South Park and Copyright Infringement 

South Park is a wild, no-holds-barred comedy. This show doesn’t just push boundaries—it blasts right through them, turning uncomfortable topics into animated satire. But here’s the twist: how does South Park ‘get away’ with incorporating elements of others’ copyrighted works without crossing the line into copyright infringement? 

In copyright law, the owner of the work has the exclusive right to copy, distribute copies, create derivative works, and perform the work in public, in person, or digitally. Although certain exceptions allow others to use copyrighted content, these cases are limited. U.S. copyright law provides an exception under the “fair use” doctrine under section 107 of the Copyright Act to determine when copyrighted material can be legally used without permission. For such fair use exceptions, four key factors are considered:

1. Purpose and Character of the Use: This factor is about transformative use. Uses that add new expression or meaning to copyrighted works are favored under the fair use doctrine. Non-commercial, educational uses are also more likely to qualify as fair use. On the other hand, purely commercial uses are less likely to be considered fair use.

2. Nature of the Work: Factual works, such as scholarly or news articles, are more likely to qualify for fair use than purely creative ones.

3. Amount and Substantiality: Using smaller portions of a work favors fair use, especially when the copyrighted work is broken down into smaller pieces rather than using the entire work.

4. Effect on the Market: If the use harms the original work’s market or potential revenue, it is less likely to qualify as fair use, ("U.S. Copyright Office Fair Use Index," 2023).

These four factors are reviewed carefully and applied by the court in every case. When a copyright infringement case is brought to court, the judge will ask for evidence and compare the substantiality of the derivative work against the original copyrighted work. The court will then decide the winning party based on the evidence provided.

For example, the animated show South Park frequently uses parody, often exaggerating and satirizing real-life figures and events. The Copyright Act considers parody a type of fair use, meaning creators don’t need permission to parody copyrighted content, (Williamson, 2021). Shows like South Park also reference, comment on, or make fun of characters or situations, which can be transformative, making them distinctive enough while still referring to the original source. For instance, in Season 26, South Park featured Prince Harry and Meghan Markle but rebranded them as “the Prince of Canada” and “his wife.” Prince Harry’s memoir Spare was also included in the episode, but the title was changed to “WAAAGH.” These modifications can fall under the fair use doctrine without risking copyright violations. South Park creators often create bold examples of fair use through their creative parodies.

It is not a surprise that South Park has been involved in several cases and controversies around copyright infringement, both as a defendant and a plaintiff. Here is an example: