NEW YORK — A judge has dismissed copyright lawsuits between an artist who created the Barack Obama “HOPE” image and The Associated Press but has left a March trial date in place for related claims between the news service and companies that sold merchandise using the artist’s image.

U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said in a one-page order publicly filed Tuesday that a “suggestion of settlement” led him to dismiss claims between artist Shepard Fairey and the AP. He said the claims could be reinstated within a month if either side requested it.

The judge said other claims between the AP and Fairey-related companies that manufactured or marketed products based on the image will be put before an eight-person civil jury on March 21. Lawyers on all sides did not immediately return messages seeking comment Tuesday.

The dispute stems from an AP picture taken in 2006 when Obama, then a U.S. senator from Illinois, was at the National Press Club in Washington.

Fairey used the photograph when he created his artwork during Obama’s 2008 run for the presidency. In 2009, he sued the AP, seeking a court declaration that he did not violate AP’s copyrights when he made the Obama image.

The news cooperative countersued, saying the uncredited, uncompensated use of its picture violated copyright laws and was a threat to journalism.

Last year, it was disclosed in court that Fairey was under criminal investigation after he said he erred about which AP photo he used as a basis for “HOPE.” He also had acknowledged that he had submitted false images and deleted other images to conceal his actions.

The red, cream and light-blue images show a determined-looking Obama gazing upward, with the caption “HOPE.”

It was unclear how a dismissal of claims between Fairey and the AP would affect legal fair use arguments over whether Fairey altered the original image of Obama enough that he did not infringe the AP’s copyrights.

Court papers submitted by lawyers for the AP and makers and distributors of apparel and other merchandise using Fairey’s image suggest that those arguments to some extent will remain part of the case.

Lawyers for clothing manufacturer One 3 Two said in court papers that the “total concept and feel” of the AP picture and the Obama image were different. They said that while the AP picture “depicts a portrait of President Obama suitable for news reporting, the Obama Image is an iconic piece of artwork that has an edgy, provocative feel that is characteristic of Fairey’s street art.”

The company said it has an indirect contractual relationship with the artist and has asked the judge to rule it did not violate copyrights. It said it is the exclusive licensee of Obey Giant Art LLC, which is affiliated with Fairey. The company said it had nothing to do with creating Fairey’s images as it sold apparel and other merchandise using the art.

In papers filed last week, the AP said the case presents “the straightforward question of whether a T-shirt company may use a nearly verbatim copy of a copyrighted image to generate millions in dollars of revenues for itself without securing the permission of the copyright owner.” The company called the legal issues “garden-variety copyright infringement matters.”

The AP said the T-shirt company, Obey Clothing, between March 2008 and September 2009 sold approximately 233,800 pieces of merchandise bearing an image that copied the Obama photo.

The AP wrote that Fairey’s image was a “nearly verbatim copy” of the Obama AP photo, incorporating the “protectable expressive elements in the photo almost entirely – down to the twinkles in then-Senator Obama’s eyes.”

Dear President Obama,

As academics dedicated to promoting robust public debate on the laws and public policies affecting the Internet, intellectual property, global innovation policy and the worldwide trade in knowledge goods and services, we write to express our grave concern that your Administration is negotiating a far-reaching international intellectual property agreement behind a shroud of secrecy, with little opportunity for public input, and with active participation by special interests who stand to gain from restrictive new international rules that may harm the public interest.

…we are concerned that the purpose that animates ACTA is being deliberately misrepresented to the American people.  The treaty is named the “Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement”.  But it has little to do with counterfeiting or controlling the international trade in counterfeit goods. Rather, this agreement would enact much more encompassing changes in the international rules governing trade in a wide variety of knowledge goods – whether they are counterfeit or not – and would establish new intellectual property rules and norms without systematic inquiry into effects of such development on economic and technical innovation in the U.S. or abroad. These norms will affect virtually every American and should be the subject of wide public debate. Read more.

President Obama and others speak at an event commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. [Source: whitehose.gov].  This video is in the public domain. Read the transcript.

Last night (March 21, 2010) at 11:51 p.m., almost an hour after the health care reform bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 219-212, I received this email message from President Barack Obama:

Mark –

For the first time in our nation’s history, Congress has passed comprehensive health care reform. America waited a hundred years and fought for decades to reach this moment. Tonight, thanks to you, we are finally here.

Consider the staggering scope of what you have just accomplished:

Because of you, every American will finally be guaranteed high quality, affordable health care coverage.

