What is satire allowed to do? A beekeeper from Meißen wants this to be clarified legally. He was shown on the TV show “Magazin Royale” without being asked and turned the tables – to the displeasure of the moderator.
TV satirist Jan Böhmermann wants to ban a beekeeper from Meißen from advertising certain honey products using his name and image. Since the entrepreneur, who had previously appeared involuntarily on his show “ZDF Magazin Royale”, refused to issue a cease and desist declaration, Böhmermann sued. Now his lawyers and the beekeeper met in the Dresden district court for a conciliation hearing. A settlement was not achieved before the civil chamber; now a judgment in the matter is to be announced on February 8th.
Böhmermann believes his personal rights have been violated because a poster in the supermarket with his likeness and name is advertising a “beewashing honey”. The beekeeper created it after the presenter named the Saxon entrepreneur on the show on November 3, 2023 and also showed his picture without consent, the judge described the facts. The show was about criticism of companies that made money by sponsoring honey bees by exploiting ignorance. In doing so, they would be practicing “beewashing” as a form of greenwashing – a play on words between greenwashing and the English term for bees, according to the tenor of the television report.
Beekeeper reacts in a satirical way
The beekeeper tried to react with the honey “on the same level in a satirical form”. He was then sued because of an advertising poster with a photo of Böhmermann from the program in question. Given the plaintiff’s fame, it was clearly evident that it was satire, argued the defense attorney. His client advertises the product with a figure that had “frustrated” him weeks before, and thus passes the ball back.
From the other side’s perspective, the impression is created that their client is promoting the product. The use of the term for this is not being attacked, said the lawyer, “it’s just about the name and image.” The beekeeper wants a fundamental decision. The format of the show is called investigation satire and is “almost unassailable” due to this mixed form, said his lawyer. Whether his client’s attempt to immediately rehabilitate himself “is permissible and where the limits lie is a very exciting question that the BGH has not yet answered.”
Source: Stern
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