Mayoral candidate Brad Bradford has come under fire from some women included in his TikTok video about TTC safety.Mayoral candidate Brad Bradford has come under fire from some women included in his TikTok video about TTC safety.

Some of the women in Brad Bradford’s campaign video object to him using their TikTok posts without permission.

Mayoral candidate and current councillor Brad Bradford is facing pushback after posting a campaign video compiling the TTC horror stories of several women on TikTok without their permission.

TikTok creator Myah Elliott, 21, said she did not know the video was being made, and did not give Bradford’s team consent to use the video she posted.

“I’ve never heard of this guy before. I don’t know what he stands for,” said Elliott. “I don’t want to be associated with whatever his campaign is …because kind of looks like I’m endorsing whatever he is talking about.”

Another person included in the video, who did not want to comment further, posted a comment on Bradford’s video saying she did not provide permission and “you need our consent to use our videos.”

Bradford’s TikTok, which has been shared on Instagram and Twitter, splices clips from TikTok together before going to him speaking.

“I am seeing all of these women sharing these really horrible stories on TikTok right now about their experiences on the TTC,” he says in the video. “It’s just totally unacceptable where Toronto is at right now when it comes to safety on the TTC. I am running for mayor to fix that.”

He then goes on to outline his plan.

Elliott learned about the video when someone tagged her in a comment and told her about it.

She understands the TikTok videos she makes can be shared and repurposed through the app’s own features, but feels that it is different when a video is used for political purposes.

She would have been happy to have a conversation about whether the video could be used, and would have researched Bradford before deciding because she is careful about how she shares her political opinions online and how her image is used.

She hopes he’ll see the comments on the video and take it down.

Greg Elmer, a professor of professional communication at Toronto Metropolitan University, who researches digital political media said the video likely is a copyright violation.

“It being understood that you or your licensors will own any User Content (as defined below) you upload or transmit through the Services,” the TikTok terms of service read.

“This suggests that users still maintain ownership over content they upload to the app,” Elmer said in an email.

“As such, anyone who uses said content could be subject to copyright infringement penalties. Politicians and their staff should be well aware of such legal matters, though in almost every election we see similar misuse of copyrighted material such as music and images. Bradford should immediately take down this content.”

The view of the Bradford campaign is that the video is part of the content sharing that is common on social media.

“Listening to people’s concerns and taking real action to make a difference is why Brad is running to be Mayor. He sees the stories people are sharing and wants them to know that as Mayor, his SafeTTC Now action plan will take real steps to make the TTC safe so that riders can get to where they need to, unafraid they’re going to become the latest tragic statistic,” spokesperson Stephanie Smyth said.

“We’re responding to what’s on social media,” Bradford himself said Wednesday after the city council meeting broke for lunch. “I think that’s an important thing, that candidates should be responding to how people are feeling…and frankly a lot of people have responded very positively to it.”

Elmer, however, sees ethical issues here that politicians should be aware of, and that may run afoul of TikTok’s community standards.

“While questions remain about how or if the platform adequately regulates such content, politicians and other professionals should always err on the side of caution, especially when using others’ experiences to support their own agenda,” he said. “Politically, using sensitive images could be interpreted as gratuitous or worse. And the co-optation of others’ media content could be seen as underhanded and self-serving.”

For Elliott, it comes down to taking the time to ask for permission.

A few months ago she made a video reacting to a Rihanna song, and someone asked if they could use the video. She said yes and it was used in a Rihanna video.

“That’s how you are supposed to do it,” she said.

Alyshah Hasham is a Toronto-based reporter covering city hall and municipal politics for the Star. Reach her via email: ahasham@thestar.ca or follow her on Twitter: @alysanmati

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