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| Lemmings on Parade: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas! |
Posted by
feralucce on Monday, August 11, 2003 - 04:03 AM PST
As Callei can attest, I used to read tarot on Jackson Square. I have continued a long tradition of "seers" in the family by reading tarot and practicing multiple forms of divination, both at home and in public. About 10 years ago, my friend Timber and I started WindSong Mystical Services. We do a lot of things, but among them, Tarot Readings at local festivals. There is a festival in Columbia called "the Twilight Festival." This thing happens every June and September on Thursday evenings. This year, at sometime during the festivals, a young lady came to get a reading. Timber gave her a reading, and she went away, apparently happy.
July 17th, 2003. the new issue of Vox comes out... we read the local free magazine often. It has some great articles normally... and we are ALL FURIOUS. The Article is entitled "Psyched Out: as far as the future, the inner eye is blind." Before we read the article, we were mildly amused by the title. As we read, it became clear that all was not kosher in deli-land. The Young Lady in question had gotten a reading and felt that this was basis for writing an article. Neither of us fault her for this; in fact, had names been left out, we could have left it alone. BUT 1) They named Timber... "First name Timber, last name Wolf." 2) They misquoted him, (unless she had a tape recorder there, then she broke a surveillance law in Missouri) 3) There was no mention that: a) She was a reporter, or b) That she was doing this for an article 4) At the end of this section of the article, she goes on to say "Mr. Wolf also said things will be changing rapidly in the near future and that we were creative enough to start our own business. Well, if we were going to start a business, perhaps we could master the trade of tarot. Apparently, professional tarot card readers just need to buy a deck, learn what the cards mean, and set up a sidewalk stand during festivals. They don't even need psychic powers - just the ability to get the citizens of Columbia to suspend their disbelief long enough to make a quick $5."
Aside from the obvious grammatical problems ($5 should be five dollars, as units under double digits are supposed to be spelled out), this woman demeans my partner, and as a result, our entire Service, since many Columbians read VOX, and all of our advertising has been done with our names on the fliers. I suggest that we as a people use this as a "rally cry". We need to FORCE the media to take responsibility for the trash they spew. Like G.W.s "weapons of mass destruction", a great disservice has been done, and we the people need to right it. If you're not outraged by this world, you're not paying attention!<o:p></o:p> Feral As a form of Post Script, Sarah Stone, and the magazine, VOX, will be suffering from the burden of charges of Libel in the near future. I guess Timber was right; Things are going to be changing quickly
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Average Rating : 2.7
Total ratings : 7
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| Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas! | Login/Create an account | 16 Comments |
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by Arthegarn on Aug 11, 2003 - 06:10 AM
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First of all, Feral, could you post a transcript or a scan of the entire article? Perhaps there is something I can do, I might not be an Amercian lawyer (Though I really should think about getting a degree there... Anybody knows what has an European lawyer to do to work in the US?) but I am still very motivated and, though Lex may change, Ius is almost the same in all western countries. Perhaps I can offer some help and for sure I can offer some nice latin axioms.
In Spain there is such a thing as the Right of Rectification. It's a constitutional right against libel: whenever anything is printed and you are quoted, if you feel you have been misquoted you are to send a rectification to the medium, and they are forced to printo your rectification giving it as much importance as they gave to the original article. Of course you can only rectify facts, not opinions, but it includes giving complementary information for a better public understanding of the facts leading to the opinion. And I am afraid that "Apparently" turns libel into just opinion.
It would be also helpful if you could provide us with an e-mail address to manifest our discomfort. I have searched for VOX in the internet but I keep getting a popular firm of Spanish dictionaries.
As for the rest, I am quite a tarot reader myself. I have never charged for a reading (though I might have accepted a drink from time to time), however, so I am not a professional reader in the strict sense of the word. I have been offered a job as a reader many times, mainly by Goth club owners who wanted to boost business, but I have never accepted (though I have collaborated in several thematic nights as a reader in these clubs... I am not called el Brujo in madrid just by my charming voice, ya know). My point in telling you all of this is that I understand where you stand, even if I believe that going professional, charging for a reading, is asking for trouble. I don't mean that you deserve all this "unwanted publicity", but that it can be expected. After all, if I am labelled a sexually-repressed credulous dimwit who does whatever the priests tell him to do just because I have a particular faith, I am not surprised that others are labelled con artists by having a particular job related to a particular belief.
So you have all my sympathies, Feral, and send those to Timber too.
