Mark Dailey (Photo courtesy CNW Group/Rogers Media Inc.)

Mark Dailey, the baritone voice of Citytv and CityNews anchor, died yesterday from cancer at Sunnybrook hospital in Toronto. He was 57.

Dailey joined Citytv in 1979 as an assignment editor and producer before becoming the station’s crime specialist and going on to anchor the news.

“Mark was quite literally the voice of Citytv and CityNews,” executive producer and VP of news Tina Cortese said yesterday. “He was smart, funny and a brilliant broadcaster. He touched so many lives.

“It’s a very difficult day for Citytv and a sad day for Torontonians.”

Dailey received several accolades for his reporting, including a national Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) award and multiple awards from the Toronto police and fire departments for Best Media Coverage of the Year.

“Mark Dailey was a senior member of the news team here at Citytv for 31 years,” CityNews anchor Gord Martineau said yesterday. “During that time, he taught us all the meaning of professionalism and how to develop a love of the task at hand.

“In addition to that, his sense of comedic timing was always offered at just the right time to take the stress away from the job. He was a true original.”

Dailey worked with several charities, including the Sick Children’s Hospital Therapeutic Clown Program, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and the Salvation Army, among others. For his active leadership in community service, he received a Letter of Appreciation from the Governor General. The City of Toronto honoured him with the Civic Award of Merit and he was named Consumers Choice, Man of the Year in 2009.

In September, Dailey revealed he was fighting his second bout with cancer. He had been diagnosed with kidney cancer, he said.

Dailey successfully battled prostate cancer six years ago, which he documented in an award-winning CityNews series. He was also the spokesperson for Prostate Cancer Canada.

“Mark was an outstanding news journalist,” said Jamie Haggarty, executive VP of television operations for Rogers Media Television. “He has left an imprint on our station and community forever and will be deeply missed.”

Dailey is survived by his wife, Kim, and his daughter, Nicole.

(Photo courtesy CNW Group/Rogers Media Inc.)

Byline: Philip Alves
My Media Biz
Online: December 7, 2010 [www.mymediabiz.com]