My Quest for Truth, Justice and Taylor Hicks

I happened upon a site on-line a short time ago that I thought might be an answer to my longing to find a group of folks to share real, direct, toss-out-the-Kool-aide, Taylor Hicks news and views. A quest to discover a real place to discuss Taylor, a place to discuss music in general, a place to occasionally enjoy a little harmless snark and speculation about the man I came to admire on American Idol.

In my web wanderings I came upon this site, TFHzone. I enjoyed the initial feel of the site, direct and honest. But one thing leads to another and the site has been slowly morphing, curtailing the blunt honesty and open discussions. I noticed vibe beginning to change when a topic was deleted that focused on on-line writers.

This discussion evolved into a critiquing and an expression of opinions for a relatively new product being formed called "Modern Whomp Magazine". Apparently the young woman who is developing this magazine, Claudia Oakenfull, threatened the owner/operator of TFHzone.com with legal harm should they continue to use their First Amendment privileges. Considering that Ms. Oakenfull is now a self-made editor and self-proclaimed writer she should be ashamed to take such action. It should be looked at as Ms. Oakenfull stepping on and violating TFHzone's rights to freedom of expression. Seems to me, reading the Constitutional law, perhaps Ms. Oakenfull may be the one in violation and subject to legal pursuit for her very threats. Afterall, isn't it a writer's right for self-expression? Is this still America or have we decided to opt for laws governing Russia, with censorship celebrated. Honestly, that is what Ms. Oakenfull is perpetuating, censorship and stifling of another's freedom of expression. It smacks of hypocrisy and violation of the writer's code.

What would happen if you wrote a letter to an editor of your local newspaper saying your thought his last article to be ridiculous or poorly researched and then had lawyers at your door citing you for libel? It wouldn't happen and couldn't happen because no law was broken.

Slander defined: A type of defamation. Slander is an untruthful oral (spoken) statement about a person that harms the person's reputation or standing in the community. Because slander is a tort (a civil wrong), the injured person can bring a lawsuit against the person who made the false statement. If the statement is made via broadcast media -- for example, over the radio or on TV -- it is considered libel, rather than slander, because the statement has the potential to reach a very wide audience.

Okay, reading that definition, Ms. Oakenfull could not cite slander since all statements regarding her numerous run-on sentences were true. Any English or Literature professor upon reading Ms. Oakenfull's material would agree.

So let's look at libel, another nasty little legalese term that possibly could be viewed:

Libel: noun
A false and malicious publication printed for the purpose of defaming a living person.
or:
A false publication, as in writing, print, signs, or pictures, that damages a person's reputation.

Pay careful attention to the key wording in all this; FALSE. Nothing was said that wasn't true about Ms. Oakenfull. Even some good advice provided to enable writing improvements. I have to say I like the look of her website, it's very attractive and she plays some good old Taylor Hicks tunes. I admire the enterpreneurial spirit; thing is, she's not a gifted writer. Obviously she doesn't want to be informed of that fact, nor does she take criticism well. Reporters and writers need a thick skin, should she be the author of much of the publication, she better develop an elephant hide.

Sadly the TFHzone site has modified even further from this point with numerous topics taken down, deleted. I have no idea why. I keep visiting and reading because I have enjoyed my time there. On a search for more Hicks' news and views I came across a site I kept reading about call MFOYA. I wondered what the fuss was about and satisfied my quest this week and discovered Making Fun of Your Ass. Focus of this group seems to be mainly in debunking the Taylor Hicks' rumored romance with Caroline Lyders and I must say, MFOYA makes a tenaciously compelling argument. She is like a pitbull on this topic (yet I see no lawsuits emerging from any court).

I especially enjoyed the topic posted called Doogie H. Douchebag and Company targeted towards one previously thought of Taylor Hicks confidant and expert. It was entertaining to read all the posts. Regarding the subject of the post - I had extended a hand in friendship toward this individual during the early months of Taylor's Idol quest. I had the first fanblog and he the first website. We e.mailed once when I warned him about the first t-shirt he was marketing on the site. The shirt featured an outline of Taylor Hicks. I extended a warning that he may have to stop with the shirt. Indeed, almost immediately after I contacted him, he was told to take it down. I went through a similar situation with Bo Bice during season 4 so I had some experience in marketing likenesses and Idol - it ain't gonna happen. After that he pretty much ignored me, I never understood why.

Bottom line, it's a good site to check out and visit.

Finally finishing up this posting with some local Taylor Hicks news. Taylor is scheduled to revisit Dallas after the first of the year. Read here: Taylor Hicks visits Greenhill School. "...Students, parents, and faculty will get the chance to enjoy American Idol's 2006 winner, Taylor Hicks, at their yearly Greenhill Gala. This year's event is titled "Heart and Soul" and will feature catering, a live auction, and a dance floor to move your feet and shake your... well whatever you got to shake." It's for a good cause, proceeds from the Gala will go to the Greenhill Endowment for Financial Aid.

First Hicks promotes lake property in Alabama, now the Greenhill School.