The satirical news website, The Babylon Bee, is suing the state of Hawaii over a new law that could be used to censor online content, including satire and parody.
Under law S2687, which was passed last July, portraying a politician in a way that damages their “reputation or electoral prospects” is penalised. “Materially deceptive media” is also banned under the law.
The law does allow online satire, but requires large disclaimers telling the reader that it is satire. The Babylon Bee has said it is not willing to place such a disclaimer on its site, although given it operates under the tagline, “Fake News You Can Trust”, it could be argued they already do.
The site is well known as a Christian satire website, running such stories as “USS Harvey Milk To Be Renamed ‘USS No Homo’” and “Scholars Now Believe Prophet Elijah Was Caught Up To Heaven In a Fiery 1977 Pontiac Trans Am”.
The Bee is being joined in its lawsuit by Dawn O’Brien, a resident of Hawaii, who has had to cease posting her satirical content for fear of the penalties imposed by the law. The first violation of the law alone can carry a sentence of a month in prison and a $1,000 fine. A second violation within five years can lead to a year in prison and a fine of $2,000.
The Bee and Ms O’Brien are being represented by attorneys from the Alliance Defending Freedom International (ADF).
Seth Dillon, CEO of the Babylon Bee, said, “We’re used to getting pulled over by the joke police, but comedy isn’t a crime. The First Amendment protects our right to tell jokes, whether it’s election season or not. We’ll never stop fighting to defend that freedom.”
Mathew Hoffman, who is ADF’s legal counsel, described the Hawaiian law as straightforward censorship.
“Satire has served as an important vehicle to deliver truth with a smile for centuries, and this kind of speech receives the utmost protection under the Constitution," he said.
"The First Amendment doesn’t allow Hawaii to choose what political speech is acceptable, and we are urging the court to cancel this unnecessary censorship.”
