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There are other suspects in Copyright Cluedo


Mick Sinclair’s piece on copyright infringement was interesting and informative and I agree with most of it. But, as every journalist knows, there are two sides to every story.


I can’t be the only NUJ member who is also a publisher, my news and picture agency having expanded into magazine and website publishing almost 20 years ago. Daily, we are inundated with press releases, many with


pictures. Most are of no use but occasionally one is and we use it, usually online. Now we are being threatened with legal action by two of the


‘growing number of specialist companies’ Mick refers to, who claim to represent photographers based abroad, whose copyright we are alleged to have breached simply by using a press release sent by a PR company. These companies have business names that bear no relation to


the service they purport to offer, employ people who don’t use their surnames and demand fees of around £600 for pictures that anyone could take with their phone. Maybe Mick should add PR agencies to his list of


chimney sweeps, barristers and fire brigades who infringe copyright. David Skentelbery Warrington


£30 prize


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It was ever thus that we are in need of protection Joseph Williams founded the Musicians’ Union and was its general secretary from the start in 1893 until he retired in 1924.


It all began when he posted a notice in a theatre band room in Manchester stating: ‘The union we require is … one that will protect us from amateurs, protect us from unscrupulous employers and protect us from ourselves. A union that will guarantee our receiving a fair wage for engagements. A society that will keep the amateur in his right place, and prevent his going under prices.’ Some things never change.. #WorkNotPlayMU Keith Ames Musicians’ Union PR Official


Contact the NUJ Freelance office if you want help It was good to see articles on both copyright and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the last edition. Copyright is vital for freelances in allowing them control over who uses their work, and the ability to make multiple sales from the same work after first publication is what keeps some freelances afloat. It’s long been said that a photographer’s archive is their pension, which is dependent on copyright. The European Court of Justice ruling on hyperlinking is unfortunate and detrimental to rights holders. Members who feel their copyright has been infringed can contact the NUJ Freelance Office, who have much experience in dealing with copyright


cases and have helped me in the past. The London Freelance Branch website also has copyright advice. The GDPR has potential to impact negatively on our work, depending on how it is interpreted and on what the forthcoming Data Protection and Journalism code will say. The GDPR may be used to roll back freelance copyright. If anyone has received a ‘GDPR compliance letter’ from a client, they should read it carefully and contact the Freelance Office if they feel the terms limit their rights. Simon Chapman Bristol branch


Good to see balance over Leveson Two’s scrapping Thank you for your balanced coverage of the judicial review that was granted,


Email to: journalist@nuj.org.uk Post to: The Journalist 72 Acton Street, London WC1X 9NB Tweet to: @mschrisbuckley


following the government’s decision to scrap part two of the Leveson inquiry. I went to a recent event held by


Hacked Off, and it was one of the most eye-opening experiences I have had. To hear from people who are not famous nor a celebrity on how their life had been so drastically impacted made me think how, as journalists, our actions have consequences. It was horrible to hear how they were followed and harassed. Some publications were misleading about the recent vote, especially about how much part one of the inquiry cost, the impact of a second, and how ‘all issues have been resolved’. Regulation is still an issue, but there issues still remain. Thank you for being balanced. Lydia Wilkins Brighton branch


Budding novelists: beware of predatory publishers In the changing world of journalism, I recently completed my first novel – gripping, page-turning, descriptive English that would give Dan Brown, Stephen King and JK Rowling sleepless nights. Or so I would like to think! Having searched for an agent without


success, I submitted my synopsis to a London publishing house. They wrote back to say my submission was ‘being considered’. Several days later, they said they had approved my story, were willing to proceed and asked for the full manuscript. But there was a hitch. The company, a ‘hybrid’ publisher, wanted ME to pay for the printing. Online, I discovered warnings from journos against sending manuscripts to hybrid publishers as you can end up out of pocket and unknowingly hand over ownership of work. In the meantime, I have given away the plot of my story but not the full manuscript and, for all I know, it could end up in print in outer Mongolia or Azerbaijan without one penny coming my way. In the meantime, does anyone know a kind, caring, sympathetic agent? Ken Murray Irish Eastern Branch


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