Meme baby lawsuit against former Rep. Steve King set for trial in November
Former U.S. Rep. Steve King of Iowa will have to defend his campaign's social media memes in court after a judge agreed to let a copyright lawsuit against him proceed to trial.
King represented northwest Iowa from 2003 to 2021. He was sued in December 2020 by Laney Griner, who holds the copyright to a photo of her son Sam as an infant clenching his fist during a beach vacation. Sam's expression of steely determination gave rise to the popular "success kid" online meme.
At issue in the lawsuit is a meme showing Sam — now superimposed over a background of the U.S. Capitol — urging King supporters to "fund our memes." It linked to a fundraising web page for King.
The image was used on King's campaign social media and through the online fundraising platform WinRed, without licensing from the Griners.
"Laney and Sam were both horrified to learn that Defendant has used Laney’s photograph of Sam and Sam’s likeness as campaign propaganda for King, someone whose statements and beliefs they find abhorrent," according to the complaint.
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House members condemned King in 2019 after the New York Times published an article quoting him saying, “White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” The Kiron Republican maintains the Times misquoted him or mischaracterized his words.
In the meme case, lawyers for both the plaintiffs and King have asked the court to grant summary judgment in their favor. On Aug. 9, U.S. District Judge C.J. Williams agreed to dismiss a few of the claims against King and his campaign, but ruled the rest of the disputes between the parties should be decided by a jury. A trial date is now set for Nov. 14.
In his order, Williams wrote that copyright infringement claims against King himself should be dismissed, since the Griners did not prove that King was personally involved in creating, approving or posting the meme. But he rejected the King campaign's argument that the copyright on the photo was invalid, and ruled that invasion of privacy claims against both parties can continue.
The Griners also moved for summary judgment, arguing it is undisputed that King's campaign used their protected photo without permission. Williams, however, ruled that a reasonable jury could find that the edited version of the picture used by the campaign is no longer "substantially similar" to the original image.
Previously: Meme toddler's mom sends cease-and-desist to Rep. Steve King for copyright infringement
"A reasonable jury could find that the photographs are dissimilar in expression because the background provides context which alters the perception of Sam Griner’s pose and expression," Williams wrote. "In the end, the court finds that this is a very close call, not a certainty. Reasonable minds can differ on those questions, based on the record before the Court."
In a statement to the Des Moines Register after the judge's order, King denied wrongdoing, as he has throughout the case.
"It is a petty and politically motivated case of litigation persecution," he said. "I had no involvement or prior knowledge whatsoever and the plaintiff and her attorneys know that."
An earlier version of this article misstated the name of Laney Griner, Sam Griner's mother.
William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com, 715-573-8166 or on Twitter at @DMRMorris.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Success Kid meme lawsuit against former Rep. Steve King set for trial
