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| C4 WINS ALI G LAWSUIT
- By Robin Parker.
Channel 4 has successfully defended an $800,000 (£550,000) libel case brought against the US version of Da Ali G Show.
But C4, which had the international licence for the series and broadcast it in the UK as well as handling all foreign sales, took the case to court after the plaintiff pursued charges relating to the show's wider distribution. "Obviously a spoof" In his ruling in favour of C4, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Terry Friedman, said it was "obvious that the Ali G character is absurd, and all his statements are gibberish and intended as comedy." He added: "The programme is obviously a spoof of a serious interview programme. No reasonable person could think otherwise." Baron Cohen is no stranger to legal challenges to his work, with his film Borat attracting several lawsuit attempts from contributors over alleged mistreatment. Rare pro-media victory C4 controller of legal and compliance Prash Naik said of the Ali G case: "This is an important ruling for Channel 4 and sends out a clear signal that we will not hesitate to fight unmeritorious claims of this nature." The action was fought by SDD Global Solutions, the India arm of C4's US counsel, SmithDehn LLP. C4 pointed out that this case was a rare pro-media victory for TV satire in the US and only the second successful case of its kind after a case involving Saturday Night Live. The victory contrasts with a 2001 libel case, in which C4 had to pay a fire-safety officer £10,000 over an episode of Phoenix Nights featuring a fire-safety officer character of the same name who was alleged to have had sex with dogs. See original article here |
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