A newspaper editor who was approached to join the complaint against Colorado Pols but declined - and who frequently posts links to his own breaking news on the website - said both sides went to the barricades too hastily.
"I do think there's a middle ground if people just take a deep breath," said Fort Collins Coloradoan executive editor Bob Moore.
He said he sympathizes with the owners of the aggrieved newspapers but also realizes the importance of inserting political stories into the online community.
"We really have not had that kind of problem with Colorado Pols," Moore said, noting that his own efforts to promote Coloradoan stories on the website have helped increase his reputation among political observers statewide [Pols emphasis]...
Moore isn't the only editor of a Colorado newspaper who sees the benefit of connecting their stories with Colorado Pols.
An executive at another newspaper - whose political coverage has already gotten a boost from Colorado Pols' stance [Pols emphasis] - said he declined to sign on with the cease-and-desist letter from the other news organizations but understood why they sent it.
"We probably would have been part of this effort had we seen a clearer abuse of our intellectual property rights by Colorado Pols," said Grand Junction Daily Sentinel publisher Jay Seaton...
While Seaton acknowledged he was happy the newspaper's political reporting got more attention when Colorado Pols featured it, the publisher cautioned the website against taking his stance as a license to go hog wild. "If that happens, we will pursue a remedy against them," he said.
This is a good opportunity to clear the air on this subject, which we'll add is a lot easier to do with people who are willing to make reasonable requests--not unreasonable demands.
We've frequently cited the Coloradoan's Bob Moore, as well as our online partners at The Washington Post and Hotline, as examples of the way that traditional journalists should work with blogs. Traditional media organizations who participate in that discussion should only benefit from doing so--to the extent that this blog is a hub for dissemination of news from many commercial sources, as well as original reporting and commentary, Bob Moore's stories belong here, and we want them here in a way that benefits all parties.
With the introduction of our new Terms of Use, the method for resolving copyright complaints is clearly defined. In short, we value the relationship we have with the media, and we have no interest in doing anything to jeopardize that. In turn, both Moore and the Grand Junction Sentinel's Jay Seaton acknowledge the value they get in return when their stories are more widely distributed from our blog. That's how it's supposed to work, and for media outlets smart enough get it, it's a recipe for continued success. |
