Altered Chip Bok cartoon at center of brouhaha

Tumblr.com has removed an altered version of a cartoon by former (22-year) BJ cartoonist Chip Bok and warned the perpetrators that two more strikes and they will be banned from the web site.

Chip Bok

They took Chip’s cartoon about Net Neutrality, changed the words in the balloon, but kept Chip's signature and artwork, making it look like Chip did it.

Their defense: Parody is protected by Supreme Court rulings. Chip’s syndicators said it was a copyright violation of the Bokblusters cartoon.

By the way, Chip was born Arthur Bernard Bok III before he began his cartoonist career in 7^th grade math class. He got paid for cartoons at the Clearwater (Florida) Sun and the Miami Herald before he joined the BJ in 1987. 

The University of Dayton graduate was named  Best Editorial Cartoonist nationally in 1995 and 1999 and was a Pulitzer finalist in 1997. And has more awards than you can shake a cartoonist’s pen at.

Chip and wife Deb have 4 children.

You can check out the controversy for yourself by clicking on

http://agoodcartoon.tumblr.com/post/113088254975/hi-weve-received-a-notification-of-alleged

If you really want to be confused about how the Supreme Court determines whether it’s parody protected under free speech or a copyright infringement, click on http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/parody-satire