Liberals shut down debate on inquiry into CBC media sting
Conservative MP Rachael Thomas called for an investigation into CBC’s prank on retired RCMP officers and other Canadians, saying “Veterans want answers. The Liberals want silence,"

The Liberals have blocked debate on a proposed investigation into the CBC over a prank show that lampooned notable political commentators known for criticizing claims that 215 bodies were found at a residential school in Kamloops, B.C., and for defending Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald.
“Shameful! I called for an investigation into CBC’s prank on retired RCMP officers and other Canadians. The Liberals shut down debate immediately,” Conservative MP Rachael Thomas said Thursday. “Veterans want answers. The Liberals want silence. Transparency shouldn’t be this threatening.”
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Rachael Thomas moved, — Given that,
the CBC/Radio-Canada and Northland Tales lured retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers under false pretences into participating in a cruel and humiliating “prank,” in which they were instructed to wear their uniforms, brought onto a stage before a live audience, and subsequently subjected to ridicule and public vilification;
The committee undertake an investigation into this incident and invite the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, the chief executive officer of CBC/Radio-Canada, the chief executive officer of APTN, and the producers of Northland Tales to testify for no less than two hours each and report to the House both its condemnation of these practices as well as its findings and recommendations upon the conclusion of the committee’s investigation.
Debate arose thereon.
David Myles moved, — That the debate be now adjourned.
The question was put on the motion and it was agreed to on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Fares Al Soud, Tatiana Auguste, Alana Hirtle, David Myles, Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba, Zoe Royer — 6;
NAYS: Martin Champoux, Kerry Diotte, Rachael Thomas, Dominique Vien, Kevin Waugh — 5.
At 10:17 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.
45 Comments
Rachael Thomas moved, — Given that,
the CBC/Radio-Canada and Northland Tales lured retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers under false pretences into participating in a cruel and humiliating “prank,” in which they were instructed to wear their uniforms, brought onto a stage before a live audience, and subsequently subjected to ridicule and public vilification;
The committee undertake an investigation into this incident and invite the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, the chief executive officer of CBC/Radio-Canada, the chief executive officer of APTN, and the producers of Northland Tales to testify for no less than two hours each and report to the House both its condemnation of these practices as well as its findings and recommendations upon the conclusion of the committee’s investigation.
Debate arose thereon.
David Myles moved, — That the debate be now adjourned.
The question was put on the motion and it was agreed to on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Fares Al Soud, Tatiana Auguste, Alana Hirtle, David Myles, Bienvenu-Olivier Ntumba, Zoe Royer — 6;
NAYS: Martin Champoux, Kerry Diotte, Rachael Thomas, Dominique Vien, Kevin Waugh — 5.
At 10:17 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 6:25 PM
Subject: Fwd: I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: jawsclinton@gmail.com
I called you twice Correct?
Here is the proof of the pudding
https://davidraymondamos3.
From: Minister of Finance / Ministre des Finances <minister-ministre@fin.gc.ca>
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Subject: Automatic reply: I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Please be assured that we appreciate receiving your comments.
Le ministère des Finances Canada accuse réception de votre courriel.
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From: Poilievre, Pierre - M.P. <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Subject: Acknowledgement – Email Received / Accusé de réception – Courriel reçu
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
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From: Blanchet, Yves-François - Député <Yves-Francois.Blanchet@parl.
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Subject: Réponse automatique : I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
(Ceci est une réponse automatique)
(English follows)
Bonjour,
Nous avons bien reçu votre courriel et nous vous remercions d'avoir écrit à M. Yves-François Blanchet, député de Beloeil-Chambly et chef du Bloc Québécois.
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From: Davies, Don - M.P. <don.davies@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Subject: Automatic reply: I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
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Greetings!
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From: Ministerial Correspondence Unit - Justice Canada <mcu@justice.gc.ca>
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Subject: Automatic Reply
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From: Moore, Rob - M.P. <Rob.Moore@parl.gc.ca>
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Subject: Automatic reply: I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
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Office of the Honourable Rob Moore, P.C., M.P.
Member of Parliament for Fundy Royal
From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.
Date: Mon, Jun 1, 2026 at 5:51 PM
Subject: I can meet the Yes Men Challenge for a joke
To: <jawsclinton@gmail.com>, <aaron.gunn@parl.gc.ca>, <junonews@substack.com>, <pm@pm.gc.ca>, <fin.minfinance-financemin.
