This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Walt Disney Studios is one of four Hollywood entertainment giants suing Provo-based VidAngel, which streams movies and television shows created by other studios and filters out nudity, language, violence and other material deemed objectionable.

The studios argue in court filings that VidAngel is violating copyrights. VidAngel is fighting back with what is rapidly becoming a more conventional tool: Fake news. Or, shall we say, satire.

VidAngel sent an "official" news release to media outlets announcing the small Utah company has purchased Disney Studios. The release says the studio is hurting financially and saw the sale to VidAngel as a way out.

"The struggling film studio announced plans to be acquired by media juggernaut VidAngel Inc. after weeks of closed-door negotiations," the release stated. "Disney, whose quirky indie properties 'Star Wars' and 'Marvel Cinematic Universe' failed to expand beyond their cult followings, threw in the towel after years of poor financial performance."

It added that the final blow was the dismal box office performance of recent Disney films such as "Frozen" and "Zootopia."

The release said the purchase price was "easily north of $100."

Of course, the release was sent Saturday — April Fools' Day.

"We've always tried to do things with a sense of humor," said Matthew Faraci of VidAngel's media relations department. He said the company's chief spokesman is Matt Meese, an actor and writer on "Studio C," BYUtv's knockoff of "Saturday Night Live."

Amazingly, though, some people, including a handful of reporters, believed it.

"One reporter called and said we had a typo in the sales amount," said VidAngel CEO Neal Harmon. "He was sure we meant $100 million."

Harmon declined to identify the reporter or his news outlet. I'm tempted to make some guesses, but I won't.

Speaking of April Fools' • I've noticed some other great candidates for April Fools' pranks that, while not occurring on the exact day, certainly qualify for the category:

• Sen. Orrin Hatch's recent opinion piece castigating those who would consider politics in the confirmation process of President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch.

Politics should not come into play where the highest court in the land is concerned, Hatch wrote.

Can you say Merrick Garland?

• Sen. Mike Lee's policy posted on his website that assures visitors that their privacy is his highest priority. That was before he voted to allow internet services to sell their users' private information to advertisers.

• Reps. Jason Chaffetz and Chris Stewart, who said at recent town hall meetings they want to listen to their constituents.

Many of their constituents have expressed concern about Russia's meddling in last fall's U.S. election and the possibility of Moscow's influence in the Trump administration. But Stewart, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, is more worried about catching and prosecuting those leaking revelations about possible meddling.

Chaffetz, chairman of the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, isn't interested in probing possible shenanigans between the Trump campaign and the Russians. Besides his obsession with Hillary Clinton's emails, he seems more concerned about federal money going to Sid the Science Kid, an animated character the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wanted to use in ads warning of the Zika virus.

Chaffetz's priorities were lampooned in a February column by The Washington Post's Dana Milbank, who suggested the Utah Republican look into other troubling "Sesame Street" matters.

Is the Count a vampire?

Does Mr. Noodle know how to talk?

Are Ernie and Bert just friends?

I have my own questions.

Why is Elmo giggling like that? What does he know?

Which public restroom does Big Bird use?