Every American will be covered under the toughest patient protections in history. Arbitrary premium hikes, insurance cancellations, and discrimination against pre-existing conditions will now be gone forever.

And we’ll finally start reducing the cost of care — creating millions of jobs, preventing families and businesses from plunging into bankruptcy, and removing over a trillion dollars of debt from the backs of our children.

But the victory that matters most tonight goes beyond the laws and far past the numbers.

It is the peace of mind enjoyed by every American, no longer one injury or illness away from catastrophe.

It is the workers and entrepreneurs who are now freed to pursue their slice of the American dream without fear of losing coverage or facing a crippling bill.

And it is the immeasurable joy of families in every part of this great nation, living happier, healthier lives together because they can finally receive the vital care they need.

This is what change looks like.

My gratitude tonight is profound. I am thankful for those in past generations whose heroic efforts brought this great goal within reach for our times. I am thankful for the members of Congress whose months of effort and brave votes made it possible to take this final step. But most of all, I am thankful for you.

This day is not the end of this journey. Much hard work remains, and we have a solemn responsibility to do it right. But we can face that work together with the confidence of those who have moved mountains.

Our journey began three years ago, driven by a shared belief that fundamental change is indeed still possible. We have worked hard together every day since to deliver on that belief.

We have shared moments of tremendous hope, and we’ve faced setbacks and doubt. We have all been forced to ask if our politics had simply become too polarized and too short-sighted to meet the pressing challenges of our time. This struggle became a test of whether the American people could still rally together when the cause was right — and actually create the change we believe in.

Tonight, thanks to your mighty efforts, the answer is indisputable: Yes we can.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

I remember similar historic votes when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 were passed in Congress. I don’t have any kind of personal documentation from 1964 (I was 9 years old then. I lobbied for the ADA for two years and was invited to the signing ceremony at the White House on July 26, 1990. I have plenty of documents and memorabilia from that experience, though none of  it is online. After hearing CBC Spark’s show on personal digital archives, I know I need to do something about that before all that stuff is lost in the clutter.

I’ve been impressed since 2008 by the Obama political  organization’s use of new media, which is why I’m still receiving communications such as this. The email, of course, included a big red button in its footer: Donate.

followed by this disclaimer:

Paid for by Organizing for America, a project of the Democratic National Committee — 430 South Capitol Street SE, Washington, D.C. 20003. This communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California gestures during a press conference after the House passes health care reform in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Sunday, March 21, 2010. Standing with Speaker Pelosi are Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland, (l), and Rep. James Clyburn. [Photo source: AP/VoANews.com]

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama participate in tree plantings at the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in Washington on 4/21/09. [Official White House Photo by Pete Souza]

See the White House photostream on Flickr. Who knew?

Creative Commons explains why the White House chose a CC license instead of acknowledging that the photos belong in the public domain:

The microblogs have been a-buzz this morning about news of the launch of the official White House Flickr stream featuring photos from Obama’s first 100 days in office. While the photos are licensed under our Attribution license, one could make the very strong argument that they’re actually in the public domain and can be used without attribution (though one would have to be careful and respect the personality rights of the private citizens featured in some of the photos). The photos are likely in the public domain because they are works created by the federal government and not entitled to copyright protection. As you might recall, the Whitehouse.gov’s copyright notice indicates as much.

Why would the White House then choose Attribution for their Flickr stream? Simple, unlike communities like Wikipedia and Thingiverse, Flickr doesn’t allow their photographers to choose Public Domain as an option to release their work to the world. So the Obama team must have picked the next best option: Attribution only.

Law Professor Weighs In On ‘Hope’ Squabble NPR 022609:

Law professor Greg Lastowka talks with Fresh Air about the intellectual-property issues involved in what might be called the audacity-of-”Hope” case.

That’s the dispute between the Associated Press and street artist Shepard Fairey, who have been wrangling in the courts over Fairey’s use of an AP photo as the foundation for his “Hope” poster — an image that became synonymous with the presidential campaign of then-Sen. Barack Obama.

The original photo was taken by AP photographer Mannie Garcia, and Fairey has admitted that his poster is based on Garcia’s photograph. Fairey’s lawyers argue that the poster is protected under what’s called “Fair Use” — a legal construct that allows for certain exceptions to copyright protections.

Lastowka teaches at Rutgers School of Law, Camden and is currently a visiting professor at Columbia Law School. He specializes in intellectual property and Internet law. His work been published in The Washington Post, USA Today, Wired and The Economist.

