international
Is it legal to mention a real newspaper in a fictional book / novel?
<p>I'm writing my first novel. And I'm curious if it is legal for me to mention a real newspaper like &quot;New York Times&quot; or &quot;The Daily Herald&quot; in a fictional horror / thriller novel without getting sued.</p>

<p>You can, and many authors and other creators of fiction do, use the names of real newspapers, real brands and products, and real people without obtaining permission from anyone.</p>
<p>As long as those names are not being used to market or identify goods or services, the use cannot be trademark infringement.</p>
<p>There idea that you cannot &quot;defame the brans&quot; is in fact much narrower than many people think, and than it used to be. Particularly in the <a href="/questions/tagged/united-states" class="post-tag" title="show questions tagged &#39;united-states&#39;" rel="tag">united-states</a> free speech rights often supersede protections against so-called trademark &quot;defamation&quot;. In the US all of the examples in the answer by Jack Edwards would be clearly legal, an they probably would be in many other countries as well, if they appeared in a work that was clearly fictional.</p>
<p>If a work mof fiction uses the name of a real person, and other identifying details that make it clear just which real person is being mentioned, <strong>and</strong> if statements that seem to be statements of fact, not opinion are made about that person, <strong>and</strong> if those statements are false and negative, <strong>and</strong> if a hypothetical reasonable person would believe that those statements are about the real person, not a fictional person, thereby harming that person's reputation, <strong>then</strong> if all that is true, the person might have a valid claim of defamation.</p>
