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Journalism

by Mike Masnick

Tue, Aug 10th 2010 3:26am




Filed Under:
cartoons, football, limits, photographers, reporting, uk


Newspaper Gets Around Photography Ban At Football Event With Cartoon Illustrations

from the don't-mess-with-reporters dept

We've covered a few different recent stories of various sports leagues or professional sports teams trying to limit how journalists and photographers can report on their games, and have even covered cheeky attempts to get around such restrictions by having reporters cover events from home while watching on TV. Now, a whole bunch of you have been sending in variations on a story in the UK, where the Southampton football team apparently has decided to ban photojournalists from taking images of matches, instead telling newspapers they need to buy photos from the team's "official" photographer.

Thankfully, some of the newspapers covering the latest match felt that was ridiculous, and chose to respond in some rather creative ways. The Plymouth Herald, who was covering the visiting team, decided to employ someone to draw cartoons of key moments in the match, rather than using the official photographs:


Perhaps even more amusing? Some reports point out that The Sun covered the game by carefully making sure to never mention Southampton or any of its players. Well played.

24 Comments | Leave a Comment

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  •  
    icon
    Crosbie Fitch (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 3:52am

    Are Cartoons Copyleft?

    The question is: are those cartoons copyleft, or is the newspaper happy to use the same privileges that excluded them, to exclude others?

     

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    •  
      identicon
      abc gum, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 4:42am

      Re: Are Cartoons Copyleft?

      Cartoons are killing the "official" photographer business.

      They will need to update their EULA.
      By watching the game or looking at any depiction of said game, you agree to not create any derivative works based upon your experience.

       

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      •  
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        Crosbie Fitch (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 5:10am

        Re: Re: Are Cartoons Copyleft?

        Frankly, I don't see how any law (except through abuse) can enable anyone to prevent spectators using the photographs they've taken as they see fit - let alone actually prevent them taking them in the first place.

        A grounds may eject anyone (if not unfairly discriminatory), but that doesn't grant them power over what anyone may do whilst present (least of all power to seize their cameras or delete photos).

        No doubt the newspapers will scour Flickr and use those photos (having contrived that non-'journalist' spectators do the necessary).

        I guess there's some recent amendment to copyright that stipulates that the owner of a venue of a sporting event is granted an exclusive right to publish/broadcast coverage of that event - no doubt including the power to seize spectators' recording equipment and any unauthorised footage.

        When such unethical 'rights' are granted like candy one cannot be surprised at how increasingly corrupt things have become.

         

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      •  
        identicon
        Yogi, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 7:00am

        Re: Re: Are Cartoons Copyleft?

        From a business perspective it is shocking that people are allowed to have unofficial, unsponsored, commercial-free personal experiences of public events.

        I'm sure ACTA is just the tip of the iceberg.

         

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    •  
      identicon
      sadique, Nov 1st, 2010 @ 2:45pm

      science

      this game is very bad but kool

       

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  •  
    icon
    cc (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 4:36am

    Could the team use trademark law to stop the papers from using illustrations?

     

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      identicon
      abc gum, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 4:44am

      Re:

      No, but they can ask that a fee be added to all footwear purchases.

       

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    •  
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      Bubba Gump (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 6:40am

      Re:

      You'll notice that the cartoons only use colors to signify the teams. There are no logos or words, so really (imho) nothing to go after for trademark.

       

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        Danny, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 7:29am

        Re: Re:

        That is until teams start claiming that depicting football players with those colors is infringment because "everyone knows that those colors are associated with their team".

         

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  • This comment has been flagged by the community. Click to show the comment.
     
    identicon
    AllenR, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 5:16am

    Nice

    It's ridiculous that they have to resort to drawing cartoons. Grow up already! http://bit.ly/aAVFPm

     

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  •  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 5:46am

    In my best Spanish accent

    Llllooooooooooooooooooooolllllll

     

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  •  
    identicon
    bubba, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 6:54am

    Advertisers?

    I would suppose there is plenty of advertising and logos at that game too that the artist gets to ignore as well. If I were advertising there I would probably not be too happy...

     

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    lavi d (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 7:15am

    Uh.

    That's not football...

     

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    •  
      identicon
      Another AC, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 8:26am

      Re: Uh.

      Sorry to burst your bubble, but that is football. It is not American football, which incidentally only uses feet for specific pieces of the game. Field goals/extra points, punts and kick offs. Football(which has been around a lot longer than American football) uses feet as the primary mode of moving the ball to the intended target. Goal keepers and players completing a throw in are the only legal manner in which hands are used. Of course, you get headers and chest traps, but I digress. Unfortunately due to the popularity of American football, we in the USA call it soccer. Sadly, we are a minority in this.

       

      [ reply to this | link to this | view in chronology ]

  •  
    icon
    Brent Ashley (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 7:22am

    Market forces

    I don't see why the press doesn't just stop reporting on these teams altogether, and see what the fans and team decide to do about it. The press would have to express to their audience that the teams precipitated this action and entreat upon them to complain to the team if they wanted to see them back in the press, but that they would respect the team's wishes to not be reported on in any meaningful way. After the shitstorm died down, I think some sense would reign.

     

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  •  
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    Joel (profile), Aug 10th, 2010 @ 8:17am

    Full of WIN

    This is just full of win...

    These people get +1 for being ingenious and resourceful.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in chronology ]

  •  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 11:47am

    The better play would to be to ignore them altogether and don't report anything. If all the local media outlets did that, they would change their tune pretty quick.

     

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    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 3:38pm

    Why can't they use 3D?

     

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  •  
    identicon
    Anonymous of Course, Aug 10th, 2010 @ 6:17pm

    Been done for ages

    When photographs were prohibited in the court room newspapers would send an artist to sketch the scenes.

     

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  •  
    icon
    annasmith (profile), Aug 11th, 2010 @ 4:12am

    Yas I agree with "abc gum". Cartoons are killing the "official" photographer business.
    -annasmith
    --------------------------------
    Starting a small business

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in chronology ]


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