Late Night Host Stephen Colbert Dances Around IP Issue Over His Own Exaggerated Persona

CBS’s “The Late Show” opted to go live at the conclusion of each day of the Republican National Convention two weeks ago to better respond to the fodder the RNC provides. During one of the shows, host Stephen Colbert brought back his beloved fictional “Colbert” character from his immensely popular “The Colbert Report.” The character was retired after the show ended on Comedy Central and hasn’t been seen for more than a year as the real Stephen Colbert forged his own identity. However, it appears …

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Contestant Sues Viacom; “Dating Naked” Was “Not What She Anticipated”

On Friday, August 22, a contestant from VH1’s series “Dating Naked” filed a $10 million lawsuit against Viacom and two other production companies for broadcasting images of her naked.

Jessie Nizewitz, a model from New York, participated in the reality television show “Dating Naked,”  which aired in July.  The show revolves around several male and female participants who strip down to the buff and go on dates with each other in an island paradise.  During an on-beach wrestling incident, Niewitz claims that her …

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Google & Viacom Settle Seven Year Old Copyright Suit

On March 18, media giants Google and Viacom announced the settlement of a seven year old copyright dispute regarding content posted on YouTube.  In 2007, Viacom sued Google for copyright infringement accusing the company of posting Viacom programing on YouTube without permission.  The moneyless settlement ends the dispute with what the two companies are referring to as a collaborative effort.

The original suit was filed against YouTube, a Google owned company, seeking more than $1 billion in damages for the alleged infringements.  Viacom accused YouTube …

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Cold Hearted Snake: Former American Idol Contestant Files Libel Suit Against MTV and Viacom

Former American Idol contestant Corey Clark filed a libel lawsuit on Thursday, July 6 in the Middle District of Tennessee against MTV Networks Enterprises Inc. and its parent company Viacom International Inc., claiming that he was repeatedly defamed by an MTV news reporter.

Clark was a contestant on season two of the popular televised singing competition American Idol.  He was disqualified in 2003 after Idol officials learned that Clark had failed to disclose that he had been arrested in Topeka, Kansas, and that he …

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