/
1x
Advertisement
Proudly Canadian, obsessively Toronto. Subscribe to Toronto Life!
City News

Officer Bubbles takes on the Internet; Internet laughs ruefully

By John Michael McGrath
Copy link

These days, almost everyone knows Adam Josephs, a.k.a. Officer Bubbles. The Toronto cop famously threatened a bubble-blowing G20 protester with arrest while on camera, and the ensuing video unleashed a torrent of on-line criticism, mockery and—at least according to his lawyers—defamation in the form of satirical cartoons. Josephs has filed a $1.2-million lawsuit against YouTube to have his anonymous on-line tormentors unmasked.

According to the National Post:

But the lawsuit was not filed in response to the original video, but rather to a cartoon that was later uploaded in which a policeman wearing a name badge “A. Josephs” is shown arresting Santa Claus and U.S. President Barack Obama among others, and punching a photographer in the face.

If the cartoon may have been intended to emphasize abuse of police power during the summer protests, the lawsuit over it and pursuant comments may illuminate what some see as abuse of anonymity granted to online commentators.

The Internet is basically shrugging this off with a chuckle. The Toronto Star found one of the commenters, who was only too happy to shed his anonymity and get in some extra barbs at Josephs while he was at it. “I don’t know why this guy wants to draw more attention to himself,” Todd Mara told the paper. Meanwhile, cartoons continue to be uploaded to the Internet, with the pseudo-Josephs displaying a weapons haul, kettling protesters and even falling in love.

One of them ends with “Next week: Officer Bubbles shoots kitten stuck in tree.” Sure, that’s mean, but we can’t wait to see it.

• More ‘Officer Bubbles’ cartoons online [Toronto Star] • ‘Officer Bubbles’ cartoons pop up on YouTube again [Globe and Mail]Documents: Statement of claim from ‘Officer Bubbles’ lawsuit [National Post] • ‘Officer Bubbles’ files $1.2M suit [National Post] • Hamilton man stands up to ‘Officer Bubbles’ over comments [Toronto Star]Civilizing the Internet, one lawsuit at a time (for now) [Forbes]

NEVER MISS A TORONTO LIFE STORY

Sign up for This City, our free newsletter about everything that matters right now in Toronto politics, sports, business, culture, society and more.

By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.
You may unsubscribe at any time.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Advertisement
Advertisement

Big Stories

Inside the rise and fall of the Vaulter Bandit, the 21st century’s most notorious bank robber
Deep Dives

Inside the rise and fall of the Vaulter Bandit, the 21st century’s most notorious bank robber

Inside the Latest Issue

The June issue of Toronto Life features our annual ranking of the best new restaurants. Plus, our obsessive coverage of everything that matters now in the city.