August 15th, 2008
McCain's copyright problem: oh, the hypocrisy
File under lying in the bed you made: Jackson Browne is suing John McCain, the national Republican Party and the Ohio Republican Party for copyright infringement, the LA Times reports.
At issue: a McCain ad that mocks Barack Obama for recommending drivers increase mileage by checking tire pressure. Browne’s song “Running on Empty” is used as the soundtrack.
McCain’s spokesman said the ad was produced by the Ohio Republican Party, not the campaign or the national party. But Browne’s attorney Lawrence Iser responded:
“We have sued the Ohio Republican Party as well, and we have been informed and believe that McCain and his campaign were well aware of the ad. We are also informed and believe that the ad was broadcast on television in Ohio and Pennsylvania…. The fact that it appears on the Internet means it also reaches an audience well beyond those states.”
In fact, McCain supporters have an unnerving habit of violating copyright, which is more than ironic; it’s hypocritical, given McCain’s technology policy:
John McCain Will Protect The Creative Industries From Piracy. The entertainment industry is both a vital sector of the domestic economy and among the largest U.S. exporters. While the Internet has provided tremendous opportunity for the creators of copyrighted works, including music and movies, to distribute their works around the world at low cost, it has also given rise to a global epidemic of piracy. John McCain supports efforts to crack down on piracy, both on the Internet and off.
Add to Browne, violations of songs by John Mellencamp, Abba, Frankie Vallie – and Saturday Night Live. Just days ago, the LA Times reported that McCain’s campaign lifted a clip from the “Wayne’s World” sketch for a Web ad.
But the ad may have crossed the copyright line at the end by including footage of Mike Myers and Dana Carvey doing their Wayne and Garth “We’re not worthy” schtick from years past on “Saturday Night Live.”
Hollywood types jumped into the fray, directing the McCain campaign to cease and desist — and so it did.
“Apparently Mike Myers thought we weren’t worthy,” McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said in an e-mail.
(n/m)
