Referencing specific movies, products, people, etc in talk show?

[321gogirl5]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? South Carolina

I have a podcast and youtube video show. We are a little confused as to what we can and can't talk about on the show. Here are some ideas of the type of things we would like to do on the show and would like opinions on whether it would be ok or not.


Say we wanted to have a segment where we talked about games we played growing up. Maybe throw up a picture of some of the games in the corner of the screen or actually have the game with us in the video. We talked about what we liked and disliked. We then asked the audience what they like the best and in the next episode talked about that game and maybe even played a round or two of it.

Say my other show host was drinking coffee and asked me what was my favorite and from where and I said McDonald's frappuchino. We then talked about what brands we like and didn't like and asked the viewer again to tell us their favorite and maybe we tried the most popular one the next episodes.

What if we did movie reviews and talked about our favorite lines and maybe played an audio clip or threw up a picture.

I have a wall covered in signed music posters. Say we filmed in front of it and in one episode talked about the bands and where we got the posters signed and things like that plus talking about any signed clothes or merchandise we have.

I've gotten very different answers from asking these questions. Some say for just talking about a topic it's fine. Others say if I did what I listed here I could get in serious trouble. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? South Carolina

I have a podcast and youtube video show. We are a little confused as to what we can and can't talk about on the show. Here are some ideas of the type of things we would like to do on the show and would like opinions on whether it would be ok or not.


Say we wanted to have a segment where we talked about games we played growing up. Maybe throw up a picture of some of the games in the corner of the screen or actually have the game with us in the video. We talked about what we liked and disliked. We then asked the audience what they like the best and in the next episode talked about that game and maybe even played a round of two of it.

Say my other show host was drinking coffee and asked me what was my favorite and from where and I said McDonald's frappuchino. We then talked about what brands we like and didn't like and asked the viewer again to tell us their favorite and maybe the tried the most popular one of the next episode.

What if we did movie reviews and talked about our favorite lines and maybe played an audio clip or threw up a picture.

I have a wall covered in signed music posters. Say we filmed in front of it and in one episode talked about the bands and where we got the posters signed and things like that plus talking about any signed clothes or merchandise we have.

I've gotten very different answers from asking these questions. Some say for just talking about a topic it's fine. Other's say if I did what I listed here I could get in serious trouble. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Most of what you are proposing for your podcast and YouTube video show should not be a problem for you legally. You can talk about whatever you want and you can refer to products, games, movies and bands by their names. You can use products for illustrative purposes when you are commenting on them.

You and your audience can say what is liked and not liked about products or services - as long as everyone sticks to facts or "pure" opinions (opinions that do not state or imply false facts). No one can say, for example, that McDonald's frappuchinos cause cancer. That has a very good chance of getting you sued.

In other words, you and others are freely allowed to express your opinions. That is a protected right.

From what you have posted, the area where you are most likely to run into problems is with using copyright-protected material without permission from the copyright holder. You can film a game you own and make comments on it. You cannot use photos or films of the game or movie or band that are the rights-protected property of someone else and you cannot use any trademark in a commercial manner (e.g., to advertise your site).

With movie or band performance clips, you definitely would be smart to get the permission from the rights-holder. Although "fair use" can allow for minimal uses of copyrighted material, especially when the use is for commenting or criticizing the material, how much of the material is too much to use must often be decided by a court - and you do not want a court to have to decide the matter because it means the rights-holder has taken exception to your use and sued you.

Here briefly are the basics on copyright and trademark and defamation laws, the areas of law that probably need to be considered the most carefully:

Copyright law protects all original and creative material (with a few exceptions). Copyright holders have the exclusive rights to reproduce their works, distribute their works, display their works, perform their works, create derivatives of their works. Anyone who infringes on these rights can be sued. You should get permission from the rights-holder to avoid any risk of a DMCA notice advising you of infringement, or a summons and complaint indicating you have been sued.

Trademark law covers companies product or service identifiers (names, slogans, logos). If the use of another's trademark confuses consumers into thinking the trademark holder supports, endorses, sponsors or is in any way connected with you or your website, you can be sued. Trademarks represent companies and you need to be careful not to dilute the value of these marks or disparage these marks by publishing any falsehoods.

Defamation law covers reputations and the falsehoods that may harm them. Do not tell lies. If you stick to facts and pure opinions, you should be able to avoid injuring a reputation to the point where a lawsuit results.

Following is a valuable link with information for bloggers/website owners on what can and cannot be done safely. The Knight Citizen News Network, a work of the Knight Foundation, has information for website owners and bloggers and the entire site is worth a review, but the "legal risks" module is one I recommend you read prior to going public with your website/podcast. The legal risks module details the legal risks you can face when publishing online: http://www.kcnn.org On the banner, find and click on "modules." On the modules page, scroll down to "Legal Risks."

It can also be a good idea to have liability insurance that covers your site in the event a lawsuit arises over its content. And having an attorney well-versed in publishing law review your plans is never a dumb idea. The personal review can help you tailor your site and podcast in a way that best protects you from any legal action.

Good luck.

 

[Silverplum]

*(humbly) leads the crowd in a wave to cheer Quincy for his remarkable posts!*

 

[quincy]

A very humble thank you . . . . especially for not noticing (or at least commenting on) my post's "is" and "are" mix-ups (which I intend to edit now).

 

[LdiJ]

A very humble thank you . . . . especially for not noticing (or at least commenting on) my post's "is" and "are" mix-ups (which I intend to edit now).

This is a day late and a dollar short but I agree wholeheartedly with Silver...that was an truly excellent and comprehensive response.

 

[quincy]

This is a day late and a dollar short but I agree wholeheartedly with Silver...that was an truly excellent and comprehensive response.

Thank you, LdiJ.

I actually admire those on this forum, and have tried in the past to emulate those on this forum, who can say all that needs saying in a few short words. My admiration remains but I apparently fail miserably in my emulation. I can't seem to stop myself from saying something more.


(and I guess this post is an example of that - I could have just said "thanks" and called it a day )