Posted on 08/12/2003 8:31:50 AM PDT by El Conservador
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fox News Network is suing humor writer Al Franken for trademark infringement over the phrase "fair and balanced" on the cover of his upcoming book, saying it has been "a signature slogan" of the network since 1996.
According to court papers made available on Monday, Fox is seeking a temporary or permanent injunction against Franken and publisher Penguin Group to stop them using the phrase in connection with the book to be published next month.
The network, part of the News Corp group, also asked Manhattan Supreme Court for compensatory and punitive damages.
The title of liberal satirist Franken's new book is "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them." At the bottom of the planned cover is the tag line, "A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right."
Fox claims the use of the phrase is intended to confuse the public and boost book sales.
In the lawsuit, Fox said the network was created "as a specific alternative to what its founders perceived as a liberal bias in the American media."
A spokeswoman for Penguin imprint Dutton, Lisa Johnson, called the lawsuit "extraordinary."
"In trying to suppress Al Franken's book the News Corp is undermining First Amendment principles that protect all media by guaranteeing a free, open and vigorous debate of public issues," she said.
"The attempt to keep the public from reading Franken's message is un-American and runs contrary to everything this country stands for."
Franken worked as a comedy writer in the 1970s and has appeared frequently on "Saturday Night Live."
Reuters/VNU
You're right, of course. In fact, Al Gore traces his invention of that phrase all the way back to his college "Love Story" days!
It would be interesting to see how it works with the other side. For example if I published a new book about Jayson Blair and gang titled: "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them. All the News That's Fit to Print About the Left", would the New York Times have a case against me?
If you forget that Franken is a leftist schmuck, who hates anybody to the right of Lenin, and you forget that FoxNews is considered by many to be on the right, then the cover is deceptive.
The cover is not deceptive if you can tell just by looking at it that it is a parody of FoxNews. However, FoxNews maintains publicly that they are not a member of the VRWC. In fact, they publicly maintain that they are not on the right at all, but are, rather, "Fair and Balanced".
So, based on the cover alone, you have FoxNews personalities on the cover with a statement that the book is "Fair and Balanced". A reasonable person who does not necessarily subscribe to Franken's political views could well conclude that FoxNews was a party to the production of this work, rather than the target.
Yeah, but Fox isn't suing because he wrote a book bashing them specifically. They're suing based on trademark infringement. And the book in no way pretends to not be bashing Fox (to win trademark he'd have to be diluting their brand. Bashing doesn't dilute.)
Typed Drawing
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Word Mark FAIR & BALANCED
Goods and Services IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: entertainment services in the nature of production and distribution of television news programs. FIRST USE: 19961007. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19961007
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Serial Number 75280027
Filing Date April 23, 1997
Filed ITU FILED AS ITU
Published for Opposition March 3, 1998
Registration Number 2213427
Registration Date December 22, 1998
Owner (REGISTRANT) Fox News Network, LLC CORPORATION DELAWARE 1211 Avenue of the Americas New York NEW YORK 10036
hu·mor n.
4.One of the four fluids of the body, blood, phlegm, choler, and black bile, whose relative proportions were thought in ancient and medieval physiology to determine a person's disposition and general health.
I'll put Franken's humor in the bile category, maybe with a little bit of phlegm.
The burden of proof is on Fox to show someone could be confused. And, while I know what you're trying to say, I bet that in a year you couldn't find five people who honestly would be confused as to this book's agenda.
There was a recent case in the south where a sex novelty shop (toys and such, I think) called itself "Victor's Little Secret". Victoria's Secret sued. The court ruled no reasonable person could have thought the two were related.
My point is that it is unclear based on the cover that FoxNews is not a party to the production of the book. Keep in mind that it is a far from settled issue that FoxNews (or Bush and Cheney for that matter) are on the political right. So the statments on the cover are not specific enough to counter the appearance, given by the use of FoxNews personalities and FoxNews logos, that FoxNews was a party to the production of this work.
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