[Ottawa photographer Dave Chan] was hired, then un-hired to work with TV comedian Rick Mercer in a sketch at Prime Minister Stephen Harper's residence. [...]Chan got another call from Mercer's producer, John Marshall, and was told that Dimitri Soudas, Harper's press secretary, had vetoed his presence on the assignment. Chan was told the Prime Minister's Office flatly objected to him as a critic of Harper.
[...]
Soudas would neither confirm nor deny on the record that he'd passed that message along to the Mercer show. Instead, Soudas sent an email on Saturday evening, simply saying: "The Prime Minister had a great time with Rick today. We agreed to provide many pictures to the Rick Mercer Report and we'll be doing so on Monday (today)."
The inference, apparently, is that Chan's photos weren't needed because the PMO would supply its own. This issue, in fact, was at the root of an earlier dispute with the press gallery — the PMO's bid to supply its own photos for use in the media rather than allowing photojournalists to take them.
[...]
"As a photographer my job is to document, not provide the spin," Chan said.
Chan does work for all the major national papers and is a member of the press gallery, says he is not a member of the Liberal party and has never been blacklisted for participation in an assignment in his 20 years as a photojournalist.
Also, with the recent ousting of renegade MP Garth Turner (Globe and Mail, 061018):
The Globe and Mail has learned that at a caucus meeting last month, Mr. Harper informed MPs that cuts were coming to various government programs. He said that spokespeople would be assigned on the issue and that MPs should not comment, even if the cuts affected their ridings.One can't help but wonder, if he doesn't trust his own ministers and other party members to do their own thing, there must be some real dark secrets is he afraid Canadians will find out!
Speaking on condition of anonymity, some MPs said they had no problem with the order and described the comments as consistent with the Prime Minister's disciplined approach to public policy announcements. Others interpreted Mr. Harper's remarks as threatening.
Some Tories have quietly expressed concern with restrictions on their ability to speak out. One caucus source said recently that despite personal admiration for Mr. Harper's successes, the Prime Minister's Office does not use MPs enough.
6 comments:
There must be more to the story w.r.t. Dave Chan. Has he ever taken embarrassing photos of Harper?
None reported (or that editors dared mention)...
maybe Frank {magainze} knows. This story sounds right up their alley.
OK I found this... not sure....
http://hopeandonions.blogspot.com/2006/10/harpers-firing-squad-pm-cans.html
Last summer, Chan was quoted in a newspaper report about Harper's emergency detour from Paris to Cyprus, carried out so the government plane could be used to rescue Canadian citizens who had been evacuated from war-torn Lebanon.
Harper removed all media from the plane but kept a seat for his official photographer. Chan was quoted as saying that he would not have done the same in that position.
"If I had an option, I would have given up my seat for one of the evacuees," Chan told The Globe and Mail in July. "I could have got back from Paris easily."
yeah, that sure was a vicious attack... (not!)
It just shows you that Harper holds a grudge. He's presented as bland but I guess he has a mean streak.
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