NPR Fresh Air 022609: Shepard Fairey | Mannie Garcia | Greg Lastowka

Shepard Fairey: Inspiration Or Infringement? : NPR 022609:

The Associated Press has threatened to sue the artist who created the iconic “Hope” poster of Barack Obama for copyright infringement, but Shepard Fairey says his work is protected under the principle of “Fair Use,” which exempts artists and others from some copyright restrictions, under certain circumstances.

Fairey based his poster on an April 2006 photo of Obama taken by AP photographer Mannie Garcia. Last month, the AP contacted Fairey threatening him with a lawsuit for using the image without permission, seeking payment for using it, and asking to share in the profits from it.

Pre-empting the suit, the Stanford Law School’s Fair Use Project filed a lawsuit on behalf of Fairey stating that his work is protected under Fair Use.

Fairey is the founder of Studio Number One, a Los Angeles-based design company; he’s created album covers for several bands, including the Black Eyed Peas and the Smashing Pumpkins.

He joins Fresh Air to talk about the image, the dispute, and why he thinks his poster qualifies as a protected work under Fair Use provisions.

Spreading The Hope: Street Artist Shepard Fairey – NPR 012009:

Shepard Fairey’s illustration of Barack Obama was one of the most iconic images of the campaign — Obama’s face and the word “hope” rendered in red, white, and blue.

Fairey says he made the image to spur voters’ belief in Obama as a leader. The image was never officially adopted by the campaign, however, because of legal issues related to the original photograph he used.

The iconic poster differed from Fairey’s previous work. The image was unusual, Fairey says, because his political art is usually negative.

“I felt that Barack Obama was an unusual candidate, a special candidate, and that it was worth putting my efforts into making something positive,” he told NPR in a Jan. 2009 interview.

Now Fairey is spreading the message of hope again, this time as the official designer of the Obama inauguration poster.

Fairey spawned the “Obey” street art movement which in turn was the inspiration for a line of clothing, and he has designed album covers for several well-known bands, including The Black Eyed Peas and the Smashing Pumpkins. He’s the founder of Studio Number One, a Los Angeles-based design company.

NPR Fresh Air 022609: Shepard Fairey | Mannie Garcia | Greg Lastowka

Mannie Garcia: The Photo That Sparked ‘Hope’NPR 922609:

In April 2006, Associated Press photographer Mannie Garcia took a batch of photos of then-Sen. Barack Obama at a National Press Club discussion about the crisis in Darfur. One of those photographs later became the basis for Shepard Fairey’s iconic “Hope” poster, an image that came to be intimately associated with Obama’s campaign.

Recently, the AP threatened to sue Fairey over the photo, charging that Fairey’s use of Garcia’s original infringed the AP’s copyright; Fairey’s lawyers themselves filed a preemptive lawsuit, arguing that the work he created based on that image is protected under the so-called “Fair Use” provisions of copyright law.

Garcia has photographed news events for Bloomberg, Reuters, The New York Times, and Newsweek. He’s worked in countries around the world, including the U.S., Somalia, Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo, Afghanistan and the Philippines. He joins Fresh Air to talk about the dispute.

NPR Fresh Air 022609: Shepard Fairey | Mannie Garcia | Greg Lastowka

[Updated 032009] NPR has withdrawn the image linked here in the original post. The caption for it read: A poster of President Barack Obama, right, by artist Shepard Fairey is shown for comparison with this April 27, 2006, file photo of Obama by Associated Press photographer Mannie Garcia. Fairey has acknowledged the poster is based on the AP photograph. [Source: Mannie Garcia/ Shepard Fairey/AP/NPR]

Fair Use Or Infringement? Obama Image In Spat – NPR 020509

The Associated Press is alleging copyright infringement for an image of Barack Obama created by street artist Shepard Fairey. Fairey’s lawyers say the image is protected under fair-use provisions.

Margaret Esquenet, an intellectual-property lawyer with Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, a Washington, D.C., law firm, says several factors must be examined in the fair-use defense.

“The artist here would have a good argument that the photograph is factual; it’s of a real person at a real event in a news context,” Esquenet tells NPR’s Melissa Block. “It doesn’t appear that the photographer spent time posing or arranging the lighting or arranging the background … that would give it the creative elements that you’d normally see for a photograph.”

She says an amicable solution is possible.

“I think a reasonable solution would be to ensure that the AP gets credit every time this is used,” Esquenet says.