TV network sued over use of song in U.S. show

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A music publisher sued Fox Broadcasting Co. on Wednesday for copyright breach, accusing it of adding anti-Semitic lyrics to a copy of "When You Wish Upon A Star" in an episode of the television series "Family Guy."

Bourne Co., the U.S. copyright owner of the song, said the episode, called "When You Wish Upon A Weinstein" damaged the company and the song's reputation as a "cultural treasure, epitomizing the wonders of childhood."

A song in the episode titled "I Need A Jew" was "a thinly veiled copy of the music from 'When You Wish Upon A Star' coupled with "new anti-Semitic lyrics," said the lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court.

The lawsuit said News Corp.-owned Fox initially did not distribute the episode in recognition of how offensive it was. It was eventually broadcast on the Cartoon Network in 2003 and since then in syndication and reruns.

The reputation of the music company, based in New York, and the song has been harmed "by associating the famous song with a vile and outrageous anti-Semitic message," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit seeks to order Fox to stop distributing the episode and compensation for damages.

The song was introduced in 1940 through the movie "Pinocchio" and won an Academy Award for Best Original Song that same year.

A spokesman for 20th Century Fox Television said he had no comment on the lawsuit.