Sarah Palin could soon be Sarah Palin®. The former Alaska governer and influential conservative leader has filed for a trademark on her name. So has her daughter Bristol. How come? Because they're worried someone might highjack the Palin brand. 
 
 UPDATED: Read the reply from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to Sarah Palin at the bottom of the page. 
 
 What does that actually mean? 
 
 United States intellectual property law is a funny (and some would argue outdated) thing, and a trademark is one of many ways to enjoy protection under it. Orignally proposed by Thomas Jefferson to protect the marks of sailcloth makers, trademarks can now be applied to any product or service. And those two designations -- ™ for products and ℠ for services -- can be broadly defined to include ... pretty much anything. Products, images, slogans, designs and even names qualify for protection under the 1946 Lanham Act, and all it takes is a documented history of using that product, or "mark," uniquely for commercial purposes. There's even a designation for "non-conventional trademarks" that allow for smells, colors and sounds, like the Harley Davidson engine rumble. (Generic marks don't count unless they possess a distinctive character. Like Salon!) 
 
 Another key fact about trademark law is the difference between the ™ symbol and the ® symbol. The former requires no formal paperwork. You literally just add ™ to claim it. The latter requires an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office that should include proof of sustained and exclusive use of the mark. 
 
 The process to register a trademark is complicated and drawn out, but one important step is to determine into which category the registered trademark should be filed. 
 
 For the Palins, that first category -- "educational and entertainment services" -- makes some sense. Sarah and Bristol both earn buckets of cash their work on the speaking and television circuit. Sarah, of course, just starred in a TLC reality series, while Bristol has been featured on "Dancing with the Stars." Sarah also has her personal appearances, for which she reportedly requires $75,000 (at least), first class airfare, and bendy straws. Bristol's rate for speaking appearances is $14,000 per engagement. A registered trademark would prevent others from earning commercial gain by Palin-branding events or entertainment, and the two applications are apparently all but approved in this category. 
 
 The second category -- "information about political elections" -- is more complicated. This category is only mentioned in Sarah's application, and the politics bit seems like a no-brainer. Sending out mailers asking for money? Want to use Sarah Palin's name to catch someone's eye? If Sarah Palin® is approved, things like this would be illegal under trademark law. 
 
 But apparently Palin's people are having a hard time making a case that she's been using the brand for commercial purposes. (Trademark Law 101: You must show a sustained commercial use of the brand name and prove how others' use of the brand would hurt your business.) 
 
 Potential products where the Sarah Palin® name could be leveraged include "signs, photographs, brochures, website printouts or advertisements." In the registered trademark application, you must include a documented history of using this brand for commercial gains. So what did the Palin camp submit? A screenshot of her Facebook page, and also a screenshot of an article announcing her gig at Fox News. So far, this isn't cutting it with the United States Patent and Copyright Offices. According to the examining attorney, Karen K. Bush, Palin's application is insufficient for two main reasons. First, the Facebook page and Fox News article simply aren't enough evidence of sustained use of the brand. Second, Sarah Palin didn't even sign her application. Neither did Bristol. 
 
 UPDATE: The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office refused Sarah Palin's application on account of the lack of signature. But that's easy enough to fix. All Sarah has to do is sign: ||||| In her television show tonight, Sarah Palin casts herself as a can-do superwoman of the natural world. She fishes, hikes across glaciers and preaches "respect for the elements" from a speedboat while clad in a yellow cagoule. But the programme has already plunged the Mama Grizzly-in-chief into controversy after a leading conservationist in her adopted home of Alaska accused her of flagrant irresponsibility by fishing too close to protected brown bears. 
 
 John Toppenberg, director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, said scenes in an online trailer for the programme appeared to show the former Republican vice-presidential candidate breaking the rules of Wolverine Creek, a famous spot where bears – and humans – come to fish. "It's clear from the video that she violated the guidelines," he said, calling her actions "a travesty". 
 
 In a preview of Sarah Palin's Alaska, a part nature documentary, part candid camera of the daily life of one of America's most controversial political families, the former state governor is seen fishing for salmon with husband Todd and family members. She can be seen apparently holding her rod towards brown bears on the river bank, while the party's boat appears to be closer to the bears than guidelines advise. The Alaska department of fish and game says people in a boat must not fish within 30ft of a bear. "It's clearly irresponsible," said Toppenberg. "She is encouraging the violation of important guidelines. Humans can get too close to the bears." 
 
 The irony of a right-wing conservative, who boasts of hunting moose and shooting wolves while campaigning for more oil drilling in Alaska, transforming herself into a nature fan for primetime has not been lost on environmentalists. 
 
 Large brown bears gather in Wolverine Creek because the fishing is so easy and the animals have, in the process, become a tourist spectacle. But Toppenberg warned that by behaving in an apparently irreverent manner, Palin was doing nothing to foster responsibility among visitors. "She is encouraging the violation of important guidelines that allows tourism to flourish in Alaska. She is inviting future problems with the tourism industry and, in particular, the bear-viewing industry," he said. 
 
 More than two years after she was plucked by Republican presidential candidate John McCain to be his running mate in the 2008 election, Palin, 46, claims she will run for president in 2012 if "there's no one else". Meanwhile she has decided to put her family and her home state on show for the nation in Sarah Palin's Alaska. But even a soft-focus programme becomes controversial when Palin is attached to it. 
 
 Joe Meehan, of the wildlife conservation division of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, said that it appeared that the Palins' boat got within 30ft of the bears but not while they were actually feeding. "Some people may say you shouldn't even try to fish when a bear is in the area and I wouldn't argue with that," he added. 
 
 Meehan, who supervises Alaska's wildlife refuge programme, which includes Wolverine Creek, said that while he did not believe Palin had necessarily breached the guidelines, he had concerns over the signal she was sending. "Fishing in close proximity to bears may, in general, not send an appropriate message to large numbers of people that are not experienced at fishing in bear country," he said. 
 
 The preview clip also shows a bear jumping into the river near the Palins. Palin recalls dramatically to camera later: "So I'm thinking we are going to get stuck there, the anchor is dropped and there is a bear coming towards us." 
 
 But this enraged Toppenberg. "She implies that she is somehow in danger or being brave. That's complete nonsense," he said. "Wolverine Creek is the one place in Alaska where the bears are tolerant and completely habituated to the presence of people and boats. But the guidelines are there for a reason."
– A leading Alaska conservationist calls Sarah Palin's Alaska "a travesty"—and not because it's, well, a reality show starring Sarah Palin. He claims the former guv got too close to protected brown bears in last night's premiere, and says she was "clearly irresponsible." A clip from the premiere shows Palin and hubby Todd having an up-close-and-personal moment with some bears (including, yes, mama bears) while fishing. "It's clear from the video that she violated the guidelines" of Wolverine Creek, says the director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance. The state's department of fish and game requires people in boats to stay at least 30 feet away from bears. He argues that the clip shows the Palins getting closer than that, thereby "encouraging the violation of important guidelines." A rep from the fish and game department, however, is not convinced they actually violated any guidelines, the Guardian reports, since they did not approach the bears as they were feeding. However, he notes, "Some people may say you shouldn't even try to fish when a bear is in the area and I wouldn't argue with that." Click here to find out how many people tuned in to her show's premiere.