infringement?

[aosda]

What is the name of your state? TX
Our local weekly newspaper does not have a copyright listed anywhere in the paper. I want to put some of the articles on a particular subject on my website. Because of other material on my site, I want to copyright it. Am I infringing on our local paper? If I put articles from it online and I copyright my site, have I then put a copyright on their articles (doesn't seem likely to me) or is this something I need to be sure to omit from the copyright? I'm totally confused about the situation. Appreciate your help.

 

[atozcom]

I is so unlikely a newspaper did not put a copyright notice somewhere.
It is just so simple to call them and ask!

 

[aosda]

It's a small weekly paper. We've looked through it very thoroughly and there is no copyright notice anywhere in the paper - not in the logical places nor anywhere else. There is information that we would like to use online that, if there is a copyright we can't without their permission and we already know they won't give it. If we can use it if there is no copyright, we'd prefer not to alert them. We're attempting to put info online about a local governmental agency and the newspaper sides with it to the point of never printing anything negative. We're trying to bring out this point as well to get something positive done about the situation.

 

[hexeliebe]

As a former owner of a small weekly newspaper

I can tell you there is a copyright notice on the masthead of the newspaper where the publisher, editor and other legal information is located.

Also, news is not copyrightable but the format and presentation of that news is, therefore, if you take the entire news article and reproduce it verbatim then pass it off as yours on the website you will be in violation.

Now, there are things you can do. You can state your case on your website then use excerpts of the news article(s) as proof of the newspapers support. But give them credit for the arcticles such as ..."In their coverage of the issue, the Daily mirror printed on 5/20/2000..." then excerpt the passage that supports your position.

 

[aosda]

infringement

Thank you. We have it set up to give them complete credit for everything used. And, no there is no copyright - not on the banner where another local paper puts theirs - not where they list the names of the publisher, editor, etc. (where most copyrights are found). We've checked column by column in each paper that has info that we would like to use.

We don't want to allert them if we can use the material if not copyrighted (giving them full credit with dates, etc.), but at the same time we want to copyright our website for our material and don't want to get in a situation where we appear to be copyrighting their material....which we were afraid we might.

 

[Lusus Naturae]

Copyright Information

You may visit http://www.loc.gov/copyright/rb.html and click on the Serial section to find if the paper or its publisher (usually below the newspaper title) has copyright recorded. You may also look simply for the copyright symbol which is enough of notification.

BTW the publication is technically under copyright protection once it is published; it's simple harder to prove copyright if a claim needs to be presented.

You should also read up on the 'fair use' doctrine of the U.S. copyright statute at http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html.

 

[aosda]

infringement

Thank you for the fair use URL - I had missed that when I was looking at the US copyright site. I searched it last evening and found that there was no listing for them. There is nothing in the paper at all that is the circle c - or copyright - or any other indication. In researching microfilm from 20 years back there is none there either. We are a non-profit group and the site is only for citizen/taxpayer awareness. Wish it wasn't a bit of a gray area.

 

[divgradcurl]

There is no gray area -- the newspaper IS copyrighted. As soon as an original work is "fixed in a tangible form" it is copyrighted. As Lusus Naturae said, without a _registered_ copyright it can be more difficult to prove ownership in a court case, and there are some damages ramifications to not having a registered trademark, but you do not need to mark something as copyrighted in order for the copyright to exist.

If you are using material from the newspaper and do not have their permission, or do not have a fair use exemption under 17 USC 107, then you are infringing on their copyright, and could be subject to suit for infringement. Simply giving credit to the copyright owner is insufficient to protect yourself -- you must have permission, or the use must be a fair use.

As noted above, your website already IS copyrighted automatically -- if you wish to secure a registered copyright you can, and it will provide you with further protections. However, you cannot copyright the newspaper's material, as it is already copyrighted.

Why can't you simply ask for permission to use the material?