So it turns out that Indie bands Xiu Xiu and Fucked Up filed a class action lawsuit against Camel cigarettes’ parent company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Rolling Stone, and the magazine’s parent company, Wenner Media, according to a Daily Swarm report. The suit– filed on December 17 on behalf of 186 artists whose names appeared in Rolling Stone’s “Indie Rock Universe” feature, tucked conspicuously within a fold-out advertisement for Camel’s indie-friendly “The Farm” campaign in the magazine’s November 15 issue– accuses the defending parties of “unauthorized use of artists’ names; unauthorized use of artist names for commercial advantage (right of publicity); and unfair business practices.“. Yeah, I mean how can something like that be overlooked when so many people have such an eager eye to scrutinize? Xiu Xiu and Fucked Up essentially claim that Rolling Stone created and presented their feature with full knowledge that it would appear part and parcel with the Camel ad. The plaintiffs ask that the magazine print a follow-up feature equal in size to the original clarifying that artists’ names were used without consent. They’re also seeking financial recompense for damages. While this marks the first time Rolling Stone has found itself the subject of legal action following the ad scandal, nine states’ Attorneys General have already filed lawsuits against Camel for using cartoons to sell tobacco products. So, it is just get away with as much as possible until someone catches you up, you get all kinds of publicity and a chance to make amends…it’s all a game…but you knew that.
-you’re just a player in the game to the industries.
