# Parker and Stone apologise for plagerism **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 23, 2010, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064 "2010-10-23T02:00:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/21 "2010-10-23T17:11:42Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I’m forced to wonder how hard they really looked for a watchable copy of the movie. A friend who just got back from Iraq brought one with him he bought on the street over there for about $5 while it was still number 1 at the box office- says the quality was quite good. Obviously this isn’t legal, but I’d expect Parker and Stone to have more pull than an army reservist. Well, I don’t think a bootleg copy from Iraq is the easiest solution! I suppose they could’ve gotten a copy off the street in Manhattan (where do they work from anyway?) FedExed to them. Six days isn’t a lot of time to go poking around, though. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/22 "2010-10-23T20:17:37Z")
> [@Erdosain](#): > > Six days isn’t a lot of time to go poking around, though. No, but it would take about 6 seconds to find a torrent. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/23 "2010-10-23T20:52:24Z")
That would be illegal. They do work for a major cable network which has its own legal interests and public image to support. I doubt Comedy Central would give its blessings to a production crew breaking the law. Parker and Stone do have bosses. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/24 "2010-10-23T21:02:52Z")
I didn’t see the episode, but from what I’m reading here, it sounds like the _Inception_ stuff wasn’t even the whole episode, and that it was a little half-baked in general. If they had six days to make the whole thing, by the time they decided to put in the _Inception_ material, they might have had significantly less time to get their hands on a copy of the film. > [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > That would be illegal. They do work for a major cable network which has its own legal interests and public image to support. I doubt Comedy Central would give its blessings to a production crew breaking the law. Parker and Stone do have bosses. They also might have ethical objections to pirating the film. Just a WAG, but I suspect that _South Park_ is a pretty common target for copyright violations, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Parker and Stone are especially sensitive to the issue, especially given their reported libertarian leanings. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/25 "2010-10-23T21:09:33Z")
So that’s what that episode was about. I didn’t see Inception so didn’t have a frame of reference for the plot. Mostly I just thought it sucked and think they should apologize to the audience instead. ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/26 "2010-10-23T21:37:15Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > They also might have ethical objections to pirating the film. Just a WAG, but I suspect that _South Park_ is a pretty common target for copyright violations, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Parker and Stone are especially sensitive to the issue, especially given their reported libertarian leanings. I wonder if their show is actually watched illegally less frequently than other shows, simply because they do have every ep available online (albeit with commercials). I personally think it’s a brilliant business model. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/27 "2010-10-23T21:45:23Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > That would be illegal. Yup. Good insight. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2010, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/28 "2010-10-23T21:58:28Z")
It says in the [NYT blog post](http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/22/inception-parodies-seem-to-share-more-than-inspiration/)… > [@](#): > > When Mr. Parker and Mr. Stone could not find a movie theater showing “Inception,” and were unable to get a DVD screener of the film (or find a watchable version on BitTorrent), they turned to other parodies of that film on the Web, and found the CollegeHumor video. So yes, they claim to have attempted to download a torrent. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/29 "2010-10-24T00:41:15Z")
