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Can Ben Stein’s Expelled be sued by angry Darwinists?

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That’s the warning I received from an anonymous “wellwisher” (?) here at the Post-Darwinist:

I do hopw that the makers of “Expelled” are aware of the lawsuits launched against the makers of “What the Bleep…”, given that they obtained their interviews with several biologists unders false pretenses.

I asked a contact at the studio, and he tapped back,

No worries. Reality is, in the U.S. you can sue a baloney sandwich if you want.

Well, I guess that Bleeps all.

Note: An incident similar to this one may be what the anonymous correspondent has in mind.

Also

Here’s my review of What the Bleep …?

I hadn’t realized that famous former atheist Antony Flew was one of the people saying that intelligent design should be explored in British science classes.

In this podcast, I express my appreciation for the work of Larry Moran and PZ Myers in promoting intelligent design.

Comments
[...] Hence we have headlines like: Hollywood Gets the Message About Suppression of Intelligent Design New Ben Stein Flick, Expelled, Blows the Whistle on the Darwinist Inquisition. (an Inquisition!) Can Ben Stein’s Expelled be sued by angry Darwinists? What Happened to Freedom of Speech? [...]Premise Media Loves Cranks [denialism blog] · Articles
September 2, 2007
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BTW they can sue but will any judge allow the case?
The maker of "Borat" has been sued at least once for doing a documentary that didn't turn out the way participants had hoped... http://www.simplydumb.com/2006/12/12/frat-boys-lose-borat-lawsuit/ http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2006-11-20-borat-lawsuit_x.htmruss
August 26, 2007
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A Google search for Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed already returns over a thousand hits.EndoplasmicMessenger
August 26, 2007
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Can I sue my former high school and university for teaching me that Common Descent via culled genetic accidents is a scientific premise? It sure looks like I can- the teachers were obviously full of balogna. Here it is the 21st century and we still don't even know whether or not any amount of mutations can account for the diversity of life we observe. But I digress. It looks like the whining will provide more entertainment than any movie could hope to. BTW they can sue but will any judge allow the case?Joseph
August 25, 2007
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Sue? A darwinist resort to using the courts to protect their "scientific" theory? Never!shaner74
August 25, 2007
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When the film makers interviewed me they made it clear the materials could be used for something other than the documentary. I had to sign as well. This is what Eugenie signed, and presumably PZ. Eugenie Scott at Pandas Thumb
“…footage and materials in and in connection with the development, production, distribution and/or exploitation of the feature length documentary tentatively entitled Crossroads…and/or any other production….” –Eugenie Scott's copy of her agreement to submit herself to exploitation by ID proponents
EXPLOITATION!!! PZ Myer agreed to exploitation by ID proponents in marketing ID. There is almost something too funny about this because in truth he has done so much to promote intelligent design, and now he contractually agrees to be exploited by ID proponents. And they pay him $1,200 for his services after they exploit him. Too funny.scordova
August 25, 2007
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I think there was a lot of foresight put into this movie. The only reason to sue is an interview under false pretense- However, it won't make what they said anymore false. If someone said "I like hotdogs" in an interview about baseball, then chances are they still like hotdogs if the clip is put into a movie about hotdogs. Tribune is correct, suing will only bring free advertising- and may give credence to the point the movie is trying to make. And BornAgain- I saw "What the Bleep"- prepare to be bored :-Pbork
August 25, 2007
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Anybody can be sued by anybody. Since the movie has yet to come out, I don't know why anybody might think they have a case. I'm guessing that if the movie is a professional effort, they had legal people getting the appropriate releases and crossing the ts and dotting the i's. And of course, if it's true, i.e. PZ (or whomever) expressed similar views on his blog, well, any lawsuit would fail and the publicity would only help the cause.tribune7
August 25, 2007
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Thanks for the info, I'm going to have to get the DVD of What The Bleep.bornagain77
August 25, 2007
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