THE INTERNET IS CHANGING

[Duchess]

The family of a Tennessee man with Down syndrome was devastated when they discovered a photo of their disabled son had spawned a derogatory Internet meme. So to quash the widespread use of the altered image and -- hopefully -- help others who may be subjected to the offense in the future, Adam Holland's family filed a $18 million lawsuit last week.

The photo of a teenage Holland holding up a piece of his artwork during a class at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center in 2004 did not make waves until last year, when modified versions of the image that included defamatory messages popped up on numerous websites.

"It was devastating for this family, emotionally," Larry Crain, the attorney who represents the Hollands, told Nashville's WSMV-TV. "He's a very likable, very presentable young man who I don't think fully appreciates the hurt that's been inflicted on him."

Though the family is not aware of exactly how the photo sparked the meme nearly a decade later, the Hollands pinpointed several sites, including the website of Florida radio station WHPT-FM, that allegedly repurposed the photo.

Having filed the defamation suit in a Tennessee U.S. District Court on April 22, the Hollands seek from three parties $3 million in compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages, amounting to $18 million in total.

[JsMom]

That's terrible. That poor baby. Fuckin' worthless assholes. Like that child doesn't endure enough just living with DS.

[Duchess]

That kind of thing happens all the time. Everyday. It was done to LC after her death.

[sally]

I remember seeing a thread on a body building forum where some guy posted a picture of an Asian girl in a bikini posing next to a red Honda or some kind of car like that. He jokingly said that was his beautiful girlfriend and new ride. The girl was extremely homely, but her body was decent and the thread turned into like 2000 pages people of making fun of her and photo shopping paper bags over her head. Then it spread to her facebook where people were sending the girl hate mail.

[username]

The photo must have been available to the public somewhere online. Shame but you take that risk.

[RaisingAPrince]

The photo must have been available to the public somewhere online. Shame but you take that risk.

I wonder how that will play into the lawsuit. If the photo was online somewhere and copyrighted, they may have a leg to stand on, but if it wasn't and was available for download, I can't see where they would win.

[Duchess]

If the photo was online somewhere and copyrighted, they may have a leg to stand on

I think so too. Mock has a copyright - All rights reserved but it doesn't stop people from taking pix or plagiarizing content.