> [@Baal\_Houtham](#): > > ??? > You’re richnfamous and you plagiarize something so obviously that denial is futile, but as long as you fess up, no one should “have a go” at you? > > That’s your position? Pretty much, yeah. I’ve seen so much denial in utterly obvious copies over the years that i found their approach quite refreshing. I have to say that it is a bit depressing to see honesty as something refreshing, but such is life. Oh and rich and famous has nowt to do with it. Hell, so many people rip off the rich and famous, through downloads and whatnot, that no one really has the moral high ground anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/30 "2010-10-24T01:24:39Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > Pretty much, yeah. I’ve seen so much denial in utterly obvious copies over the years that i found their approach quite refreshing. I have to say that it is a bit depressing to see honesty as something refreshing, but such is life. > > Oh and rich and famous has nowt to do with it. Hell, so many people rip off the rich and famous, through downloads and whatnot, that no one really has the moral high ground anymore. South Park earns its keep slagging anyone that crosses the creators’ minds. But they should get no stick themselves? I don’t believe they thought they could steal gags off a semi-major internet site and not get caught, so I believe their explanation. It may have been plagiarism, but their gaffe was stupidity. (IANALawyer, but am guessing it does qualify as actual plagiarism.) Get some quotes from IMDB or from a publicist or just fill the minutes with something else. I’m unimpressed by how brave and honest they were. It would be pretty much impossible to plausibly deny the copying, and to do so would seriously damage their reputation. It’s their turn in the barrel. I don’t care about the matter, but to be offended that they’re getting some grief (their own stock in trade) seems silly. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/31 "2010-10-24T02:46:34Z")
They can make an episode out of this now, everyone wins. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/32 "2010-10-24T07:08:04Z")
Not bothered by the “plagiarism” per se. Rather by the lazy writing. The part of the episode that made fun of Inception were generally not funny or apt (other than ‘we need to shoot at everything!’). That they didn’t bother… well… it showed that they were phoning it in. No outrage. Just… boredom. FTR, I was able to download a (albeit mediocre quality) torrent. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/33 "2010-10-24T15:04:45Z")
There are currently two [theaters showing Inception](http://www.google.com/movies?hl=en&near=houston&dq=houston+showtimes+inception&sort=1&q=Inception&sa=X&ei=G0rETKv3GYP7lweW79zSCg&ved=0CBwQwAMoBQ) in Matt Stones hometown of Houston. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/34 "2010-10-24T15:59:08Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > There are currently two [theaters showing Inception](http://www.google.com/movies?hl=en&near=houston&dq=houston+showtimes+inception&sort=1&q=Inception&sa=X&ei=G0rETKv3GYP7lweW79zSCg&ved=0CBwQwAMoBQ) in Matt Stones hometown of Houston. Well, that doesn’t really help if they don’t live in Houston, no? ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/35 "2010-10-24T16:23:10Z")
> [@Erdosain](#): > > Well, that doesn’t really help if they don’t live in Houston, no? He apparently [lives](http://www.comedycentral.com/press/bios/mattstone.jhtml?print=true&series=41593) in the LA area, where he has a [mere nine choices of places to see Inception](http://www.google.com/movies?hl=en&near=los+angeles&dq=inception,+los+angeles&sort=1&q=Inception&sa=X&ei=61zETOT4HYKdlgfVxJgD&ved=0CBwQwAMoCA). ---
**Author:** ![Tanbarkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@Tanbarkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tanbarkie)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/36 "2010-10-25T13:53:21Z")
> [@jackdavinci](#): > > Not bothered by the “plagiarism” per se. Rather by the lazy writing. The part of the episode that made fun of Inception were generally not funny or apt (other than ‘we need to shoot at everything!’). That they didn’t bother.. well.. it showed that they were phoning it in. No outrage. Just… boredom. > > FTR, I was able to download a (albeit mediocre quality) torrent. Yeah, the upsetting thing wasn’t the plagiarism (or lack thereof). It’s that they’ve gotten so lazy that they didn’t even bother to parody something they had actually watched. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/37 "2023-01-05T20:05:12Z")
Split this topic on January 5, 2023, 8:05pm UTC 4 posts were split to a new topic: [Joe Smith’s Trolling story about Book of Mormon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-smiths-trolling-story-about-book-of-mormon/977740) ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/38 "2023-01-05T20:06:51Z")
Split this topic on January 5, 2023, 8:06pm UTC 11 posts were merged into an existing topic: [Joe Smith’s Trolling story about Book of Mormon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-smiths-trolling-story-about-book-of-mormon/977740/5) ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/52 "2023-01-05T20:04:02Z")
Closed on January 5, 2023, 8:04pm UTC ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064/53 "2023-01-05T20:08:30Z")
Split this topic on January 5, 2023, 8:08pm UTC A post was merged into an existing topic: [Joe Smith’s Trolling story about Book of Mormon](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-smiths-trolling-story-about-book-of-mormon/977740/16) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parker-and-stone-apologise-for-plagerism/558064.md?page=1)