The "Times Is On It" is a humorous Twitter feed dedicated to making fun of seemingly obvious stuff reported in the nation's leading newspaper. For instance: "GUYS, hipsters really like Brooklyn, and The Times is ON IT."

Benjamin Kabak is a lawyer and the account's author (follow along: @NYTOnIt; he also maintains a blog at 2nd Avenue Sagas). He explains in the account's bio: "Sometimes stories in newspapers are just *that* obvious." Many of the parodies mock the Times' most "gee whiz" lifestyle-related reporting: "GUYS, turns out not drinking soda is much better for you than drinking soda. The Times is ON IT." Or earlier this month: "GUYS, teenagers have messy bedrooms, and The Times is ON IT."

Turns out NYT didn't have much of a sense of humor about the account. NYTOnIt has been around for more than a year, but NYT lawyers recently filed a trademark complaint with Twitter. The @NYTOnIt account was taken down last night and then reinstated today after less than 12 hours. Kabak ultimately had to remove the stylized "T wearing a beret" logo that he created.

The idea that Kabak was confusing anyone with the logo seems dubious, given the prominent disclaimer above. "Mostly I'm just miffed that NYT couldn't directly contact me," wrote Kabak. "It's dumb."

Twitter wouldn't comment on the matter. The New York Observer first reported on the takedown and received confirmation from NYT about making sure its copyright is protected. However, Kabak's tweets seem to indicate it was a trademark complaint. "Feel free to spread the word over how the country’s largest newspaper feels threatened by a small Twitter account right now," Kabak told the Observer.

Word certainly spread fast. Within hours, new-media pundit Jeff Jarvis took it upon himself to fill in as the new @NYTOnIt. Kabak raised the interesting question of whether The Times really can have a valid trademark in a single letter of a known font (Old English/Old Towne). In any case, he isn't too interested in fighting over it—instead, he'll just get a new logo. "GUYS, I think it's time for an avatar contest," he tweeted this morning. "Anyone want to be ON IT?