On Tuesday, a federal appeals court was tasked with the application of the U.S. Supreme Court’s most recent fair use test. This was in response to a photographer’s allegation of copyright infringement against the Independent Journal Review; the news site had used his photograph of rock musician Ted Nugent without license.
This case, brought before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, debated if the media outlet’s application of the Nugent image in an article listing signs of a father being conservative could be approved as “transformative.” This particular criterion determines the legality of the copyrighted image’s unlicensed use according to the “fair-use doctrine.”
The Fourth Circuit’s choice, which is still pending, is anticipated to provide further clarification on the application of ‘transformative’ use in the context of media and digital content.
For further case details, click here.