Law, ethics and
Responsibilities
Producing a book you can be proud of When your book arrives, you want your students to have a positive experience. People keep yearbooks throughout their lives and pass them on to their children. Yearbooks last for generations, so make sure your staff makes good content choices. Everyone wants to be remembered in the yearbook in a positive way. The publication is a history of the year and a personal record of everyone who attended the school. The yearbook should be an ethical, truthful, responsible representation of the school year, the ups and downs, cheers and tears, and victories and defeats. The yearbook should never be used to get even with a person you dislike or with whom you’ve had a disagreement. The yearbook should never include hidden messages or remarks that are hurtful or potentially harmful to a person’s reputation. When the staff faces ethical decisions, it’s helpful to establish an editorial board made up of editors, section editors, the adviser and third-party teachers or administrators.
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Goal: At the end of this unit, students will understand the legal aspects, ethics and responsibilities of producing the yearbook. Objectives: 1. Students will understand the importance of copyright laws. 2. Students will understand libel, the consequences of producing libelous material and the defenses for libel. 3. Students will make ethical decisions when determining yearbook content. 4. Students will abide by staff editorial and advertising policies. Methodology: Staff members will complete a unit on ethics, law and responsibilities, incorporating that knowledge into their decisions regarding yearbook content. Evaluation: Editors, section editors and adviser will read all copy and review all photos and designs for legal or ethical issues. If problems arise, editors, section editors and adviser will discuss publications policies with anyone violating them. If further problems occur, school administrators will become involved. Resources: Law and ethics slideshow: http://online.fliphtml5.com/traa/erga/index.html Student Press Law Center: www.splc.org
Law, ethics and
Responsibilities Ethics and legalities Yearbook staff members are responsible for producing an accurate, truthful book. When determining the publication’s content, advisers may face situations involving ethical and legal decisions. It’s always a good idea to discuss questions regarding content with an editorial board. This section deals with certainties and ambiguities. You will learn how to guide your staff as they learn about copyright laws, libel, ethics and responsibility. These are important issues, sometimes complex issues. It is necessary to understand these issues to protect your school from exposure to legal liability for yearbook content, and to avoid publication delays caused by submission of inappropriate content. First and foremost, it is important that the yearbook staff views itself as a team and the yearbook as a product that reflects on the team as well as on the school. As an adviser, emphasize to your student journalists that they must be accurate in everything they put in the book. One false fact or one poorly researched story – which is therefore incorrect or incomplete – can make readers wonder if other information is reliable. Inaccuracy could also provide the administration with a reason for demanding oversight of the publication or for introducing a plan to censor it. For that reason, use multiple caption and story editors to help ensure accuracy. Second, develop a working relationship with administrators so that they support your publications, rather than see them as something to fear or monitor.
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Free legal assistance For more information about student media and copyright law, visit the Student Press Law Center’s site at www.splc.org. Lawyers and assistants are available to answer questions via email at splc@splc.org. Their legal services are free of charge to students and educators. The organization is supported by donations.
Law, ethics and
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Copyright and ownership The internet, magazines and newspapers might appear to provide ample opportunity for yearbook staff to pull images, logos and information for their own use; however, students may not realize that the work belongs to others and is illegal to use. Students might think, “Our theme is ‘character,’ so why don’t we grab some cartoon characters off the Internet?” Images of Snoopy, the Road Runner or Superman may dance through their heads as they think of how a cartoon character could be used. While it might appear to be a good idea, it is a violation of copyright law. If someone develops a character (for example, James Bond or the Pink Panther), the creator owns the right to use it and to prevent others from profiting from their work. The same is true of any other intellectual property such as writing, music, paintings or photographs. Copyright laws protect the work and the rights of those who create intellectual property. Those who do not own the intellectual properties have no right to use the work without written permission (something that can take months to secure). There is no guarantee that the creators will grant permission to use their work. Yearbook staff are NOT exempt from the rules and should be aware that they generally cannot use content found on a website for use in their books.
Creativity has ownership Copyright protects intellectual property from unauthorized use for a particular period of time. Intellectual property includes original materials such as literary works, movies, music or sound recordings, paintings or photographs. Currently in the United States, copyright law provides protection for the work of individuals for their lifetime plus 70 years. For corporate owners, such as Disney or Warner Brothers, the protection time extends for 120 years after creation, or 95 years after publication, whichever endpoint is earlier. What this means to yearbook staffs is that they cannot use material simply because they can find it on the internet or in a magazine. Whether something has been officially registered does not matter. To use something that is copyrighted, the staff must request and be given written permission to use it from the creator. It is not enough to include the fact that the material is copyrighted by Time Magazine or Counting Crows, nor to include a tagline stating “courtesy of” if permission has not expressly been given.
