Bell Media, Cityline, HBC cut ties with Jessica Mulroney

Bell Media has cut ties with Jessica Mulroney following an online spat between the I Do, Redo host and Black social media influencer Sasha Exeter.

The Toronto-based fashion and lifestyle blogger behind SoSasha.com went public Wednesday with details about a disagreement with Mulroney that Exeter says ended with the host and fashion stylist threatening her livelihood.

In a 12-minute Instagram video, Exeter said Mulroney wrongly assumed that a “generic call to action” in reference to the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests on her IG Stories was directed at her. After a series of messages, Exeter said the disagreement took a turn when Mulroney wrote “I have also spoken to companies and people about the way you’ve treated me unfairly. You think your voice matters. Well, it only matters if you express it with kindness and without shaming people who are just trying to learn. Good luck.”

Comparing Mulroney to Amy Cooper, the Canadian executive who went viral after video surfaced of her calling police on a Black man in Central Park, Exeter said what she finds astounding is how “effortlessly” the threat was made.

“What makes this situation really horrendous is the claim that she was going ahead and speaking to brands and companies that I have worked with…or could possibly work with. That’s a threat to my livelihood,” said Exeter, who has worked with Joe Fresh, Apple, and Nike, among other brands. “For her to threaten me – a single, Black mom – during a racial pandemic, blows my mind.”

Exeter went on to reveal that after posting a public apology, Mulroney followed up with a text threatening to sue her for libel.

CTV Communications issued a statement Thursday saying that it encourages its “entire team including our on-air talent to practice respect, inclusivity, and allyship…and more openly to listen to and amplify Black voices, and not to minimize them.”

The statement went on to say that Mulroney’s conduct “conflicts with our commitment to diversity and equality” and that I Do, Redo would be pulled from all Bell Media platforms immediately.

Similar statements from Cityline, which Mulroney has been a contributor on, and Hudson’s Bay Company, where Mulroney has been a bridal specialist and ambassador for Kleinfeld Bridal, followed.

Mulroney, who is married to Etalk anchor Ben Mulroney, issued her own statement saying “the events that have transpired over the last few days have made it clear that I have work to do.”

“I respect the decision of CTV and have decided to step away from my professional engagements at this time…I also want to take a moment to clarify that I have no intention of pursuing any legal action. I was wrong, and for that I am truly sorry.”

Mulroney’s wedding series I Do, Redo offers couples whose weddings were ruined by circumstances beyond their control a redo on their big day. The CTV Original series, which had its season finale on the main network May 31, was set to anchor Tuesday nights on CTV Life Channel’s summer schedule. A Bell Media collaboration with Netflix, whether the show will still be picked up by the streaming service outside Canada, is unclear. Mulroney is also a fashion contributor to ABC’s Good Morning America.

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