Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009

RSS |

Twitter

the big plan

Beck Will Host Conventions
to Educate America

He's shifting toward political organizer, plans big DC rally

Nov 21, 09 5:06 PM CST
Senate Democrats Clear
Health Care Hurdle, 60-39

Reid gets 60 votes to open full debate after Thanksgiving recess

Nov 21, 09 7:13 PM CST
Matt Taibbi

Palin: Our First WWE Politician

Pick an asshole, any asshole, and she'll rock the house

6 hours, 16 minutes ago
Palin Pulls in Big Bucks
—for Democrats

'Going Rogue' boosts Dem fundraising to new high

Nov 21, 09 6:50 AM CST
demagogue alert

Lawmaker Paints Target on Barack Obama's Back

Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert panders to dangerous paranoids

Nov 21, 09 9:08 AM CST
Billboard Links Obama to Jihad

Colo. car dealership wants this opinion heard

Nov 20, 09 8:42 PM CST
analysis

Book Tour Shows Palin
Hitting a Nerve

'Going Rogue' phenomenon may foreshadow something bigger

2 hours, 14 minutes ago
NO COMMUNION FOR YOU, MY SON

RI Bishop Disses
Kennedy Over
Pro-Choice
Stance

Spat over Patrick's position on abortion escalates

8 hours, 38 minutes ago
HE'S GOT A BOOK OUT, TOO

Beck to Unveil
'Big Plan' at
Saturday Rally

Righty pundit OK with destroying Dems and GOP

Nov 20, 09 8:07 PM CST
Reid Gets 60th Vote:
Holdout Lincoln Agrees

She'll allow health care bill to move forward; vote at 8pm

Nov 21, 09 1:51 PM CST
TALK SHOW ROUNDUP

McConnell:
Dems Proceed
at 2010 Peril

Senators hit the Sunday talk shows after health vote

5 hours, 45 minutes ago
Neglected Ind. Fans Boo Palin

Hecklers accuse her of 'quitting on the job'

Nov 20, 09 3:50 PM CST
Limbaugh's Wrong: Gallup's Obama Approval Below 50%

New survey is latest disappointment for President

Nov 20, 09 2:03 PM CST

|NEXT STORY »

OPINION

Flickr Cowardly for Taking Down Obama Joker

Website caved too easily: image isn't a copyright violation

By Kevin Spak| Posted Aug 22, 09 1:50 PM CDT|

(Newser) – Flickr is catching fire for its decision to take down the now-infamous image of Barack Obama photoshopped to look like the joker. Flickr says it received a takedown notice under the federal Digital Millennium Copyright Act for the Time cover mockup, but that excuse doesn’t fly for Michael Arrington of TechCrunch. “Screwing over your users while yelling ‘the lawyers made me do it!’ rarely ends well,” he writes.

Especially because had Flickr parent Yahoo bothered to check with its lawyers, they surely would have confirmed that the image is protected under fair use and parody defenses. “It’s clear that the Flickr team wanted to take this image down,” writes Arrington. “They should have had the courage to do the right thing. This is exactly the type of speech that our constitution is supposed to protect.”

$The Flickr image at the heart of the fracas.$

The Flickr image at the heart of the fracas. (Firas Alkhateeb)

New York magazine is in the spirit with this Bernie Madoff spoof. (AP Photo/Illustration by Darrow for New York Magazine)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

11.20.09

The Health-Care Wars Have Just Begun

11.19.09

Sarah Palin Deserves Some More Attention

34 comments

VIEWING:

Ucantusethatname
Aug 22, 09 1:54 PM CDT

Worse censorship and control of the media is ABC's refusal to run a piece that opposes health care reform. Reply

-8

IN RESPONSE:

Robert_Dada
Aug 22, 09 2:17 PM CDT

A media company's refusal to air a story may be wrong, but it's not censorship and if you accuse ABC then equally accuse Fox, the biggest offender.

+13

IN RESPONSE:

AnnieChrist
Aug 22, 09 3:25 PM CDT

Why should ABC 'news' run the story? ABC 'news' is an entertainment show, and as such, has to look out for ratings. Running a piece against Health Care Reform would have brought zero ratings, since opponents of Health Care Reform never, ever watch anything but pox news.

IN RESPONSE:

JonmarkP
Aug 22, 09 10:07 PM CDT

There is no current discussion of "health care reform." The discussion is about health care INSURANCE reform. Jesus, people, you gotta what it is you're talking about at some point. Don't you?