Law, ethics and
Responsibilities Copyright and ownership The Walt Disney Corporation is vigilant about guarding its copyrights, as are many other companies. Disney owns the images of all the characters it has developed, as well as the concept for its theme parks. The consequence: No one may copy its rides or the names of those rides. They may create a theme park and have similar rides, but it must be different enough that no one is confused by the similarity.
It depends on what you use and how you use it While a yearbook cannot use Disney’s specific images of Cinderella, her wicked stepsister, fairy godmother and such on its pages, Disney does not own this classic tale. This holds true for the words “It’s a small world.” Disney does not own the words. As long as a school does not replicate the logo, characters or the words from the song, the yearbook could use the words as a theme or in a headline. Some phrases have been trademarked or registered. NBA coach Pat Riley coined the phrase “threepeat,” meaning to win three national sports championships in a row. He then registered the word. Anyone who uses that phrase for commercial purposes is now expected to pay Riley for the use.
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Use slogans, art as inspirations, but don’t copy them Chili’s slogan, “Get in. Get out. Get on with your life.” is registered. The Chili’s pepper logo is also registered. Your students can create their own chili pepper or could create a talking mouse or a panther. The creations, however, cannot be based on or bear too close a similarity to Mickey, Minnie or the famous Pink Panther. If the images are too similar, the staff using them could be violating copyright law.
Law, ethics and
Responsibilities Public domain Older works are in the public domain, meaning that no one has ownership of them. Items that are in the public domain can be used without permission because they are not under any copyright. The writings of William Shakespeare or the artwork of Vincent van Gogh and the inventions of Thomas Edison are in the public domain. No one has proprietary rights to these older works, because their copyright term has expired.
Fair Use Sometimes minimal use of a copyrighted work without the owner’s permission is not copyright infringement because it qualifies as “Fair Use.” A general rule of thumb is that Fair Use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and “transformative” purpose such as to comment upon, criticize or parody a copyrighted work. Unfortunately, reliance on Fair Use as a defense to what would otherwise be infringement can be risky because the outcome is never certain. Judges or juries decide what qualifies as Fair Use on a case-by-case basis, after weighing the following factors: • The purpose and character of your use • The nature of the copyrighted work • The amount and substantiality of the portion taken • The effect of the use upon the potential market Fair Use cannot be assumed to be an opportunity to use something without permission; the safest bet is to ask permission.
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Law, ethics and
Responsibilities How to obtain copyright release It can be challenging to identify the copyright owner(s) of the material you wish to use. In many cases, a company’s website terms and conditions will provide information regarding copyright and trademark usage and releases. The Warner Brothers’ Studio website is typical of many corporate websites. It includes a Terms of Use policy prohibiting use of anything on the site, except for individual use on a specific computer.
Sample website terms of use This is an excerpt from the Warner Brothers’ Terms of Use: “You may access and display Material and all other content displayed on this Site for noncommercial, personal, entertainment use on a single computer only. The Material and all other content on this Site may not otherwise be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted, distributed or used in any way unless specifically authorized by Warner
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Bros. Online. Any authorization to copy Material granted by Warner Bros. Online in any part of this Site for any reason is restricted to making a single copy for non-commercial, personal, entertainment use on a single computer only, and is subject to your keeping intact all copyright and other proprietary notices. Using any Material on any other website or networked computer environment is prohibited.” Source: www2.warnerbros.com/main/privacy/terms.html
Still need permission If a website does not include a Terms of Use section, you are still not allowed to use the information without permission. Your staff may find sites that illegally place graphics or other elements pilfered from legal sites. Remember that anyone can put up a webpage, but not everyone knows copyright law or cares.
Material you cannot use: • Photographs of celebrities from the internet, newspapers or magazines • Cartoon characters that are copyrighted • Music lyrics from current songs • Text from poetry, novels, short stories
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Can you do that to a photo? Programs like Adobe® Photoshop® make it easy to manipulate photos in minor and major ways. With that ability, photo ethics now dominate discussions among editors and photojournalists. Appropriately, ethics have emerged as a key element of photography education. The National Press Photographers Association offers a number of guidelines on topics including photo ethics and digital manipulation. Visit https://nppa.org/code_of_ethics and read the NPPA Code of Ethics. In 1982, National Geographic created a magazine cover showing camels crossing the desert in front of the pyramids. Because the magazine cover was vertical, designers determined the pyramids had to be moved in order to create the image. In today’s world, we label image like that as photo illustrations.
