Elton John loses defamation case against The Guardian
By Tony Grew • December 12, 2008 - 17:48
The article mocked Sir Elton's charity work
A spoof column satirising gay star Sir Elton John was not defamatory, the High Court in London has ruled.
The singer had claimed the humourous article, by Marina Hyde, made fun of Sir Elton's charity work and joked that he held events such as the White Tie Ball for self-promotion and to meet celebrities and not to raise serious funds.
In the spoof, Sir Elton recounts singing Happy Birthday to former South African President Nelson Mandela, "I love you, you adorable, apartheid-fighting teddy bear."
Sir Elton described the "A Peek At The Diary Of …" column, published on July 5th, as having a "gratuitously offensive, nasty and snide tone."
Mr Justice Tugendhat disagreed.
At an interim judgment hearing today he said: : "the words complained of … could not be understood by a reasonable reader of the Guardian Weekend section as containing the serious allegation pleaded."
Sir Elton, who was seeking damages and an apology, was ordered to pay costs. He may appeal the judgement.
Guardian News & Media, owners of The Guardian, had argued that the article represented a satirical piece of comment rather than a factual account and made an application to strike out the factual meaning of his claim.
Guardian News & Media said in a statement: "We're sorry that Elton John lost his sense of humour over this article.
"The judge - and, we suspect all readers - saw the article for what it was; a piece of mild satire. Newspapers have published satire since the 17th century in this country: the judgment is an important recognition of the right to poke the occasional bit of fun."
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http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-9879.htmlLabels: elton
Question: Can people in civil partnerships visit their partner in the hospital and have the same right to information as married couples?
Answer: Yes, by going to your expensive lawyer and paying him/her to draw up papers - however, a quickie marriage in Vegas (or elsewhere) grants you that right plus over 1,100 benefits under the Constitution in a country where you pay state and US taxes - just pay the Elvis preacher a small fee. Also, that "quickie" marriage will be recognized in all 50 states under the "full faith and credit act" under the Constitution instantly. Current same-sex marriages are not afforded those rights and none cannot file jointly on there income taxes - which they pay.
Tom Dempsey
--- In QueerSouthernCalifornia@yahoogroups.com, Kathy L
wrote:
>
> not to sound ignorant, but can people in civil partnerships visit their partner in the hospital and have the same right to information as married couples?
> > --- On Wed, 11/12/08, Tom Dempsey wrote:
> From: Tom Dempsey
> Subject: [QueerSouthernCalifornia] USAToday: Elton John: Where Prop 8 went wrong (+ comment)
> To: "QueerAlabama" , "QueerAtlanta" , "QueerFlorida" , "QueerGeorgia" , "QueerGulfCoast" , "QueerLouisiana" , "QueerMississippi" , "QueerNewYork" , "QueerSouthernCalifornia" , "QueerSouthFlorida"
> Date: Wednesday, November 12, 2008, 6:34 PM
> > > > > > > > > > > > Thanks, Elton! Not helping! Separate but equal doesn't work for me.
> > Tom Dempsey
> Elton John: Where Prop 8 went wrong
> > > > NEW YORK — Sir Elton John, accompanied by his longtime partner David Furnish, had some choice words about California's Proposition 8, the ban on same-sex marriage that passed on Nov. 4.
> In December 2005, John and Furnish tied the knot in a civil partnership ceremony in Windsor, England. But, clarified the singer, "We're not married. Let's get that right. We have a civil partnership. What is wrong with Proposition 8 is that they went for marriage. Marriage is going to put a lot of people off, the word marriage."
> ...
> "I don't want to be married. I'm very happy with a civil partnership. If gay people want to get married, or get together, they should have a civil partnership," said John. "The word marriage, I think, puts a lot of people off. You get the same equal rights that we do when we have a civil partnership. Heterosexual people get married. We can have civil partnerships."
> > more...
> http://www.usatoday .com/life/ people/2008- 11-12-elton- john_N.htm
>
On Wed, Nov 12, 2008 at 8:34 PM, Tom Dempsey wrote:
Thanks, Elton! Not helping! Separate but equal doesn't work for me.
Tom Dempsey
Elton John: Where Prop 8 went wrong
NEW YORK — Sir Elton John, accompanied by his longtime partner David Furnish, had some choice words about California's Proposition 8, the ban on same-sex marriage that passed on Nov. 4.
In December 2005, John and Furnish tied the knot in a civil partnership ceremony in Windsor, England. But, clarified the singer, "We're not married. Let's get that right. We have a civil partnership. What is wrong with Proposition 8 is that they went for marriage. Marriage is going to put a lot of people off, the word marriage."
moreLabels: civil, elton, marriage, prop 8, unions
