Fox News, Robin Carnahan Settle Lawsuit

An excerpt from the advertisement in question.

​Three months after the election and nearly five months after it was filed, Fox News and its anchor Chris Wallace have settled a suit against former U.S. Senate contender Robin Carnahan.

The network filed the lawsuit in response to a Carnahan' campaign ad that showed an excerpt from a Fox News program in which Wallace asked critical questions of Roy Blunt, the Republican candidate who eventually won the Senate race against Carnahan.

In a joint statement the two sides stated:

"Robin Carnahan for Senate Inc. acknowledges that Fox News is the sole and exclusive copyright owner of its programs, including, without limitation, 'Fox News Sunday,' that Chris Wallace has legal interests in protecting his rights of personal privacy and of publicity, and that unauthorized use of Fox News's footage and Wallace's persona, voice, and identity by political campaigns and others could infringe upon those rights.

"The Carnahan campaign further acknowledges that the amount and kind of footage used in its 'Clean Up The House' advertisement, as well as the manner in which the footage was used in the advertisement, exceeded that which is permitted.

"The Carnahan campaign believed that the campaign's usage was permissible under the copyright fair use doctrine. Both sides acknowledge that the political advertisement in question is no longer being used and will not be disseminated in the future. The Carnahan campaign does not support or condone conduct by any political actor that is inconsistent with individuals' rights or with the legal protections afforded to owners of intellectual property."