When we digitally alter photos to reflect a story’s content, labeling the image as a photo illustration lets readers know that the illustration isn’t a “real” photo of a “real” event. Professional photojournalists consider it unethical to alter photos unless the images are labeled as photo illustrations and used to reflect story content.
Time and Newsweek magazine covers, 1994, http://s.newsweek.com/sites/www.newsweek.com/files/styles/embedded_full/ public/2012/12/23/1356370374660.cached.jpg?itok=tprEmAU0
Famous digitally altered photo In June of 1994, both Time and Newsweek magazines published O.J. Simpson’s mug shot on their respective covers. On the cover of Time magazine, the picture appeared much darker than it looked on the Newsweek cover. The images were featured during the time the Simpson trial was taking place. Time magazine was criticized for darkening the photo and causing Simpson to appear sinister and evil.
Law, ethics and
Responsibilities Digital manipulation history Newsweek magazine combined an image of Martha Stewart’s head with a model’s body on its March 7, 2005, cover. Newsweek did not make it clear that the image was a photo illustration and became the center of controversy regarding photos and ethics. Although a credit on page three of the magazine stated the image was fake, most readers could not determine the photo was manipulated by simply viewing the cover. During the 2004 presidential election, a photo of John Kerry taken at a 1971 anti-war rally was combined with a photo taken in 1972 of actress Jane Fonda. An Associated Press logo was added to the photo, which was circulated and posted online. The photo was interpreted as authentic by many. The ethical issue here rose not only from the manipulation of the two photos, but also the use of a copyrighted image (the Kerry photo) without the photographer’s permission.
Law, ethics, responsibilities and http://media.npr.org/news/images/2005/mar/02/martha_newsweek200-328daa2193e7e41d525b69d6aebea4feeff4b74b-s6-c30.jpg
http://www.teaparty911.com/blog/wpcontent/uploads/2013/03/anti-war-activistsjane-fonda-john-kerry.jpg
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Editorial and advertising
Policies
Developing guidelines “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.” Ponder this phrase carefully when determining whether to include controversial topics, a questionable photo or a new advertisement in your yearbook. Adopting sound editorial and advertising policies in advance can prevent conflict when your staff encounters dilemmas. The policies also show the administration your staff is acting responsibly and that the yearbook journalism class requires students to think and plan. Effective policies clearly explain what can and cannot be included in your yearbook, establishing the boundaries that prevent unwise decisions. Remember, if you discover an issue after final deadlines or proofs, you may not be able to correct it because it could impact the book’s cost or delivery date.
An editorial policy is a must A typical editorial policy might include: 1. The staff of [High School] Yearbook seeks to record a year in the life of [Name] School and its students in a fair and unbiased manner. 2. We will make an effort to include events and occurrences that happen before and after school, as well as during the summer months. 3. We may consider coverage that deals with teenage issues and events that affect the school and its students. If we do, this coverage will follow the ethical standards of responsible journalism. We will carefully report the subject in a fair and objective way that reflects multiple viewpoints, and we will show both the reality and the results of the activities. Also, we will interview experts whose knowledge and background equip them to provide context. The rest of the policy should include relevant subjects such as:
Inclusivity: Develop a statement about the staff’s goal to include everyone in the book and to provide balanced coverage.
Student portraits: The policy must be fair and clear so that all students receive equal treatment. If a student isn’t pictured, will they receive a total or partial
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refund, or will there be a page or a photo sticker inserted in all books to correct the omission? The plan may vary if the missing portrait is a senior or if the student is prominently covered elsewhere in the book.
Club/group photos and coverage: The policy may state that coverage will be proportionate — that a club with numerous activities will likely receive more coverage than one with few activities. In addition, the policy might make the club responsible for informing the yearbook staff of activities, or for providing photos according to certain specifications. It might also state that clubs and organizations can purchase a spread, while the yearbook staff retains control of the spread or coverage. An ad could provide the club space with limited control. As explained in the Business, Marketing and Budget Section, each ad page should be priced to pay for itself and two other pages. For group pages within the appropriate section, you might charge the group a lower rate (such as the page production costs), or slightly more to cover unanticipated graphic costs.
Editorial and advertising
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Academic coverage: Some yearbooks cover outside-of-school study groups or students who are taking college courses or enrolling in distance learning. Again, policy may say that every department will not be covered equally, but rather that the most interesting or most newsworthy stories of the year will be featured (e.g., curriculum changes, new labs, new requirements).
Sports coverage: The policy should provide for fair, balanced coverage of both boys’ and girls’ sports. It should indicate that scoreboards and statistics are part of the year’s record and that the stories will provide insight into the season’s highs and lows. The policy might state that there will be additional coverage if teams advance beyond a certain level of playoff competition. It should also indicate that deadlines and space limitations might restrict the ability to cover playoff games.
