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The Ohio State University Told It Can't Trademark 'The'

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep. The government declined to endorse the pride of Ohio State University - or rather The Ohio State University. The Ohio State University insists on 'the.' If it annoys Ohio University, even better. The Ohio State University proposed to trademark hats and shirts that dropped the rest of the name and just say The. But the Columbus Dispatch reports the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said no. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.