“When MSM Elites Who Have No Concept of Fair-Use Laws Attack” sounds like a parody of a Fox reality show. But this crazy situation is reality to Tulsa blogger Michael Bates.

Bates fights the good fight in Tulsa, documenting and exposing the incestuous relationship between the Tulsa World and city government, a pairing he calls the “Cockroach Caucus.” But it sounds like the paragons of the First Amendment in Oklahoma aren’t happy that the Constitutional clause applies to more people than the World’s newsroom.

The newspaper sent Bates a letter threatening legal action unless he stops linking to articles and copying portions for the purpose of criticism, which is very much protected under fair use laws.

Three questions are begging to be asked:

1) Has the newspaper lost its collective mind? The fact the rocket scientists sent this letter themselves and not through their counsel exposes it as a lame bullying tactic.
2) For an institution that prides itself on watching out for “the little guy,” doesn’t it seem a tad bit hypocritical to strong-arm one — who has done absolutely nothing wrong under the law — into silence?
3) Does anyone at the World watch or read the news, and if so, what keeps them from learning from history? The shots that CBS and CNN took at the blogosphere boomeranged right back at them and sank their own ships. Even The New York Times knew when to quit threatening a blogger who set up a parody of its corrections page.

The newspaper even had the ignorance to say “… linking [Bates’] website to Tulsa World content is without the permission of the Tulsa World and constitutes an intentional infringement of the Tulsa World’s copyright …”

Well, here’s what I think of that.

So hey, congratulations are in order to the World, and in particular Vice President John Bair. You have turned a critic who no one had heard of until today into a national superstar being bullied by the mainstream press. You couldn’t be more famous if you hired Jayson Blair.

Pay Bates a visit. Staff Sgt. Craver just threw a few simoleons into his tip jar, so you do the same, soldier, or drop and give me 25. Bates, this grunt has your six — if the Tulsa World is galactically stupid enough to take you to court, I’ll keep hitting your tip jar until the case gets laughed out of court and you countersue.