Internet cartoonist's charity fundraiser turns into free speech debate

The Oatmeal

This cheeky response to a legal threat began a successful charity fundraiser, but it also led to convoluted drama.

By Rosa Golijan

Most of the time, I avoid calling legal fights "bizarre" or "unbelievable," but both terms seem applicable towhat is going on between cartoonist Matthew "The Oatmeal" Inman and attorney Charles Carreon.

In less than a month,a lawsuit threat was turned into a highly successful charity fundraiser which then became a legal drama so twisted that a crowd-sourcing website, two charities, one hundred individuals listed as "John Doe," and even the California state attorney general found themselves involved.

But why does all this matter to you?

Because freedom of speech is on the line as it often is whenever someone's Internet activity leads to a legal mess.

Wait! How'd we get to this point?Even though many people don't recognize his name, 29-year-oldMatthew "The Oatmeal" Inman is a popular cartoonist. You've probably seen plenty of his work such as "10 Words You Need To Stop Misspelling,""What It's Like To Own An Apple Product," or "Cat vs Internet" in yourFacebookfeed, on Twitter, or on your favorite blog at some point. It's almost impossible to avoid Inman online.

As we explained when we intially begain covering the Carreon vs. Inman drama, the popularity of Inman's work often prompts websites to repost it without asking or crediting him. More often than not, these websites will even profit from this practice.

About a year ago, Inman got fed up with a website called FunnyJunk which had become particularly prone tore-hosting and monetizing his work. Hewrote a blog postdeclaring that FunnyJunk had "practically stolen [his] entire website."The website's owner respondedby claiming that Inman was threatening to sue him and removing any content which referenced "The Oatmeal."

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Internet cartoonist's charity fundraiser turns into free speech debate