Sunday, March 2, 2014

It's a copyright issue

Photo by Amitava Sarkar as presented
on March/April 2013 cover of Texas AAA Journal.
When Dr. Lace Brogden announced the Northwest's intention to take participants from rodeos and horses to the theater and ballet, I thought this picture would be wonderful! I took a closed up of the insurance magazine using the photo on its cover. With rather rusty PhotoShop skills, I deleted all of the type except "From two-steppin' to tutus."
     About the time was I ready to post this great photo to advertise the Northwest Regional Conference, I received an email from Joanne Davis, 2011-2013 Texas State Organization president, questioning a bill she had received because a chapter newsletter published on the chapter's website included a copyrighted poem without permission. After attorney fees and insurance company representatives, the chapter still paid $1,000, plus the state and Society added money to settle the issue.
     Back to this picture? I made three calls to numbers in the magazine's masthead before hitting pay dirt with an email. This person emailed my request to the photographer, who sent me the digital photo once I sent him $25. To read a long version of this information and another chapter charged $1,880 and copyright infringement for using photographs copied from the internet and then re-posted, read my column in the Nov/Dec DKG NEWS, page 7. Find that issue on the Society website dkg.org  in the Library, Publications, choose DKG NEWS and scroll to the date.

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