Cc: <ebell@columbia.edu>, <john@johnrmiles.com>, <twolabradors@shaw.ca>
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Tories question spoof-style Indigenous show mocking denialism
Conservative MP Aaron Gunn responds to journalists' questions before a meeting of the Conservative caucus on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Conservatives are questioning why CBC is funding a spoof program that used false pretences to lure high-profile people accused of downplaying the damage caused by residential schools into sitting for interviews.
Several current and former Conservative politicians have gone on social media to denounce the production “Northland Tales.” The show is being produced for CBC and APTN.
The show is described by the Indigenous Screen Office — which works to increase Indigenous media representation using federal funding — as a satire program meant to “flip the script” on modern and historical injustices against Indigenous Peoples.
Frances Widdowson, who has described herself as a “known controversial figure” and has publicly questioned the history of residential schools and unmarked graves of children at the site of a former school in Kamloops, described her interview for the show in a video posted to social media this week.
During what appeared to be the tail end of the interview, a pile of shoes was placed in front of Widdowson. Children’s shoes were widely used as symbols for the children who died or never made it home from residential schools after news broke in 2021 that potential unmarked graves were found on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in Kamloops, B.C.
At that point, Widdowson realized the interview was a spoof and turned her phone on the program host. She grilled him on the purpose of the show in a video that was transmitted live and later posted to social media.
“I’ve got nothing to be ashamed of. I just don’t like being lied to,” Widdowson said in the 11-minute video.
“I was given a sense it was something different than what it was, but that’s kind of part of the thrill of it, I guess.”
The Canadian Press reached out to Widdowson for comment but did not hear back.
The show is described by the Indigenous Screen Office as an unscripted comedy series “where an Indigenous activist trio uses pranks as a form of social action.
“With outrageous humour, they flip the script on modern and historical injustices against Indigenous Peoples, offering a fresh, timely perspective on the prank genre, akin to shows like Borat and The Yes Men.”
Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney attacked the production on social media, calling it “appalling, doubly so as this fraudulent activity is being conducted with our tax dollars.”
Other politicians, including B.C. MLA Dallas Brodie, posted on social media they were also asked to appear on the show.
Conservative MP Aaron Gunn told The Canadian Press he was approached “very persistently” by the show’s production staff in April but ultimately decided not to grant an interview.
Emails from the show’s producer to Gunn’s North Island-Powell River constituency office, provided to The Canadian Press, say the show was looking to examine the debate over “Canadian historical memory — specifically the forces driving the removal of monuments to figures like Sir John A. Macdonald, and the pushback from historians, legal advocates, and ordinary citizens against Canada’s founding values and cultural memory.”
“We’d like this series to give a broader platform to those at the forefront of this fight, like Mr. Gunn, bravely speaking in defence of Canadian heritage,” the email continues.
One of Gunn’s constituency office staffers described in an email a conversation she had with the show’s production team. She said she was told the production company was preparing a docuseries for CBC, which was under pressure to provide a balance of views on John A. Macdonald.
Gunn said it seems the show was “trying to entrap, trick and deceive some of the individuals who have been very outspoken in defending Canada’s first prime minister.”
“I think it was entirely inappropriate for a taxpayer-funded state broadcaster to use a production company, or partner with a production company, that disguised their identities and motives in an attempt to lure or deceive or trick an opposition member of Parliament, as well as just other everyday Canadians,” he said.
“I do think everyone’s allowed to, of course, have their own opinions about these and other issues, but I think they are important conversations, and they are nuanced conversations, and they deserve real, serious conversations.”
Read More:
Denialism close-up: APTN Investigates captures Frances Widdowson’s surge
It’s been 10 years since the TRC final report and it’s time to tackle denialism says regional chief
Frances Widdowson’s denialism rally in B.C. gets confronted by police and protesters
In an emailed statement, CBC’s head of public affairs Chuck Thompson said the show is in early production for CBC Entertainment and APTN. He said the news divisions of both broadcasters are not involved in the production and had no prior knowledge of it.
“Social experiments and satirical prank shows are a long-established television format used by broadcasters and streamers around the world, including many public broadcasters. In this case, the Indigenous creators are using the format for Northland Tales,” Thompson wrote.
