With the acquisition of Sun Media approved, my employer Postmedia has already announced plans for expansion of the dead-tree newspaper chain, and is hiring staff to create a Montreal edition of the Toronto/Ottawa/Calgary/Winnipeg/Edmonton Sun.
The tabloid would complement rather than compete against the Montreal Gazette, much like the Sun tabloids and Postmedia broadsheets complement each other. The Gazette would continue to have award-winning serious journalism, while the Sun would have the Sun staples that readers in other major cities have had for years: right-wing columnists, lots of sports, and the Sunshine Girl.
Postmedia says the new paper should launch some time in the fall.
As much as I love the Gazzette I am excited to see how the Montreal Sun will turn out.
To ensure that the quality of the new newspaper is not superior to The Gazette, Postmedia announced that only people who were let go by the Gazette would be considered for jobs at The Montreal Sun.