You can’t make this up. Onion files lawsuit

[bobzilla]

https://amp.theguardian.com/law/202...supreme-court-brief-supporting-local-satirist

 

[Libertarian01]

This is interesting. Parody as a form of criticism is a good thing. After all, you get to point out a very real problem while at the same time being fun and less caustic.

However, I do wonder about making something "too" close to the true webpage. Scam sites do this by looking exactly like another page and stealing data. Looking too realistic could well create a false impression on people who aren't paying attention.

For example, in Fort Wayne the police are at FWPD.org. the .org meaning organization. If we go to FWPD.com it leads to a pay site that some people may presume is legit. I honestly don't know if it is or not.

Regardless of my concern the guy does have a 1st Amendment right to criticize and not be suppressed.

Regards,

Doug

 

[rosejm]

Yeah, if this was not government I might be willing to entertain the cease and desist actions. A private company has copyright protections and some level of "equalness" to other private people/entities.

But here we see police arrested and charged, and a prosecutor pursued that felony through a jury trial, a right specifically protected by 1A. Thankfully the jury saw this for what it was: retaliation for the public's free speech redressing their government. Sadly, both a District judge and the appellate judge weren't able to see the retaliation.

His parody site wasn't even up for more than 24 hours. If that's all it takes to "disrupt government services" in this town, perhaps the City Manager and Police Chief should be brought before a jury.