Video: Harper's 'bubble' campaign

A Liberal supporter (at the very least) has posted a satirical video take on the view that Prime Minister Stephen Harper is conducting a "bubble campaign" - that is, a tightly scripted and controlled campaign that keeps him from contact with regular people.

Greens angered over 'stupid' YouTube video

(This post has been updated. And again)

Conservative blogger Stephen Taylor is defending a video he produced that has upset the The Green Party.

As The Tyee reported on its blog The Hook, the Greens allege that audio from TVO's The Agenda with Steve PaikenPaikin was spliced in the video to make it sound like leader Elizabeth May called Canadians "stupid," and have threatened a Western blogger called Buckdog who posted the video with "legal proceedings" if he didn't remove the video (which he did). The blogger has reproduced the email exchange with the Greens' communication director here.

Taylor stands by the accuracy of the video.

In any case, comments to the Green party's own blog question the party's decision to go heavy over the video.

UPDATE: According to The Inside Agenda, the official blog of The Agenda with Steve PaikenPaikin, TVO director of corporate relations Jill Javet issued this statement today to counter claims by the Greens that TVO agreed the clip was altered:

TVO confirms that the audio of the clip in question is intact. As such, TVO is not and will not be pursuing legal action of any kind on this matter.

The TVO blog also notes that Green Party leader Elizabeth May will be on The Agenda with Steve PaikenPaikin tonight (Sept. 12, 8 p.m.) - and promises to ask her about her earlier, controversial appearance and this week's legal "kerfuffle." Now that's must-see TV.

UPDATEST: According to the Inside Agenda, the Greens will apologize to Buckdog and won't be pursuing legal action - claiming it was all a misunderstanding about how YouTube works.

MORE: The original clip, courtesy TVO, puts context to May's earlier comment. Judge for yourself.

AND...: More on May by Agenda host Steve PaikenPaikin.

Voter video: Not Him

Darren O'Donnell is a Toronto-based writer and actor and artistic director of Mammalian Diving Reflex, a not-for-profit theatre performance arts company that works with school children in Parkdale.

He is also the man behind "Not Him," a YouTube video posted this week that calls on voters in the 905 to vote against Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Reached by phone, O'Donnell said he has no party affiliation, but he is a founding member of departmentofculture.ca, a group of artists and activists upset by recent federal cuts to arts funding and social services. The group's website says it is targeting Conservatives in swing ridings across the country with the goal of defeating the government.

O'Donnell said the video did not come specifically out of the arts funding issue.

"It comes from my anger over the general way the Conservatives are conducting themselves - the lack of communication . . . and consultation," O'Donnell said. "Just the general swath of their behaviour."

"The lack of consultation they have taken with people is stupendous. It doesn't sound like democracy to me."

O'Donnell said he made the video on his Macbook using iMovie. He is about to embark on an overseas tour, but said he plans to remain involved in the campaign and post more videos to YouTube.