People walk into the CBC building in Toronto in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Nathan Denette
CBC says it is has decided to pause production of a show with the working title “Northland Tales,” following controversy over the tactics used by the people behind the production, such as producers reportedly inviting a number of retired RCMP officers to an interview under false pretenses in order to criticize them.
The CBC says the show, an indigenous-led production funded by CBC Entertainment and the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), is meant to “increase better understanding of historical injustices against Indigenous peoples and support truth and reconciliation in Canada.”
CBC Head of Public Affairs Chuck Thompson said the pause in production comes as footage is evaluated to ensure there isn’t a negative impact on CBC’s brand.
“It is important for us in the execution that this entertainment series does not negatively impact our news brand. With that context, we are currently pausing on production while we assess the existing footage,” Thompson told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement.
Controversy
Controversy surrounding the program arose after several reports from individuals saying they had been contacted as part of hoax interviews and media appearances.
Those who say they were targeted include academic Frances Widdowson, Conservative MP Aaron Gunn, OneBC MLA Dallas Brodie, author Lindsay Shepherd, as well as a group of retired RCMP officers.
The individuals have variously spoken against the belief that Canada’s treatment of indigenous people amounts to “genocide,” or spoken in support of Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, whose statues have been toppled in recent years by activists and elected officials criticizing him for his role in residential schools.
Gunn said he never agreed to do an interview with the company that contacted him and said those behind the attempt to trick him were trying to “further attack Canada’s history and smear the reputation of Canada’s first Prime Minister.”
Brodie said her team was able to determine that the show was a hoax after the crew “failed to answer sufficiently,” and so they refused the interview.
For her part, Widdowson says she was duped into it and that children’s shoes were dumped on a table in front of her during the May 10 interview. She said this appeared to be an attempt to portray her as racist because she has said no bodies have been confirmed through excavation at the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School, after the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc announced in 2021 that ground-penetrating radar had identified what were believed to be 215 potential unmarked graves.
Shepherd said she had fallen prey to an “elaborate scheme” complete with a fake business and forged documents in order to mock and criticize her book about Macdonald.
In further controversy allegedly tied to the same CBC/APTN venture, former Mounties were reportedly called up and told they were going to be honoured for their service and interviewed for a show called “After the Call.” After agreeing, they were flown to Vancouver with expenses paid and then upstaged in a studio to be accosted about past police treatment of indigenous people.
Chief administrative officer of the RCMP Veterans Association Glen Siegersma said his organization was disturbed by the reports.
“We are aware that a production company has been seeking out retired members of the RCMP,” Siegersma told The Epoch Times.
“The people who are doing this are not thinking about the potential impact,” he added, noting that several of the retired Mounties were already suffering from challenges as a result of trauma suffered in the course of their service.
