The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) investigative program "UnderCurrents" (16 January 2000) reported that the story broadcast on U.S. television last year about dogs and cats being "tortured" in China, Thailand and the Philippines (and killed for fur that was later sold in the USA and elsewhere) was not produced by any U.S. television network or station, but was distributed by a commercial "canned news" company in the USA called "SweepsFeed".

Furthermore, CBC television investigative journalists discovered that SweepsFeed executives could not vouch for the origin or accuracy of this video either --- the tape had been given to them by an animal-rights group and the authenticity of the film was never verified by SweepsFeed.

Catherine Lang (UnderCurrents): "And guess what? SweepsFeed can't even confirm the sensational video is for real. The tape was provided by an animal-rights group."

Kale Shaplenkahn (SweepFeed Exec): "How do we know that video wasn't a fake video? We don't, because we didn't shoot it in that case, and that's a rare instance [that we don't produce our own programs.]"

UnderCurrents revealed that, although SweepsFeed now admits they had no way to know whether the story was true, they distributed it to U.S. television stations which then broadcast the tape believing that Sweep Feed had verified its accuracy:

CBC Reporter: "But it's just a chain .!"

SweepsFeed Exec: ".yes, yes ."

SweepsFeed provides exciting or sensational stories intended to boost "ratings" for TV stations which subscribe to their service.

This information about the dubious origins of the widely publicized "dog fur" story was uncovered as part of the UnderCurrents investigation of "canned news" which is eroding the journalistic ethic that requires television reporters to verify the sources of stories they report.