordan Armstrong reporting and Kaitlyn Herbst owning traffic.

Sunger and Haysom both are quick to gush about the team surrounding them during the morning broadcast.

“Mark is arguably the best meteorologist in this market. He’s loved by viewers. He’s just such a great guy, so easy to work with and he backs it up with so many years? of knowledge,” says Sunger. “Kaitlyn, same thing,” she adds. “She takes traffic seriously. That girl will be sitting in her office and woo-hooing when she beat our competition to a traffic story. She really lives for it and she does such a good job.”

Haysom offers similar praise for Armstrong. “He’s a reporter through and through,” he says. “He’s not just doing the same story every 15 minutes. He’s trying to move the story forward.”

Meanwhile, their long friendship is one of the key reasons that Sunger and Haysom are excited for the new endeavour, and believe it will allow them to forgo any of the usual growing pains new co-workers initially have to deal with.

“It is important, right? If you’re working with people who you like, where you’ve got to be on TV together for four hours a day, you better like that person. To have that built in and to know that that’s already there, that was key for me,” explains Haysom.

That friendship began when the two were partnered together on BC1, with Haysom in Sunger’s earpiece, feeding her information as producer. They worked well together, each appreciating the other’s work ethic, both cherishing the opportunity to build a new network on the fly. Before long, appreciation evolved into a respect and friendship that would remain even after Haysom left to work in Calgary. To have the opportunity to not only come back to his hometown, but to be partnered with someone he trusts and admires, was a no-brainer.

“It’s not just home, it was home for the right job. I’m over the moon to be back here, because it’s home, but also this job. We’re all passionate people on that team and everyone really wants this thing to be strong and be what it is. I feel like we’re going to be No. 1 in this market for a long time,” he says.

A NEW DIRECTION

Both Sunger and Haysom are eager to get to work on the show, which will feel different from what morning viewers have grown accustomed to. Rather ?than having two co-anchors sharing the screen at all times, Global News Morning will see Sunger acting as the main host, handling more of the interviews, and Haysom as a news anchor, delivering the day’s stories. The delineation of roles is meant to deliver viewers the information they need in the best way possible.

“It is more of a tag-team kind of approach, where we’re not just both doing the same thing all the time. We’re using our time to the best of our abilities, but we’re not doubling it up. It gives the viewer a better experience, because we both have that much more time involved in what we’re presenting,” says Sunger.

“Our viewers’ morning TV habits ?are evolving and we’re evolving with them,” says Jill Krop, Director, News ?& Community, Global BC. “We’ve assembled the best in the business to give you the news and information you need to get your day underway in this sleek new format. From traffic updates and weather to the biggest stories in B.C and beyond, our team delivers.”

Haysom and Sunger are bullish on the new format, and believe it could redefine what is expected from morning news. “Honestly, it’s going to be a completely different experience for what viewers are used to. It’s not the way this morning show has ever been before. We’re hoping that it’s a model that will spread across the rest of the country,” Sunger says. The duo point out the show is still in its infancy, and that over the next little while, they’ll take what works and remove what doesn’t. But the end goal both come back to is delivering a viewing experience that’s defined by satisfying content, whether you’re watching for 15 minutes or two hours.

This confidence doesn’t come based solely off the new format—both Sunger and Haysom were eager to play up?the importance of having a team full? of talented individuals contributing to something greater. The feeling is that with so much talent spread across different specialties, viewers will be getting top-notch quality, no matter who’s in front of the camera.

BACK TOGETHER

Can you be excited and comfortable? at the same time? The question arises when speaking to Sunger and Haysom, who are equal parts thrilled for what’s to come and relieved to be joined by ?a friend from the past. Both praise the other’s professionalism, but what’s often forgotten is that these are people who have to spend hours together on live television every morning—having baked-in repartée and unrehearsed chemistry isn’t always guaranteed.?You can’t teach people to like each other, and in a business that runs on personality, having two personalities that vibe with each other is a boon.

“I’m excited to be a part of such a strong team and to work with these quality people, honestly. I’m not just saying that,” stresses Haysom. “Sonia is, in every aspect of the word, a hardworking journalist.” She mirrors his enthusiasm: “Paul is driven, enthusiastic and very hard working.”

Towards the end of the interview, Sunger made it a point to mention a lucky coin Haysom puts in his pocket every time he appears on air. “I haven’t had a show where I haven’t had that on me,”? he laughs, before Sunger threatens to steal it for herself. Playing junior hockey as a youth, he says he developed a thing for rituals and tradition. “I was a very superstitious guy. I clearly still am.”

The serendipity here is hard to ignore. The two find themselves reunited—colleagues turned friends, with all the winding paths in between, are now colleagues again, surrounded by a talented team and working to create a legacy of their own. Lucky coin or not, it must feel like fate.