TORONTO — The CBC says Conservative election campaign ads violated Canadian copyright laws.
The public broadcaster says in court that the ads did not reflect CBC’s balanced news coverage or fairly represent the context of the clips.
It says public trust in its impartiality is at stake.
The Conservatives used five CBC news segments in their attack ads during the 2019 election campaign.
A lawyer for the CBC tells Federal Court the legal principles governing copyright apply no matter who the parties are.
The Conservatives argue they had a right to use the material.
The case is believed to be the first in Canada pitting a broadcaster against a major political party over copyright.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 11, 2021.
The Canadian Press
For local news delivered daily to your email inbox, subscribe for free to the Lethbridge News Now newsletter here. You can also download the Lethbridge News Now mobile app in the Google Play and the Apple App Stores.
