Michigan State University has reached a settlement with the online quiz creator Carsilius Media and its owner, Floris van Pallandt, for the universityās display of an image of Adolf Hitler on the scoreboard before a 2023 football game.
According to Lansing State Journal, van Pallandt received $30,000 from the university ā a far cry from the $150,000 he originally sought.
The lawsuit was originally filed in August 2024. At first, the Spartans were merely facing public scrutiny for showing the image, but news of the image spread until van Pallandt realized it had been used without permission from the Carsilius Media YouTube channel. Van Pallandt claimed āthe university engaged in copyright infringement and invasion of privacy ā false light.ā
Related: MSU Sued Over Showing of Hitler Image Before Michigan Game
āWeāre happy to have the matter resolved,ā Jeremy Kennedy, van Pallandtās attorney, told Lansing State Journal. āWe settled in a way my client is happy with and recognizing his intellectual property rights.ā
In pursuing the lawsuit, van Pallandt argued that although his company created the quiz with the image of Hitler, that quiz was not intended to be shown to an American market, especially not as pre-football game entertainment.
Related: MSU AD Apologizes for Hitler Image Displayed on Video Board During Michigan Game
The suit stated, āGiven the timing of the football game, approximately two weeks after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, the inclusion of a question regarding Adolf Hitler during the Michigan-Michigan State football game garnered an extremely high degree of attention, most of it negative.ā
Van Pallandt went on to say that if Michigan State University had contacted him about using a quiz for scoreboard entertainment, he would have created something custom, for a fee.
