Pepe Creator Files Copyright Suit Against InfoWars

The Wrap reports:

No fake news here — Alex Jones’ InfoWars is being sued by the creator of inadvertent alt-right mascot, Pepe the Frog. Cartoonist Matt Furie filed suit against conspiracy theorist Jones’ InfoWars on Monday, alleging that his amphibian creation was used without his authorization. “Artist Matt Furie created the Pepe the Frog character in the early 2000s. At his creation, Pepe was a ‘peaceful frog-dude’ — a kind and blissful cartoon character, who lived alongside three animal roommates, and became famous in part because of his catchphrase, ‘feels good man.’the suit, filed in federal court in California, reads.

Law & Crime reports:

According to the lawsuit, Pepe’s image has been used to sell products online, including a poster sold by InfoWars that bears the acronym “MAGA” and images of figures including InfoWars founder Alex Jones, President Donald Trump, Ann Coulter, and Pepe. The lawsuit says that the poster had a price tag of $17.76, but at the time of this publication, InfoWars was selling the poster for $29.95, with a note saying, “we’ll be forced to take it down forever when we run out, so make sure you get this collectible poster today!”

From the Hollywood Reporter:

“Beginning in 2015, various fringe groups connected with the alt-right attempted to co-opt Pepe by mixing images of Pepe with images of hate, including white supremacist language and symbols, Nazi symbols, and other offensive imagery,” states the complaint lodged in court Monday. “Furie has worked hard to counteract that negative image of Pepe, including collaborating with the Anti-Defamation League on the #SavePepe campaign to restore Pepe as a character representing peace, togetherness, and fun.”

Jones reacted today in the clip below.