TORONTO -- Cartoonist Michael de Adder called out third-party political group Canada Strong and Proud for using his cartoon in an online advertisement without his permission.
In a , he wrote 鈥渕y cartoon is being used for a political ad. WTF! That takes a lot of nerve.鈥 He added 鈥淚 want (it) taken down, and I want compensation.鈥
The cartoon, which originally ran in , appears to show up in the third-party group鈥檚 Facebook ad. It features Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau falling off a horse with carrying satchels that read: 鈥淒irt on others.鈥
The freelance political cartoonist told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview that the group had taken his cartoon 鈥渃ompletely without my permission.鈥
鈥淚 don鈥檛 mind Canadians sharing it -- and I actually don鈥檛 mind MPs sharing them -- it鈥檚 a little different in an election though,鈥 he said, explaining it鈥檚 an issue 鈥渨hen it鈥檚 a paid advertisement or second-party use of my work.鈥
De Adder鈥檚 cartoon appears to be featured on a sponsored post from the Facebook page 鈥淧roud To be Canadian.鈥 The page鈥檚 鈥淎bout鈥 section describes how it鈥檚 run by the political group, Canada Strong and Proud.
In July, Canada Strong and Proud -- which has been linked to a series of robocalls and text campaigns in Canada -- officially registered as a third party. It鈥檚 one of 26 groups spending money on ads or political activity this election season.
Although, in de Adder鈥檚 tweet, he tagged the Conservatives and leader Andrew Scheer, Canada Strong and Proud and its Facebook page aren鈥檛 affiliated with Scheer鈥檚 party.
鈥榃E WERE NOT AWARE OF IT鈥
De Adder said Canada Strong and Proud contacted him and apologized, adding 鈥渢hey seemed very contrite.鈥 He said they both agreed to speak again next week to figure out how they鈥檇 ultimately resolve the issue -- not excluding potential compensation.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 think of anything worse than a second-party political group using an editorial cartoon without permission in a paid advertisement,鈥 de Adder said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 clearly a huge violation 鈥 this is way past the line鈥
In an emailed statement to CTVNews.ca, Canada Strong and Proud said 鈥渨e were not aware of it until you contacted us鈥 and confirmed they鈥檇 been in touch with de Adder on Friday. 鈥淲e will resolve this with him.鈥
The group didn鈥檛 answer whether it would be offering compensation or how the ad was put up without management's knowledge.
Canada Strong and Proud explained that the Facebook post -- which the group paid to boost its reach -- 鈥渞an for less than four days.鈥
The cartoonist, whose work also appears in The Hill Times and The Toronto Star, said it was the first time seeing his cartoon used for an ad without his permission in a Canadian election.
De Adder made headlines earlier this year when he lost his job with several New Brunswick newspapers, after his illustration of U.S. President Donald Trump playing golf over the bodies of two drowned migrants went viral.