“A form of comedy is being deployed to increase better understanding of historical injustices against Indigenous peoples and support truth and reconciliation in Canada.”
Thompson said it’s important that the series does not have a negative impact on CBC’s news brand.
APTN did not respond to The Canadian Press’s request for comment.
APTN News later followed up with APTN’s programming department and was told the statement from CBC was a joint statement.
While APTN’s programming department and APTN News, the network’s journalism division, are both part of the same company, the two divisions operate independently.
Gunn has had tense relations with First Nations — especially during last year’s federal election campaign, when the regional chief of British Columbia called on the Conservatives to drop him as a candidate and accused him of denying the history of residential schools. Gunn has rejected that claim.
Gunn also has spoken in support of the first prime minister’s legacy, which has become a cultural and political flashpoint.
Macdonald is largely viewed as the architect of the residential school
system and his statues were removed from some public spaces after news
emerged of potential unmarked burials on residential school sites in
2021.
More than 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools, the last of which closed in 1996. An estimated 6,000 children died in the schools, though experts say the actual number could be much higher.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which was tasked with researching the institutions, found they were rife with abuse. Children attending the schools were separated from their families and barred from visiting them.
The commission concluded the schools constituted “a systematic, government-sponsored attempt to destroy Aboriginal cultures and languages and to assimilate Aboriginal Peoples so that they no longer existed as distinct peoples.”
Kimberly Murray, Canada’s former special interlocutor on unmarked graves and missing children associated with residential schools, spoke extensively about what she called residential school denialism in her 2022 report.
“Denialism is not a simple misunderstanding of the facts; whether consciously or unconsciously, denialists are working toward the accomplishment of psychological, practical or political goals,” she wrote.
“Indian residential school denialism must be taken seriously because
it puts at risk the important work of truth and reconciliation. It
should not be dismissed as a harmless fringe phenomenon.”
Conservative MP Billy Morin, who previously served as chief of Enoch
Cree Nation, told The Canadian Press the show’s premise fails to respect
the gravity of the residential school experience.
“Not only is this wrong against a public servant, it completely disrespects and trivializes residential school survivors and their families,” he said.
Editor’s note: This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2026. Additional information about the APTN programming department’s response was added by APTN News.
Academics Frances Widdowson and Jerry Amernic, as well as criminal defence lawyer Jim Heller, join Rebel News to discuss the taxpayer-funded sting production that’s targeting critics of the residential school 'genocide' narrative.
687 Comments
May 14, 2026
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPbJYH5SdVc
CBC in retreat after bizarre undercover sting to humiliate conservative women
Ezra Levant
May 14, 2026
The CBC launched an elaborate operation: creating fake companies, assigning staff fake names, and attempting to get close to Lindsay Shepherd and Dr. Frances Widdowson under false pretenses.
I was deceived by social activists in an elaborate taxpayer-funded, government-backed scheme to defame Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, and mock Canadians who defend him.
CBC Blew Itself Up - Woke Entrapment Scheme could have been Criminal!
In this video, Frances Widdowson discusses her post "CBC's Smarmy Set-up" - https://wokeacademy.info/the-smarmy-s....
EXCLUSIVE: CBC confirms they are behind media sting targeting residential school narrative critics
CBC confirms a media sting attempting to smear political commentators including academic Frances Widdowson was part of a CBC Entertainment project, Widdowson blasted the project for being misdirected.
Following outrage over a media set up, academic Frances Widdowson exposed on X, the CBC has confirmed that the public broadcaster was behind the media sting on notable political commentators. The project also received significant media grants from Canadian Heritage.
Widdowson told Juno News that she, along with author Lindsay Shepherd, author Jerry Amernic, an unnamed RCMP officer, and later Dallas Brodie, had all been targeted by the media company.
The commentators are all known for criticizing claims that 215 bodies were found at a residential school in Kamloops B.C., as well as for defending Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald.
Controversial academic Frances Widdowson arrested and fined for trespassing at University of Lethbridge
Frances Widdowson currently arguing in court that university breached her Charter freedoms
An academic known for her controversial views on Canada's residential school system was arrested for trespassing at the University of Lethbridge over the weekend.
Lethbridge police say Frances Widdowson, a former Mount Royal University professor, was transported off the property and issued a trespassing ticket of $600.