IN RESPONSE:

timeandagain
Aug 22, 09 11:36 PM CDT

Dada is Dum Dum

| 0 minutes ago

Sammy
Aug 22, 09 2:19 PM CDT

I am glad it is gone. Tacky is tacky, regardless of what the lawyers or the constitution says. Just because something can be done legally and constitutionally doesn't mean it should be done. Good taste and good manners, please people! We've become a nation lacking in civility and propriety. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 7:21 PM CDT

So you want Flickr to start deciding for us all what is "tacky" or politically acceptable? Free speech also means allowing other voices to be heard, even if you think they are tacky.

IN RESPONSE:

lasty58
Aug 22, 09 8:39 PM CDT

"So you want Flickr to start deciding for us all what is "tacky" or politically acceptable?" Nope, probably why Sammy never said that.

IN RESPONSE:

cognitivefilter
Aug 22, 09 9:17 PM CDT

thanks reasonator--i think sammy did imply that flickr established that content as 'tacky' enough to remove it, although no one can pinpoint what is just so bad about it. racist? is it about 'whiteface' paint? in that case, we should jail mimes

IN RESPONSE:

timeandagain
Aug 22, 09 11:37 PM CDT

thanks for being my "moral compass" Sammy! You are the BEST!!

| 0 minutes ago

Wraith
Aug 22, 09 2:23 PM CDT

Only a few recognize the truth, this country is neither a Democracy nor a Republic; it is a corporate entity in which the people are purposely divided into groups in this case Liberals Vs Conservative…..Tools such as the defacing of a photograph of a sitting President are used to help further divide the two groups….while the two groups fight it out in the age old struggle “My Dog is Better” the Corporate Masters, the true owners of America use that time to eat away at the Middle Class further destroying it and reducing the general public back down to the lower class, the Surfs if you will…..The Middle Class had expansion after the Vietnam war, the Personal Computer, the Internet and other things were used to boost the economy of many and causing a few innovative people to work their way to the Rich or Upper Class. This was allowed as it aided the Rich to become richer while the poor became even more poor…..That time of innovation is now gone, sources of new revenue are dead at the moment and in an effort to keep the status quo the rich once again pit us against each other with lies to help ensued they keep the lions share of everything at the expense of the poor (basically the rest of America)….They pay less tax now than in history while the middle class carried the burden, the poor are used up and cast aside and the true owners sit back and laugh as one group cries censorship while at the same time repeating the lies and half truths to make sure a medical plan that would actually help the working people never passes and the corporate masters get to keep their golden goose which provides health care which is ranked # 37 in the world and loosing ground….Continue your b/s battles and allow your masters to continue to own you from birth to the grave…. blind fools being robbed of what they deserve Reply

+14

IN RESPONSE:

UrUndertaker
Aug 22, 09 2:51 PM CDT

I agree with what you say and have often said that money spent by the Bush Administration, the trillion dollar deficit would have better served Americans IF each person in America had been granted access to a card with which they could each have built one home never to have a mortgage placed on it from a list of preaproved floor plans, allowed one car of decent fuel efficency and access to health care for life....... The country would not have lost over 3,000 more lives and we would have saved hundreds of millions and not be faced with ecconomic colapse as we now are........... People could woirk each day, go to school and find even better jobs, paid taxes on their income and repaid the money spent more quickly than they will ever repay the money spent on wars tht can't be won............... Instead of 1/3 of each working persons income being used for shelter that 1/3 could be placed in savings or to purchase needed items for the family............. We would have several million fewer new Terrorists which the wars created and the people of America would be much better than ever in history............ A one trillion dollor deficit would be non exixtent as it takes one thousand times one billion to equal one trillion and there are roughly only 307,244,430 million people in the country so allowing only 1 million per husehold for housing and an auto while that person finds employment or continues employment would be a minute drop in the bucket of the deficit caused by the wars which in the end we will have lost both............. War is designed as popul;ation control as well as for profit for a few, the military complex are the true victors even in a defeat.

IN RESPONSE:

timeandagain
Aug 22, 09 11:38 PM CDT

you tools need to get a life...

-3

| 0 minutes ago

schmidtkoff
Aug 22, 09 2:24 PM CDT

uh, where is citrix guy? Reply

-4

| 0 minutes ago

Rocket448
Aug 22, 09 2:32 PM CDT

I too am glad its off. Parody is one thing, but linking our President to Heath Ledger's brilliant portrayal of an "agent of chaos" (as the Joker describes himself) is hurtful low and improper. Sure, GWB might well have gotten the same treatment -- and deserved it -- but Mr. Obama surely does not. Indeed, whatever you think of Mr. Obama aside, this image speaks volumes about the erosion of our cultural values. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 7:23 PM CDT

I believe the above statement is "hurtful and improper," so I will be glad if newser takes it off. (do you get it now?)

-3

IN RESPONSE:

timeandagain
Aug 22, 09 11:40 PM CDT

pussy...

