Another day, another Yoko Ono copyright lawsuit. Today, she, along with Sean and Julian Lennon, are suing Manhattan production company Premise Media for using 'Imagine' in their film 'Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed' without permission.
The firm's defence is that the song's inclusion is covered by the US's 'fair use' doctrine, which allows the use of copyrighted materials without permission for the purposes of commentary and criticism. Their documentary, currently number 10 in the US box office charts, examines alleged discrimination against teachers who support the intelligent design theory of creation (ie creationism) and, the makers stress, only uses "a very small portion of the song".
I'm no expert, but I'm not sure they have an especially strong case. The fair use doctrine means you can use copyrighted material without permission to communicate an opinion on the material itself - I'm not sure it lets you use any random track on the basis you've got an opinion on something. I mean, I have opinions on intelligent design, too, and there are a few songs I can think of that would soundtrack my thoughts, but I'm not going to attach them to the Daily and plead a fair use defence.
Anyway, Yoko Ono's lawsuit aims to prevent Premise Media, C&S Production LP and Rocky Mountain Pictures from continuing to use 'Imagine' in the film, as well as seeking unspecified financial damages.