“Can I use the names of airlines and cars in my novel?”
Can you use real airline names in your work? It depends.
libel
Yes, You CAN Be Sued for Libel, Even If What You Wrote “Is 100% True”
They can’t sue me because it’s 100% true. That is a very common misconception among authors and the general public.
Author Salman Rushdie Attacked, Stabbed on Stage Today – In The News – 08/12/2022
MORE: Why are we letting a vocal minority kill comedy?; America has lost a great historian; Paul Manfort releases new book; Censorship-free browser is not available; Free speech or DEI?; Former Gawker editor sues the Daily Beast; Lawsuit claims actress threatened to set ex on fire and kill his dog; and Folks in the Philippines fight for freedom of speech.
Is This New York Times Real Estate Writer SQUATTING? – In The News – 08/05/2022
MORE: Better Call Saul has been sued and you won’t believe why!; Publisher admits inserted material into author’s book without permission, Stephen King testifies against merger of two of the largest publishers; Librarian collects items left in books; and Alex Jones won’t recover from his stupidity and arrogance.
Amazon is Picking and Choosing Which Books to Ban – In The News – 07/15/2022
MORE: Author tries to stop cancel culture from banning Founding Fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence; Story hour drag queen admits drag is a political tool being used to destabilize children’s early understanding of sex; Journalist back on Twitter after suing the company for censorship; Another parent is silenced when trying to read a book to the school board because the book, available to children, is considered p*rn; Ohio college hasn’t paid libeled bakers and they now owe millions more in interest; and Professor sues university over free speech
Putting Your Publisher at Risk of a Lawsuit is NO SMALL MATTER!
While it may be tempting to take shortcuts, and “borrow” from others without permission, don’t do it. EVER.
How Our World Has Turned Journalists Into Cowards – In The News – 06/16/2022
MORE: Amazon chat app has a s*x abuse problem but “little is being done to stop it;” Associate Press gets caught in a HUGE lie!; Amazon using intimidation tactics to prevent unionization, including calling police on workers!; Netflix sued for defamation; In Japan, one year in jail for online insults; and Sports Illustrated tweet on Supreme Court case roils social media
Amazon Refuses to Reveal Charitable Contributions to Shareholders – In The News – 06/10/2022
MORE: Amazon exec. in charge of consumer biz resigns; NY freelancers now protected by new law; True crime documentary about the horror writer turned killer; Google/YouTube liable for defamation in Australia; Courageous Ukrainian journalist confronts Russia’s Sergei Lavrov over grain theft; Female authors now outnumber male authors in Israel; Mariah Carey sued over famous Christmas song; and The Washington Post is a big hot mess!
Winnie the Pooh and Piglet star in slasher film after their copyrights expire – In The News – 05/28/2022
MORE: Barriers being removed between authors and Hollywood; Newspaper publisher is giving away his business; Notorious mobster has published his autobiography; Removing library fines brings more books and patrons back; Children being force-fed woke curriculum; Man sued after creating fake email account; China continues to crack down on online dissenters; Big tech is a threat to free speech; NYC is giving inappropriate curriculum to 5 year olds; State Farm abandons program that advocated giving gender identity books to 5 year olds; and Florida university professor reinstated after getting fired for tweets
The Most Watched Defamation Trial EVER – In The News – 05/20/2022
MORE: Federal court deals setback to first amendment suit against Elizabeth Warren; Chicago mayor does photo-op in Texas bookstore when she should be working to stop shootings in her own city; Is People magazine closing its print division or not?; How far should social media companies be allowed to go with monitoring users?; Former NY Post digital chief settles explosive lawsuit; Author drops lawsuit over cocktail book; Newspaper gets sued for calling a billionaire an Oligarch; and The parody defense to a copyright infringement lawsuit was successful for this firm.