Normally, media companies are defendants in legal disputes over commentary and publishing. But not CanWest, it seems. A couple of weeks ago, we told you about a lawsuit CanWest has launched against West Coast website The Tyee. Now another has surfaced, involving, on one level, questions about trademark and allegations of a conspiracy "to embarrass and to injure" media giant CanWest.
But at another level, the dispute revolves around tension over opinions on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. Furthermore, CanWest's statement of claim filed last December against defendants that include political activist Mordecai Briemberg, alleges that the conspiracy was motivated by hostility aimed at the Asper family, who are principal shareholders in CanWest and strong supporters of Israel.
The lawsuit concerns the publication last June of a four-page parody of CanWest's Vancouver Sun newspaper. (It contained, for example, a weather report, "Operation Summer Rains with occasional missile showers and chance of tank shelling in the afternoon.") CanWest, in its statement of claim, calls it a "fake newspaper" and points to the use of the Sun's distinctive logo. ...
Mr. Briemberg's statement of defence, filed in January, denies that he conspired with anyone, or that he published the fake newspaper or that he republished the content on any website. He also denies "being motivated by hostility" toward the Aspers. However, he does admit to handing out a number of copies of a four-page document in June, 2007.
On the NECEP website, Mr. Briemberg positions his fight as "the democratic right to use satire and other forms of humour to critique those in positions of power and wealth" rather than a question of possible trademark violation.
Here's some previous posts on CanWest's actions against the Tyee, which is probably getting spanked for other articles that aggrieved CanWest but for which they couldn't sued:
Feb. 8: Sometimes sorry isn't enough