EXCLUSIVE: Viacom Lawyers on Behalf of The Daily Show

Posted by Peter Schiff on 02/11/2014 at 2:47 PM
Lawyers for Viacom, on behalf of “The Daily Show,” have verbally refused to either make the unedited footage of my interview available, or to release it to me for fair use.   They have also refused to put that refusal in writing, as they do not want me making it available to the public.
They are hiding behind the legal protection afforded them by the “Adult Talent Release” that unfortunately I signed without having read.  That release gives the Daily Show the right to edit my comments in any manner they choose.  Apparently it also shields them from liability from the fraudulent conduct that induced me to consent to be interviewed in the first place.  Not only did representative of The Daily Show repeatedly assure me, both verbally and in writing, that they would not take my comments out of context, nor deliberately try to portray me in an unfavorable light, but they did so during the four-hour interview itself, which is one of the reasons I want that footage released.   But this type of dishonest, unethical, and hypocritical behavior is exactly what I should have expected.   The Daily Show sees nothing wrong with committing fraud so long as they can profit from it.
Below I have reproduced a copy of the release that I signed, as well as the letter my attorney sent to Viacom that prompted their verbal refusal to release the unedited interview.

Tags:  appearancesDaily Show