-2

| 0 minutes ago

Fondue
Aug 22, 09 3:24 PM CDT

From Flickr/Yahoo! ToS: You acknowledge that Yahoo! may or may not pre-screen Content, but that Yahoo! and its designees shall have the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to pre-screen, refuse, or remove any Content that is available via the Yahoo! Services. Without limiting the foregoing, Yahoo! and its designees shall have the right to remove any Content that violates the TOS or is otherwise objectionable. You agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such Content. In this regard, you acknowledge that you may not rely on any Content created by Yahoo! or submitted to Yahoo!, including without limitation information in Yahoo! Message Boards and in all other parts of the Yahoo! Services. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 7:36 PM CDT

Of course they have the right to take down the photo. They are a private company. That is not the question. The question is, should they take it down because they don't agree with the message? If they start doing that, it is bad for us all, and bad for them as a company. I would be hesitant to use or reference a site that chooses to censor political messages.

IN RESPONSE:

Fondue
Aug 22, 09 8:58 PM CDT

Did you read it carefully? They can take whatever down if they find it objectionable. We've been subject to this since they instated their ToS. Why anyone would complain about it is ridiculous. The image was up long enough to get into the hands of someone else. They made their statement. The story ran its course and now that it is over, Flickr took it down. I don't see any harm or foul in that decision.

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 10:23 PM CDT

I did read it carefully. Did you read my response carefully? Of course they have the right to take it down (they use that clause mainly to take down porn or nude images). But do they ever take down other political photographs? No, just ones they disagree with. Don't you see how that is a bad practice for a company that is not trying to favor one political side over another?

| 0 minutes ago

happiness
Aug 22, 09 4:39 PM CDT

Good RIDDANCE!!! Reply

| 0 minutes ago

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 7:46 PM CDT

You have to put your political leanings aside and be fair when it comes to free speech. Whether you hate or don't hate Bush, the fact is if you search flickr right now for bush, you will find many negative pictures of him, including manipulated Time covers. If you search for Obama, you will not find any negative pictures of him, because flickr won't allow him. I don't particularly like Bush either, but you have to give free speech to both sides if you are going to be a respected photo storage site that supposedly champions free speech. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Newser001
Aug 22, 09 8:17 PM CDT

It is utterly disrespectful... What the hell are we becoming, as a nation - The Unites Sates of Anarchy ? Reply

IN RESPONSE:

JonmarkP
Aug 22, 09 10:13 PM CDT

I'm an anarchist. Do you find that offensive? "An anarchist is anyone who doesn't need a cop to tell him right from wrong." -Utah Phillips.

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 10:28 PM CDT

How about we always have been a nation that allows you to mock or be disrespectful to politically powerful figures without fear of punishment?

IN RESPONSE:

reasonator
Aug 22, 09 10:30 PM CDT

or censorship

IN RESPONSE:

timeandagain
Aug 22, 09 11:39 PM CDT

yeah. i never saw any bush as Hitler pictures... ever. right? or are you just full of Obama Kool-aid??

-3

IN RESPONSE:

Newser001
Aug 23, 09 10:04 AM CDT

I've been around for 5+ decades and have personally witnessed the demise of our political system by parties and then the people. At what juncture does this dissing end...? At what time does this become total anarchy / chaos...? If we continue on this same road, there will be little resembling a real government if people have little to no respect for it (By you own very definition, JonmarkP I too am an anarchist. But in the truer sense of the definition, the lack of a real foundation of government isn't realistic for one and all).

| 0 minutes ago

dontlikeyou
Aug 22, 09 8:53 PM CDT

That picture shows the true nature of Mr. Obailout. Reply

-3

IN RESPONSE:

UrUndertaker
Aug 22, 09 10:11 PM CDT

Oh Mr. Bail-Out..that would be GW Bush who began the trend with the Auto Industry and when he did the initial bail-out there were NO STRINGS ATTACHED...Obama for better or worse did require stringent rules of all who were bailed out and they in turn had their attorneys find loopholes to circumvent many of the rules to their advantage....this is what those type companies do...not if your concerned with the deficit, where the hell was your concern when George Walker Bush left the country with a trillion dollar deficit after Clinton left us with a surplus, your scorn for Obama is more than Democrat/Republican crap, your resentment is that of someone who can't rest nights knowing a Black man is the leader of the "free world" the President of the United States and to you I say overcome your bigotry for there in is your true problem with President Obama

| 0 minutes ago

archibaldarmstrong
Aug 23, 09 10:26 AM CDT

It's the anonymity factor that takes the "dissing" to new lows. It allows all the really angry, disfunctional, lonely haters to say whatever they want. Somebody should reserve the right to turn them off. they aren't bringing any new ideas and they are not entertaining. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Zagama
Aug 24, 09 11:28 AM CDT

