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Dov Charney Speaks
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 6, 2009
Modified May 7, 2009
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By
Jen Carlson
Published May 6, 2009
Modified May 7, 2009
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American Apparel's Dov Charney has finally broken his silence! He posted this very heartfelt, deep (v-neck) statement regarding the Woody Allen lawsuit to clear up any misconceptions:
I have deep respect for Mr. Allen who is a source of inspiration to me. The billboards and images from the Annie Hall movie were intended to be a parody/social statement and comedic satire to provoke discussion and public discourse about the baseless claims that had been made against American Apparel and myself, society's reaction to lawsuits that delve into an individual's private sexual life and the media's sensationalism of such matters.
The false media reportage is an obfuscation of the key issue in the case, which is whether the use of an image from the film Annie Hall, depicting Mr. Allen as the character Alvi Singer, for purposes of evoking a societal discussion about these issues is protected by the First Amendment.
In Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, The Supreme Court of the United States unanimously proclaimed: "At the heart of the First Amendment is the recognition of the fundamental importance of the free flow of ideas and opinions on matters of public interest and concern. The freedom to speak one's mind is not only an aspect of individual liberty - and thus a good unto itself - but also is essential to the common quest for truth and the vitality of society as a whole. We have therefore been particularly vigilant to ensure that individual expressions of ideas remain free from governmentally imposed sanctions."
Of course, using Hustler as an example when you're trying to prove you aren't a barely legal loving perv isn't exactly the way to go (nor is flooding the internet with images like the above), but we do agree with this whole First Amendment thing. However, is it really possible that Mr. Charney was using Woody Allen as a way to draw parallels to his own public image, and not to, like, sell things? It's sort of an outdated comparison, and Charney's mesh tanks aren't exactly on par with cinematic classics like Annie Hall. What do you think?
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american apparel
dov charney
lawsuit
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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