Is politicians' use of music at conventions legal?
鈥淚t seems like years since it鈥檚 been clear,鈥� the Beatles sang in their 1969 hit 鈥淗ere Comes the Sun.鈥� Unfortunately for musicians upset at the uses of their songs by political candidates, copyright law would disagree.
On Thursday night, Ivanka Trump took the stage at the Republican National Convention to the sounds of 鈥淗ere Comes the Sun,鈥� from the estate of Beatles guitarist George Harrison.
鈥淭he unauthorized use of #HereComestheSun at the #RNCinCLE is offensive,鈥� the estate wrote in Twitter, adding that it came against the wishes of the estate of the late musician, who wrote 鈥淗ere Comes the Sun鈥� for the Beatles鈥� 鈥淎bbey Road鈥� album.
But one copyright expert tells 海角大神 that while the use of famous songs by political campaigns at live events may displease the musician, it鈥檚 likely not a copyright violation.
鈥淚f it鈥檚 a live performance 鈥� in general the venue has a blanket to use all pop music for all purposes, and so if that political campaign takes place in a place that has a general performance license, it鈥檚 perfectly legal,鈥� Michael Carroll, a law professor at American University in Washington, D.C., told the Monitor on Wednesday.
His comments came a day after the rock band Queen of their hit 鈥淲e Are the Champions鈥� when he took the stage at the RNC this week. A GOP official said on Twitter that it had been licensed by the venue:
The use of music by political candidates has often generated a debate, ranging from Ronald Reagan鈥檚 use of Bruce Springsteen鈥檚 鈥淏orn in the USA鈥� to a scathing indictment of then-vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello in 2012.
鈥淚 clearly see that Ryan has a whole lotta 'rage' in him," Mr. Morello wrote in Rolling Stone, responding to Mr. Ryan's statement that the band was one of his favorites. 鈥� is the privileged elite he's groveling in front of for campaign contribution,鈥� Morello added.
Some of the complaints have come from left-leaning musicians, while in other cases Republican politicians have gained musicians鈥� blessing. In 2012, for example, Kid Rock granted Mitt Romney free use of his hit 鈥淏orn Free,鈥� the Monitor reported in 2015.
The conflicts between musicians and politicians can also stem from a musician's desire to stay out of the political fray, or when the candidate's interest in a band seems inauthentic, Jason Johnson, author of 鈥淧olitical Consultants and Campaigns,鈥� told the Monitor last year.聽
鈥淎nything contemporary a politician can glom onto, they鈥檙e going to,鈥� he told the Monitor. 鈥淭he difference is ... how organic the relationship is. That鈥檚 where we get to why people are saying no. No one has any doubt that Barack Obama probably does listen to Jay Z.... Would people have believed ... George Bush was listening to Kanye [West]? No.鈥�
From a legal perspective, the when it comes to licensing songs for use in a campaign video, says Professor Carroll, who directs American University鈥檚 Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property.
In the case of a YouTube video, for example, an ad that uses unlicensed music would likely get removed. That鈥檚 an area where the law doesn鈥檛 totally address the concerns of both politicians and musicians, he says. What , unlike traditional TV ads, can also be opaque.
Further clarity, such as a copyright exemption that required a political candidate to offer a disclaimer saying a musician did not endorse their use of a song, might be useful, Carroll says.
鈥淭here are definitely times when musicians do get up and do support a candidate, so you don鈥檛 want the audience misled about what the connection between the source of the music and the campaign is,鈥� he notes. "It鈥檚 not an easy issue to figure out what the balance is between those two interests.鈥�
