Addison Cain's lawyer e-mailed me, and it only got worse from there

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Video Essay
Title: Addison Cain's lawyer e-mailed me, and it only got worse from there
Creator: Lindsay Ellis
Date(s): October 23, 2020
Medium: Online
Length: 53 min, 26 seconds
Footage:
Fandom:
Topic: Omegaverse Litigation and the aftermath of posting Into the Omegaverse: How a Fanfic Trope Landed in Federal Court
External Links: The essay on Youtube
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Addison Cain's lawyer e-mailed me, and it only got worse from there was a follow-up video essay to Into the Omegaverse: How a Fanfic Trope Landed in Federal Court created by Lindsay Ellis and posted on October 23rd, 2020. In it, Lindsay details further interactions she had with Addison Cain, a central figure in the Omegaverse Litigation of 2020. The video has over 1,400,000 views and more than 46,000 comments as of November 1, 2020, and is at the centre of a significant fannish response. The video description reads:

Honey, you got a big storm comin'

The Video

Summary

The video reviews Lindsay's experience following the posting of her Into the Omegaverse video, and in particular a series of DMCA takedown notices sent to her by Addison Cain via a lawyer. The video constitutes Lindsay's response to Addison Cain's allegations of copyright infringement (through improper application of a Fair Use exemption) and defamation. It thus focuses more on Addison Cain’s behaviour behind the scenes of the litigation and the impacts her behaviour is having on others.

The video topics include:

  • An overview of relevant individuals or organizations, including Patreon, Youtube, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
  • A timeline of events following the upload of Lindsay's Into The Omegaverse video
  • Patreon and Youtube's correspondence with Lindsay in support of her
  • A brief overview of Fair Use copyright exemptions
  • Excerpts read aloud from the DMCA takedown notices sent by Addison Cain to Patreon and Youtube
  • Examples of other authors or individuals who have been embroiled with Addison Cain + encouragement to support them
  • The result of EFF taking Lindsay Ellis on as a client, with excerpts shared from a 40-page response sent by Cain and her representation alleging that Lindsay Ellis had created her initial video with the support of the EFF and OTW
  • Speculation about Addison Cain's response or lack thereof to the ALAB podcast
  • Coining of the phrase "Lindsay Ellis is a Menace" and "Fanfiction Deep State" among others

Excerpts

Timestamp – 34:51. So, why bring all of this up? Well, originally, this video was meant to be sort of a learning experience about copyright. But obviously, this isn't about copyright. Some people just want other people to shut up. And sometimes she (Cain) uses copyright law to do it. But most of the time, she doesn't.

Like, the way she uses this word "defamation" just so eagerly. I'm reminded of the way that el presidente is just so eager to expand libel laws in the US to be like the ones in the UK. So really this isn't even about copyright law anymore. And it never was. It's about deplatforming.

Cain has people she doesn't like. She wants to deplatform them. Just sometimes she uses the DMCA to do it. And I think this is really interesting because while I think she's wrong and is definitely abusing systems that are in place to protect people, it does kind of highlight a major problem. Which is that platforms don't really care about abuse. They don't care about harassment. And before you go there, Addison, no by no meaningful definition, legal or ethical, does this count as defamation, abuse, or harassment. However, as someone who has multiple times been on the wrong side of coordinated harassment campaigns, and is also friends with people who have gone through way, way worse, including having to move, sometimes move cities, I feel like I can say with some certainty, that platforms don't take harassment seriously. But you know what they do take seriously? Copyright. [1]

Timestamp – 43:22. Neither EFF nor OTW has anything to do with the production of that video. No collusion.

To date, I have not made a donation to EFF, especially since the damn video was demonetized. I only chose EFF because they were a nonprofit that was relevant to the topics of the court case. But Jesus Christ, the moon logic of bringing the OTW into this. Like, I don't even have an AO3 account. I have no contact or affiliation with OTW. I did reach out to them about this video, and they left me on read. The only connection I have with OTW is I wrote one article for them earlier this year, when my book came out, that nobody read. And I lost a Hugo to them last year. For best related work. You guys deserved to win the Hugo. It's fine.

But the moon logic of even connecting OTW to this case is that Ellis's lawyers hired Kristina Busse as their expert witness on the topic of fanfiction, and she happens to be on the board of OTW… In this case, the fact that the EFF has worked with OTW before on completely unrelated things, means that there is a fan fiction deep state keen on taking Addison Cain down. [1]

Lindsay's comments regarding Kristina Busse were inaccurate; she was brought on as an expert witness, but while she was on the Board at that time, she is now a former OTW Board Director and a current volunteer.[2]

Timestamp – 45:55. ...(The ALAB podcast) read out loud about as much copyrighted material as I did. And they were also a lot harsher. Going so far as to call Cain things like (redacted)... They also use her real name a lot, which I never did. So, I wonder, why did they never get a DMCA takedown notice or emails from her lawyer..?

(Excerpt from the podcast where they call Addison hot)

Uh huh. I guess that'll do it... And something that one of the guys in the podcast said inspired her to commission fanart of herself drinking the blood of her enemies. [1]

The fanart in question is available to view on the artist’s Twitter [3] and on Addison Cain’s Facebook page.

Timestamp – 49:01 And I don't want this to be the Addison Cain drama channel. I genuinely hope this is the last video I make on this subject. By which, I mean I hope we don't go to court.

That said, it is petty fandom bullshit, but it does real harm. In the great Regina George tradition, this does have impact on people's lives. Every single author that I talked to (except (one)) said that their careers have been harmed by everything Addison Cain has done. From DMCA on to petty fandom bullshit. Now that said, to reiterate myself: Don't harass her, god damn it! She blames me for every single one of you idiots that are shitty to her on social media.

