The federal Conservative party has deleted a political attack ad parodying the Heritage Minutes, after receiving a request from the organization that produces the historical TV segments.
The video, entitled Liberal Scandals: Part of Our Heritage, was posted to leader Andrew Scheer’s Twitter and Facebook accounts Saturday night.
By the next morning, Historica Canada — the non-partisan organization that makes the videos — released a statement calling for the removal of the video.
« While we often welcome parodies of the Minutes, we do not approve of them being used for partisan political purposes, » it reads.
The video was deleted in the afternoon.
Anthony Wilson-Smith, the president and CEO of Historica, told CBC News he was advised of the video by his staff Sunday morning. He said the template in the final frames of the video appears to be an exact replica of their old branding.
The Conservative spoof used similar styles of narration, graphics and historical photos to those in the official Heritage Minutes spots, but the Tory segment lashes out at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet for various ethical and conflict-of-interest breaches.
It details the prime minister’s breach of ethics laws for his vacation to the Aga Khan’s private island, the violation of conflict of interest rules by then-fisheries minister Dominic LeBlanc when he awarded a lucrative Arctic surf clam licence to a company linked to his wife’s cousin,and Finance Minister Bill Morneau stalling to disclose a private corporation that owns a villa in southern France that he shares with his wife.
‘Obliged’ to look at legal action in the coming days
Party spokesman Cory Hann told CBC News the party understood how it could be perceived as a real Historica creation.
« We wouldn’t want it mistaken for a real production by Historica Canada, which typically showcase prouder moments in Canadian history, » he said.
Hann added that an edited version that makes clear the ad is not a Historica production would be reposted later.
Watch: The deleted video of the Conservative’s Heritage Minutes parody
The Conservative Party created this attack ad version of a popular TV segment called Heritage Minutes. The company requested it be deleted, and it subsequently was. 1:00
But the removal of the video isn’t nearly enough recompense for Historica’s CEO.
Wilson-Smith is asking for a full apology, but says he has not yet heard from the Conservative party.
It’s the first time, to his knowledge, that Historica videos have been used for partisan activities, he said.
He said his organization has enjoyed a good relationship with all political parties for years, but this impacts the existing rapport with the Conservatives.
To him, it puts Historica’s reputation on the line. Their funding — a mix of private and public money — would be in jeopardy if their messaging seems politically skewed one way or another, he said.
If they don’t get the resolution they’re looking for in the coming days, Wilson-Smith says the organization will be « obliged » to explore legal options for copyright infringement and violation of intellectual property.
« It’s certainly something we can’t allow to just happen quietly, we would never want to see it happening again by any party. »
Heritage Minutes are 60-second short films depicting significant people and events in Canada’s history.
Some of the 90 episodes tell the stories of people such as author Lucy Maud Montgomery, Terry Fox, artist Emily Carr and Sir John A. Macdonald.