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Opinion | Under pressure from Atlantic Media, Republican consultant agrees to change name of his firm [1]

['Erik Wemple', 'Media Critic']

Date: 2019-10-03

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First, Atlantic Media said it didn’t want to be confused with Republican political consultant Rick Shaftan. Now, Republican political consultant Rick Shaftan says he doesn’t want to be confused with Atlantic Media. And so a trademark dust-up involving a storied Washington media property is going away. Sign up for a weekly roundup of thought-provoking ideas and debates ArrowRight Shaftan runs a firm that has traded as Atlantic Media and Research, based in Rodanthe, N.C. Considering the firm’s proximity to the seashore, Shaftan named it “Atlantic,” a rather popular moniker in the business world. Everything seemed to be working fine until Breitbart got involved; in a November 2017 story, the right-wing media outlet published the results of a poll showing Republican Roy Moore ahead of Democrat Doug Jones in the closely watched special U.S. Senate election in Alabama. (Jones won the race).

Breitbart disclosed that the polling was produced by Atlantic Media and Research.

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The people at plain-old Atlantic Media, a home base of Washington media, weren’t pleased with the overlap. “We recently learned that you are using ‘Atlantic Media and Research’ (the ‘Infringing Mark’) to conduct voter surveys and to publish survey results. You are purporting to provide the same service as [Atlantic Media Inc.] and it appears you have intentionally selected this confusingly similar name in an attempt to take advantage of, and trade on, AMI’s reputation and goodwill,” noted a letter from Atlantic Media lawyer Aretae Wyler to Shaftan. The firm request from Atlantic Media to Atlantic Media and Research was to cease and desist.

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For nearly two years, it appears, Shaftan refrained from ceasing and desisting. In August, Atlantic Media Associate General Counsel Allison Prevatt sent him a letter saying, in part, “As you are aware, Atlantic Media, Inc. (“AMI”) has repeatedly demanded that you cease and desist your trademark infringement against the ATLANTIC MEDIA trademark and affiliated ATLANTIC brands. Your continued violation of federal and state law impairs our intellectual property rights and confuses consumers as to the source of services offered under the infringing name ‘Atlantic Media and Research.’”

In the same package as the letter, Atlantic Media sent Shaftan a draft lawsuit that it pledged to file if he didn’t stop using “Atlantic” trademarks.

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“How much of my time is worth fighting these people?” asked Shaftan in a call Thursday with the Erik Wemple Blog, explaining why he decided to give up his trade name in favor of “Neighborhood Research and Media.” He even prepared a news release on the matter, which starts out this way:

Atlantic Media and Research, a polling and media company owned by hard-charging and controversial conservative consultant Rick Shaftan, will be changing its trade name to avoid confusion with The Atlantic Monthly, a leftist anti-Trump magazine that recently published a smear piece full of lies about Supreme Court Justice Bret Kavanaugh.

The Kavanaugh story is an Atlantic piece penned by Kate Kelly and Robin Pogrebin, co-authors of the recent book “The Education of Brett Kavanaugh.” It was that piece that convinced Shaftan to bail on “Atlantic.” Said Shaftan to the Erik Wemple Blog, “The Kavanaugh article was over the top, and I said, ‘Maybe I should take this seriously and make sure that nobody thinks I have anything to do with them.’”

Anna Bross, a spokeswoman for Atlantic Media, told the Erik Wemple Blog in a statement: “Over the past two years, we’ve sent a number of communications to Mr. Shaftan explaining that his prior use was cut and dried trademark infringement, noting that his infringement was causing serious and problematic brand confusion, and seeking this outcome. We’re pleased that he’s now agreed to change his trade name and that litigation was ultimately not necessary.”

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In Shaftan’s recollection, one of Atlantic Media’s letters came after he became a topic of stories in the Daily Beast and elsewhere in mid-2018 for his social media history — a newsworthy topic because he was serving as an adviser to failed U.S. Senate candidate Corey Stewart. “After #Ferguson, only a fool would start, finance or insure a business in a black neighborhood,” Shaftan wrote in a 2014 tweet. Shaftan once shared a picture of the Confederate flag with this caption: “If The South Would Have Won, We Would Have Had It Made.” And back in 2010, he tweeted that the NAACP was “the black KKK, only more violent and dangerous.”

“I think they freaked out or something,” says Shaftan of Atlantic Media’s response to those stories.

As well they should have!

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[1] Url: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/10/03/under-pressure-atlantic-media-republican-consultant-agrees-change-name-his-firm/

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