What the Law Allows

Podcasting, as it turns out, is currently surrounded by lots of legislation. This session explored in-depth copyright issues. We discussed Copyright laws that have been passed, the first in 1790, as well as one in 1976 that removed the defense that something was for educational purposes.

We talked about what things were eligible to receive copyrights, and which are not. Ideas, facts and titles are some examples of things that cannot necessarily be protected.

But podcasts are interesting in that it has not yet been determined if news content on them can be considered news. While stremaing is viewed legally as as public performance, a DPD podcast is distribution. Podcasts were called the TIVO of radio.

We learned that a copyright is valid for 95 years from its publication and 120 years after its creation.

Laser-dropping, the process of cutting two or more clips from a song and randomly using them on the air or in a piece, is not exempt from fees that have to be paid for permission. We also went into the importance of getting people to sign releases after they have participated in interviews online. The professor from Michigan who was leading the discussion shared a rather lengthy anecodote about a gubernatorial candidate whose campaign was ruined after he said something on a college radio station that ended up being spread all over the place until even the AP picked it up and ran with it.

Finally, we talked a little about Napster and the ligation in progress.

Jim Mustian