A University of Lethbridge spokesperson said Widdowson is currently subject to a trespass notice that prohibits her from accessing the campus. The university said it was issued in early February after she held an unscheduled event on campus that was met with "significant protest."
Widdowson was "reminded in writing" on April 20 that the trespass notice remained in effect, according to the university.
"On April 24, 2026, she contravened the notice by driving onto campus. Police officers engaged with her while she was still in her vehicle, reminded her of the notice, and warned her not to return," reads a statement from the university.
"The following day, Widdowson returned to campus. University security advised her of the trespass notice and asked her to leave. When she refused, security contacted police, who enforced the notice."
Widdowson often met by protest
Widdowson told CBC News she had previously informed officials of her plans to visit the University of Lethbridge to meet with students, at which point she was informed of the February trespass notice.
"Of course I had not caused a disruption [in February]," Widdowson said.
"The university had caused a disruption by sending an email out to everyone, which resulted in a number of deranged students hunting me down and trying to stop everything I was doing."
Widdowson said she believed the trespass notice was "illegitimate in terms of its character," so she visited anyway.
When security came, Widdowson was sitting in a cafeteria and said she told the guard she "wasn't going to be going anywhere."
Police arrived, and she said she was put in handcuffs and "dragged out" to a police vehicle.
"It's an absolute disgrace. The University of Lethbridge is the elite of the elite in terms of the university hall of shame. It is not acting like an academic institution anymore," Widdowson said.
"I think they are more like an insane asylum."
Widdowson is known for being a critic of what she has called "dominant residential school narratives," and her presence often attracts controversy — and heated protest — at Canadian universities.
That has sometimes led to her arrest.
In December 2025, Widdowson was arrested and charged under British Columbia’s Trespass Act after an unsanctioned OneBC political party event on the University of Victoria campus. In January, during another OneBC event at the University of British Columbia that saw nearly 1,000 people protest, Widdowson was again arrested but was released without being charged.
Frances Widdowson is carried away by RCMP officers during a protest at UBC in Vancouver on Jan. 22, 2026. (Ben Nelms/CBC)Widdowson said police are often faced with situations where they must decide whether or not to de-escalate situations on campuses.
"But in this scenario, that was not the case at all. They just wanted to remove me because they did not want my ideas to be discussed on that campus," she said.
In its statement, the University of Lethbridge said it had reasonable grounds to believe that Widdowson's presence "would again result in significant disruption that exceeds the university’s ability to manage it."
"She has made clear repeatedly through her own statements (in person and online) that when she attends campus, she will not leave until removed," the statement reads.
"The concern with the ability to safely manage the situation is further challenged by her ongoing social media promotion encouraging and inciting a crowd response on campus.
"This includes videos intended to provoke University of Lethbridge community members, including one in which she mocked Indigenous smudging ceremonies (blowing marijuana smoke on her social media props)."
Widdowson said those videos were not intended to mock elders, but instead university officials.
Lecture currently subject of judicial review
Widdowson and the southern Alberta university have been battling for years. Widdowson has said she is focused on academic freedom, while the university has said the matter involves campus safety and reconciliation.
In 2023, a U of L faculty member invited Widdowson to deliver a lecture entitled "How 'Woke-ism' Threatens Academic Freedom."
Her planned appearance faced significant resistance from faculty and staff. Two petitions opposed her lecture and referred to Widdowson as a "residential school denialist."
Frances
Widdowson, pictured in the centre of this photo wearing a shirt that
reads 'Rational Space,' arrived at the University of Lethbridge in 2023
after days of pushback from students and faculty. (Sarah Jones/Lethbridge News Now)The university's 2023 decision to not allow Widdowson space for her lecture is currently the focus of a judicial review. Widdowson's lawyers have argued the university didn't sufficiently detail what the various harms were that would occur if it didn't cancel the event.
Lawyers for the university have cited a range of concerns raised by students, staff and alumni, including concerns that hosting Widdowson could retraumatize Indigenous students and staff.
The judge has reserved his decision.
In a statement, Advanced Education Minister Myles McDougall said institutions are expected to foster environments where ideas can be debated and questioned, while also maintaining safe and respectful campuses through their own policies and governance processes.
"Free expression and campus safety are both important and must be balanced by post-secondary institutions. As this matter is before the courts, it would be inappropriate to comment on the specifics," McDougall wrote.







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