The number of camels is like the sands of the sea, and at least one writes in VOX
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by Dolorosa (SixOfSwords@IU.zzn.com)
on Aug 11, 2003 - 07:18 AM
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Break their bones Feral! Stuff like that always pisses me off...
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by Merry_Widow on Aug 11, 2003 - 08:58 AM
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That just smacks of illegal. Take her down.
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by VampCourt (Morbidchic@hotmail.com)
on Aug 11, 2003 - 10:32 AM
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http://www.geocities.com/vampcourt/index.html?1017202482720
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If you're not outraged by this world, you're not paying attention!
I agree. And sadly there are too many people that would rather be blind than see what is corrupt.
and as for your article, I think the woman could have written something a little more elaborate on tarot and what not instead of just picking you guys out for a flame or two. that just seems rather petty. You should write a nice long letter to VOX about it. Dont back down one instant.
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by ickgirl on Aug 11, 2003 - 10:59 AM
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While I agree that misquoting someone is a no-no, I do want to address something...
#4 states: "At the end of this section of the article, she goes on to say "Mr. Wolf also said things will be changing rapidly in the near future and that we were creative enough to start our own business. Well, if we were going to start a business, perhaps we could master the trade of tarot. Apparently, professional tarot card readers just need to buy a deck, learn what the cards mean, and set up a sidewalk stand during festivals. They don't even need psychic powers - just the ability to get the citizens of Columbia to suspend their disbelief long enough to make a quick $5."
this doesn't seem out of bounds to me, i dont think she overstepped any professional boundaries. These sorts of reviews in regard to all sorts of events, films, etc., are commonplace.
Pick up any publication and you'll read nasty reviews - should all of those writers be charged with libel?
should this Sarah Stone's article only have been published if what she had to say was positive?
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by Monolycus on Aug 11, 2003 - 11:56 AM
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I'm afraid I'm with Ick on this one. It sounds like your friend got panned, but not in an illegal way. Except for misquoting him (which is only libelous if he is misquoted as saying something that would hurt his business by making him sound like a bed person), the reporter just reported with a heavy opinion bias which is perfectly legal. If the paper has "Opinions expressed are solely those of the reporters" anywhere in its content, I don't see where you have grounds for much of a case against her or the paper. If criticism were against the law, Pauly Shore would be able to buy a new yacht after the critics got through with "Biodome".
It's terrible to say this, but anytime you do business with the public, you are entering the world of theatre... and in the world of theatre, it's best to have a pretty thick skin when reading the reviews. Anyway, I hope it all works out for you and you friend. Keep us posted. I am, I was, I will be
~M.
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by Domkitten (saradevil@saradevil.com)
on Aug 11, 2003 - 10:26 PM
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As much as I wish you luck bashing her to death, I'm afraid I too fear there is very little that you can do here legally that will be super effective. At the most it will be a huge headache for yourself and a dent in your wallet.
However, there are other things you can do.
One, you could write a letter to the editor, that is frequently done when the need to rebut an article comes up.
Two, you could write an article about the art of Tarot and interpertation, and the way in which you believe it is either effective or worthwhile, as a counterpoint to her article, to show a different view.
Three, if you are paying this newspaper to run your ads, and you are paying anything close to a substantial amount you could pull your ads from the paper.
Four, if the paper runs ads for other psychics, tarot artists, astroligers, etc, perhaps you could all band toghther and pull your advertising as a block and ask the newspaper to either print a retraction, or an article from a different vantage on the art of predicting the future.
Perhaps some of those might be more effective than finding her parking space and egging her car, while adding a well placed potato to her tail piple. More effective, although perhaps less fun.
Good Luck, either way.
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Re: Slander and Libel... it must be Christmas!
by feralucce (Iwouldliketokillyou@gofuckyourself.com)
on Aug 12, 2003 - 08:46 AM
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http://feralucce.vibechild.com
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UPDATE: VOX decided that they will send Timber a letter of apology but will not be printing a retraction. When the letter arrives, it is an apology for misquoting him. Sarah, who has been having problems with this has lost her job. Now... Timber's lawyer move into action... They opt, instead of libel, to pursue civil litigation.
You see, the beauty of the united states is that when something is wrong, even if it's not technically illegal... litigation in the civil courts can take place... Timber for the defamation of character and loss of income was awarded 10,000 from Ms Stone, payable over the next 2 years. Vox was a completely different story... He would have been happy with a story about tarot in a positive light with a retraction. it was that... or 20,000... well... vox magazine is owned by one of our local papers, which is owned by the university... the school payed him a cashiers check of 30,000 not to pursue the case... I guess he won...
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