This picture originally had socialism across it. I find that redundant as socialism is alive and well in this country and has been for a very long time....the educated person that did this picture needs to go back to school and study his government and history harder. And by the way...Obama is bi-racial...not black. He`s not ashamed of being bi-racial so why are the people who insist he is black????? Reply

| 0 minutes ago

schmidtkoff
Aug 25, 09 9:54 AM CDT

comment test Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 34 comments »

Barack Obama • copyright law • free speech • Flickr • Heath Ledger • copyright infringement • the Joker

from our news partners

'New Moon' Sinks Teeth Into $140.7 Opening Weekend
(1 hour, 20 minutes ago)
Jenna Fischer Knows As Much About Her 'Office' Baby As...
(5 hours, 1 minute ago)
Jon Gosselin Brings Roses to Successful Divorce Meeting
(7 hours, 57 minutes ago)
Michael Jackson Glove Sells for $350,000
(8 hours, 38 minutes ago)

Next on the docket: Case No. 1950cv05050: Mouse vs. Duck...
(12 minutes ago)
The coolest Human-Powered Road-Going Viking Boat you'll see today [Cool]
(41 minutes ago)
Kid with terminal cancer is close to death and doesn't...
(1 hour, 4 minutes ago)
Georgia's Supreme Court made it legal for 16-year-olds to fark...
(1 hour, 15 minutes ago)

First Look At Xeno Lovegood From The Deathly Hallows
(Nov 21, 09 8:48 PM CST)
New Moon Has Best Opening Day Of All Time
(Nov 21, 09 11:41 AM CST)
Writer Hired For Underworld 4
(Nov 20, 09 4:44 PM CST)
Brad Pitt Producing Dark Void Video Game Adaptation
(Nov 20, 09 4:36 PM CST)

Associated Press

President Barack Obama to appear in NFL public service announcement with Brees,...
(Nov 19, 09 5:12 PM CST)
Text of President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's...
(Nov 13, 09 11:40 AM CST)
Text of President Barack Obama's remarks at the Fort Hood memorial service...
(Nov 10, 09 4:33 PM CST)
Rapper releases video directed by Heath Ledger shortly before his death
(Oct 30, 09 5:44 AM CDT)

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most important stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Flickr Cowardly for Taking Down Obama Joker

Website caved too easily: image isn't a copyright violation

Fairey Admits Lying
Over 'Hope' Photo

Artist tried to conceal mistake with false evidence

MORE ABOUT:
copyright law • copyright • campaign • Associated Press • copyright infringement • Shepard Fairey • photos

Chicagoan
'Fesses Up
to 'Joker'
Poster

But Firas Alkhateeb isn't behind 'socialism' campaign

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • socialism • Photoshop • Heath Ledger • the Joker • Obama administration • President Obama

LA Plastered With
Obama 'Joker' Posters

MORE ABOUT:
Atlanta • Los Angeles • socialism • The Dark Knight • Heath Ledger • health care reform • the Joker • posters • makeup • Obama administration • guerilla art • street art • President Obama

Barack Obama • copyright law • free speech • Flickr • Heath Ledger • copyright infringement • the Joker

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

from our news partners

Associated Press

About

Help

Tools

Site Maps

What is Newser?

Flickr Cowardly for Taking Down Obama Joker

Website caved too easily: image isn't a copyright violation

Related Newser Stories

Fairey Admits Lying Over 'Hope' Photo

Artist tried to conceal mistake with false evidence

MORE ABOUT: copyright law • copyright • campaign • Associated Press • copyright infringement • Shepard Fairey • photos

Chicagoan 'Fesses Up to 'Joker' Poster

But Firas Alkhateeb isn't behind 'socialism' campaign

MORE ABOUT: Barack Obama • socialism • Photoshop • Heath Ledger • the Joker • Obama administration • President Obama

LA Plastered With Obama 'Joker' Posters

MORE ABOUT: Atlanta • Los Angeles • socialism • The Dark Knight • Heath Ledger • health care reform • the Joker • posters • makeup • Obama administration • guerilla art • street art • President Obama

Barack Obama • copyright law • free speech • Flickr • Heath Ledger • copyright infringement • the Joker

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

from our news partners

Associated Press

About

Help

Tools

Site Maps

What is Newser?

Fairey Admits Lying
Over 'Hope' Photo

MORE ABOUT:
copyright law • copyright • campaign • Associated Press • copyright infringement • Shepard Fairey • photos

Chicagoan
'Fesses Up
to 'Joker'
Poster

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • socialism • Photoshop • Heath Ledger • the Joker • Obama administration • President Obama

LA Plastered With
Obama 'Joker' Posters

MORE ABOUT:
Atlanta • Los Angeles • socialism • The Dark Knight • Heath Ledger • health care reform • the Joker • posters • makeup • Obama administration • guerilla art • street art • President Obama