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The Copyright Nightmare of 'I Have a Dream'

Posted by Soulskill on from the private-history dept.

CoveredTrax writes "If you weren't alive to witness Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech on the Washington Mall 48 years ago this week, you might try to switch on the old YouTube and dial it up. But you won't find it there or anywhere else; rights to its usage remain with King and his family. Typically, a speech broadcast to a large audience on radio and television (and considered instrumental in historic political changes and ranked as the most important speech in 20th century American history) would seem to be a prime candidate for the public domain. But the copyright dilemma began in December 1963, when King sued Mister Maestro, Inc., and Twentieth Century Fox Records Company to stop the unauthorized sale of records of the 17-minute oration."

16 of 366 comments (clear)

  1. Only 27 more years until public domain by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Right...? Or is Disney going to get another copyright extension passed?

  2. I Had A Dream... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Obviously the family is not very big on living up to MLK's dream.

    1. Re:I Had A Dream... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      King sued Mister Maestro, Inc., and Twentieth Century Fox Records Company to stop the unauthorized sale of records of the 17-minute oration.

      Given the long, sordid history of record companies ripping off African American artists, I hardly think it would have been MLK's dream to allow his own work to be ripped off well.

    2. Re:I Had A Dream... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I realize his message was mostly about race, but MLK was all about social justice.

      There is no justice involved in trying to hold a copyright on a speech that was given in PUBLIC, and broadcast to the public, almost 5 decades ago.

    3. Re:I Had A Dream... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "Given the long, sordid history of record companies ripping off African American artists, I hardly think it would have been MLK's dream to allow his own work to be ripped off well."

      "Ripped off", how? This was a public speech. If you want to reserve rights to something, then do it in a studio or in front of a paying audience, not in front of thousands of people, in a park, for free.

  3. Re:How is this by slapout · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The speech contained a message that MLK (presumably) wanted to get out to everyone. Steamboat Willy, not so much.

    --
    Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
  4. Re:I have a dream... by SilverHatHacker · · Score: 2, Insightful

    MLK: I have a dream.
    FOX: We have a congress. Your move.

    --
    Funny may not give karma, but +5 Informative never made anyone snort coffee out their nose.
  5. Re:MLK's Family Received 800k from the Memorial by Baloroth · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Members of celebrities families are greedy free-riding bastards who hang on their relatives coattails. In other news, rodent attacks man. More at 11.

    --
    "None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license." --John Milton
  6. Re:MLK Jr. would be rolling in his grave by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    He was trying to step people MAKING money off his shit.
    If his shit was given away for free, that would probably have been ok him.
    Atleast i hope so, or the dude wasnt as cool as i thought.

  7. I have my own Dream... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I have my own dream that someday we will end this copyright foolishness. That people will realize that ideals once expressed become part of our collective humanity, and not something to be enslaved forever to the false god of capitalistic profits. I see a day when all children have the chance to make beautiful music and that music not be shacked by men who make no art. Then if we the people enjoy that music, then those children can earn a comfortable living for themselves from their endeavors.

    Yes, I have seen the promised land and it is Creative Commons!
    Thank God almighty we are free at least from US style Copyright!!!

  8. Re:King was a great man by FatLittleMonkey · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The good news is that you are judging them, not by the color of their skin, but by the quality of their character.

    The bad news is the quality of their character.

    --
    Science is all about firing a drunk pig out of a cannon just to see what happens.
  9. Re:MLK's Family Received 800k from the Memorial by DesScorp · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Members of celebrities families are greedy free-riding bastards who hang on their relatives coattails. In other news, rodent attacks man. More at 11.

    King's family is just continuing what King himself did; copyright as much of what he said and wrote as he could, and jealously guard the rights and profits from such work. It doesn't exactly jibe with the image we have of him today, but facts are facts. The man was intent on squeezing out every dime could in this manner.

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    Life is hard, and the world is cruel
  10. Re:King children care about money, not father by nedlohs · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's ok. We judge them by the content of their character anyway.

  11. Re:MLK's Family Received 800k from the Memorial by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 3, Insightful

    King's family is just continuing what King himself did; copyright as much of what he said and wrote as he could, and jealously guard the rights and profits from such work. It doesn't exactly jibe with the image we have of him today, but facts are facts. The man was intent on squeezing out every dime could in this manner.

    Was he really "intent on squeezing out every dime" or was it really about controlling his words to prevent them from being misused? I'm not talking about what his survivors do now, but what MLK did himself.

    After all, the US copyright system does not really have an equivalent of the continental "moral right" to prevent distortion of the author's intent. So the only way to to get the same effect is to zealously pursue the US property right version of copyright.

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    When information is power, privacy is freedom.
  12. Re:MLK's Family Received 800k from the Memorial by Jeremiah+Cornelius · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No.

    It is a diatribe against the exploitation of the King legacy by those who stand against the type of social justice that was the foundation of his principles and action.

    --
    "Flyin' in just a sweet place,
    Never been known to fail..."
  13. Re:MLK's Family Received 800k from the Memorial by garyebickford · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Now we have an enraged rabbit with limited experience in the presidency.

    --
    It's easier to be a result of the past, but more fun to be a cause of the future! http://www.spacefinancegroup.com/