Posted on 09/09/2009 10:51:26 AM PDT by nickcarraway
"Glenn Beck 1990" is an exercise in the politics of retribution - a spoof of Glenn Beck's outrageous assertions and obfuscations - an Internet meme engineered by those seeking justice - a theater of the absurd.
"Glenn Beck 1990" is short for "Glenn Beck raped and murdered a girl in 1990", a web site dedicated to tracking the meme questioning Glenn Beck's guilt in 1990. Glenn Beck is not pleased, and is taking legal action against the website tracking the meme.
tech dirt reports:
It turns out that Glenn Beck isn't happy about this either. He's filed a domain name dispute over the domain name, claiming that it violates his trademark.
The Internet meme apparently began with a question on Fark: "Why haven't we had an official response to the rumor that Glenn Beck raped and murdered a girl in 1990?" The idea, which seems plain to many involved, is not to actually suggest that Glenn Beck did such a thing -- but to highlight this tactic of making a totally bogus rumor into "news" by stating it, and wondering why there hasn't been a denial. A bunch of folks have picked up on this claim and run with it (apparently greatly upsetting some loyal Beck fans), turning it into one of those Internet memes with legs.
Associated Content reports:
But lately, Glenn Beck's brand of rabble-rousing rhetoric and baseless inflammatory theories have begun to be aggressively met and countered. Like when Color of Change went after him for labeling President Obama a racist on the Fox News show "Fox and Friends."
Last week this Examiner was one of the first reporting on the story:
In a fast moving, developing story, shocking allegations have come to light that Glenn Beck is responsible for the rape and murder of a girl in 1990. Are these allegations true? Is Beck guilty? Various websites are offering conflicting points of view. Some claim it is a hoax. Many are suspicious because Beck has remained silent on the matter.
The topic is setting the blogosphere on fire, and threatens to go viral.
Questions remain. While Beck has issued no formal response, he is apparently taking legal action against the web site. Beck is not claiming defamation, nor libel, but a trademark violation. It looks like the story is not ending.
Indeed, perhaps it is just the end of the beginning, as we go down the strange rabbit hole that is Glenn Beck, in search of the politics of retribution.
The test for libel of a public figure is:
The plaintiff must prove that the information was published,
the plaintiff was directly or indirectly identified,
the remarks were defamatory towards the plaintiff’s reputation,
the published information is false,
and that the defendant is at fault.
As a public figure, Beck has to prove actual malice or that the statement must have been published knowing it to be false or with reckless disregard to its truth.
It would seem all of these are handily met, but I’m sure they would argue a few things.
Perhaps the best defense for the people spreading this is no actual injury. I don’t know of anyone who actually believes it. Most people seem to pick up pretty quickly that it is satire. In addition, there isn’t and won’t be an investigation into the claim. His viewership, I believe, continues to rise.
It is also clearly parody/satire. I would think/hope that it is apparent to most people without reading the disclaimer.
It would seem they are pretty well against a wall if they were sued, but it already seems to be losing steam. Digg and Reddit were covered with it last week, but not anymore and usually when it does show up it is to say that it should be dropped.
I doubt a lawsuit would be worth it at this point. No money in it and it would draw further attention to it. The reward wouldn’t justify the costs.
Digg was covered with this story last week?
Not as bad as I recalled. Some of it may be that there are 100 posts about it on Reddit and I was shuttling some of those in my mind. Usually what is on Reddit ends up on Digg.
Why, dash that Jonathan Swift and his anti-Irish cannibalistic tendencies! Has that man no morals?
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