I understand the energy needing to go somewhere. We're in quarantine and public shaming is fun. But if you really want to piss her off, instead of being an asshole on Twitter, support the authors that she has targeted. I was really glib about the whole erotica thing in the first video, and I kinda would like to backtrack that. Erotica is a real, legit genre, and if you're into it, go check them out. Most of it's ABO. Not for me. But it might be for you. Awoooo! [1]

Discussion and Comments

Both videos are being discussed in fannish spaces. See, as an example, this post on Tumblr by whencartoonsruletheworld from September 5 2020, updated on October 23 2020, which has over 36000 notes as of October 25 (13000+ reblogs). The part of the post relevant to this video reads:

UPDATE: THERE IS A FOLLOWUP VIDEO AND I’M LOSING MY MIND
  • the author of the offending book is attacking lindsay and it’s a war now
  • she tried to dmca takedown lindsay’s video
  • youtube got the takedown notice and actually said no
  • patreon offered to pay lindsay’s legal fees should anything happen
  • jenny nicholson reprises her oscar-worthy role as the villain
  • “I FEEL LINSAY ELLIS IS A MENACE, A THREAT TO MY CHILD, AND IS MONETIZING DEFAMATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCIAL GAIN”
  • a shitton of other authors get dragged into this
  • AO3 GETS DRAGGED INTO THIS
  • lindsay is called a “patreon personality”
  • she awoos
  • lindsay wears a wolf hat for almost all of the video
  • which just reminds you that this is all about wolf erotica [4]

The videos are also being discussed on sites like Reddit [5] [6]

Other fans are discussing the related hashtags, merchandise, and catchphrases which have sprung up after the followup video's release:

[shaaknaa]
(link to a fanfiction deep state hat)

@(user) @(user) I thought you’d get a kick out of this. It was spawned by that Omegaverse litigation. Lindsey Ellis just made a new video about the latest drama. [7]

[olderthannetfic]
BELIEVE ME, I AM WATCHING RIGHT NOW AND SCREAMING ON DISCORD ABOUT HOW ALL MY LOCAL FRIENDS NEED THESE. [8]
[purplemoonfox]
Guys it had to happen one of these days, but what the fuck is up in metaphorical Denmark? Fanfiction deep state? [9]
[olderthannetfic]
It’s a joke from Lindsay Ellis’s second omegaverse lawsuit video, which went up today. [10]
[bygodstillam]
If you have not watched both Lindsay Ellis’s video on the big omegaverse lawsuit drama in the het romance world, and the resulting new video (which this hat is a reference to) about how the instigator in the first drama has SICCED HER LAWYER ON LINDSAY FOR TALKING ABOUT IT, you really really need to. [11]
[thebibliosphere]
(embedded video)

I lost my shit many times watching this. Usually at Caine’s lawyer’s absolute blistering stupidity and willful misinterpretation of fair use laws and how copyright works. Like do you even know, how much of a fuck up you have to be, for Patreon to turn around to offer to pay the legal fees of the person you’re trying to file action against?

Also I want her wolf ears.[12]

A hashtag, #FanfictionDeepState was made and passed around; on Twitter, the hashtag couldn't be searched due to unrelated efforts around misinformation hashtags including the words "Deep State". Another notable phrase associated with the video was "Lindsay Ellis is a Menace".

The second video was also commented on by cfiesler, a member of the OTW legal team, who discussed in a Twitter thread the ins and outs of Fair Use as it applied to Lindsay’s video, and reaffirmed there was no involvement from the OTW in producing Lindsay Ellis’s videos [13]. Another Twitter user reacted with a meme regarding the claim about the OTW. [14]

Fanworks

Fanart

Memes

Further Reading and Meta

References

  1. ^ a b c d Ellis, L. [Lindsay Ellis]. (2020, October 23). Addison Cain's lawyer e-mailed me, and it only got worse from there [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3v5wFMQRqs Accessed Oct 23 2020
  2. ^ [1] Organization for Transformative Works Emerita Directors
  3. ^ Fanart of herself commissioned by Addison Cain, Tweet by ZakugaMignon posted August 20 2020 (accessed Oct 23 2020)
  4. ^ Tumblr post by whencartoonsruletheworld posted Oct 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020) (archived version)
  5. ^ The het non con omegaverse legal battle wars in R/Fanfiction, Started October 23 2020 (Accessed October 25 2020).
  6. ^ part two of the lindsey ellis het omegaverse saga in R/Fanfiction, Started October 23 2020 (Accessed October 25 2020).
  7. ^ Tumblr post by shaaknaa with a link to the Fanfiction Deep State hat available through Lindsay Ellis’s merch store, Posted October 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020).
  8. ^ Tumblr post by olderthannetfic, Posted October 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020).
  9. ^ Tumblr post by purplemoonfox, Posted October 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020).
  10. ^ Tumblr post by olderthannetfic, Posted October 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020).
  11. ^ Tumblr post by bygodstillam (dead link), posted Oct 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1 2020).
  12. ^ Tumblr post by thebibliosphere, posted Oct 23rd 2020 (Accessed Nov 1st 2020).
  13. ^ If you've watched the whole video you saw a part about a supposed fanfiction lawyer deepstate conspiracy between EFF and OTW Tweet by cfiesler, October 23 2020 (Accessed October 25 2020).
  14. ^ Reaction meme in a Tweet by LethalityJane, October 23 2020 (Accessed October 25 2020)
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