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Favorites: Consider whether the topic could be libelous or have a double meaning. Labels such as “Class Clown,” “Best Dancer” or “Most Changed” often suggest meanings above and beyond the actual “honor.” Staff should discuss how much space to give to favorites. Many books have eliminated favorites entirely or made them a minor part of the classes sections. Instead, staffs are finding more imaginative ways to provide human interest coverage – approaches that incorporate reporting, surveys and comparison with national polls and trends.
Handling other challenges Your staff should think proactively about each section of the book and draft a written statement that details how incidents will be handled. The student or staff should consider possible scenarios – such as deaths. What if the death is a suicide? How will it be covered?
Other challenging events to consider could be: • The firing of a coach • School test scores dropping • The arrest of a staff member All are potential stories, but they require special consideration. In the case of a death, the policy might state coverage will memorialize the person through the eyes of their peers or colleagues.
Other considerations The policy might advocate stories explaining what happened and its effect on others, while delineating that memorials, poems and other kinds of coverage can be included in ads purchased for this purpose. Policy should also include a clear statement about how deadlines will affect coverage. A final deadline prevents including events that happen after that deadline. Adding coverage of those events to next year’s book or spring supplement are options. Before finalizing the publication policy, make sure it does not conflict with district or school policy. Discuss the policy with the principal. The communication will make it possible for the administration to be proactive, rather than reactive, if a situation arises.
Editorial, advertising
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Advertising issues An advertising policy is essential because it can prevent problems with both student and business advertising. The advertising policy should adhere to district policy, which likely forbids ads promoting prohibited underage activities, such as smoking and drinking. Some districts might also exclude ads that are religious or that deal with controversial issues. Some districts appoint members of the yearbook staff to meet with school staff to review and evaluate ads. They may especially look for ads that could be considered insensitive in a permanent publication.
Consider an ad review board This group has the responsibility for approving or rejecting ads, and their decisions are considered final. If this process is used, the review board duties and procedures should be described in the policy. Student ads can be problematic if a staff is not careful.
Obviously, the staff should look for images that include liquor bottles or cigarettes, but more subtle efforts require a keen eye. Your staff may want to include a policy about what may or may not be allowed in a senior ad. One school in the Northeast ran into a problem when the administration decided a senior could not have an ad that showed him with his hunting rifle. Had the policy specified beforehand that weapons could not be depicted in any ad, the controversy and national news coverage could have been avoided. Have the staff consider what students and/or their parents might want to put in an ad and have a written policy in place. Sometimes parents overstep boundaries as well. A policy barring inappropriate or uncomfortable photos, such as potty-training pictures, might be included. These restrictions should be detailed in a thoughtful policy.
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Photographs that seem hilarious to close friends and family may convey a different message in a lifelong publication. Once your staff has adopted these policies, deliver a copy to the administration as well as post the policies in the yearbook lab. The staff might choose to print the editorial and advertising policies in small type within the index each year. Editorial and advertising policies provide a practical guide that helps protect the yearbook and your school. They are the first steps to being responsible journalists. It’s much easier to deal with a problem when you have a plan in advance than it is to scramble to deal with an issue after the fact. For that reason, the policy should be reviewed and updated annually. The review process helps the current staff understand the responsibilities that go with producing a yearbook and allows new editors to add or remove items as needed. Both advisers and student journalists learn from experience, so the policy should evolve to keep pace with changing needs. As the adviser, your job is to train and motivate every staff member – from first-year novices to conscientious editors – to be professionals who publish a book based on the highest standards of journalism.
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Subjects to avoid in yearbook ads • Any reference to alcohol, tobacco or drugs • Anything that would be considered distasteful, crude, obscene or libelous • Anything in violation of district or school policies or disruptive to the educational process
Editorial policy questions to consider: • How will staff try to include people outside of the portrait section and group shots? • How will the staff advertise class portraits? • How will the staff explain deadlines and student responsibilities? • What will happen if a student’s picture is omitted from the yearbook? • How will academics be covered in the yearbook? • Will the academics section address student learning across the curriculum?
• Will the academics section feature learning both in and outside of school? • What percentage of the book’s pages will be devoted to sports, academics, organizations, student life and portraits • How will sports coverage be divided (i.e., varsity and junior varsity covered on one spread or two)? • How will the “favorites” be handled if a staff decides to include them? • How will staff cover controversial or negative events over the year (including deaths or suicides)? • How will the deadlines affect coverage? • Does the yearbook editorial policy align with district and school policies?
Editorial and advertising
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Law, ethics, responsibilities and
Photography and photo ethics resources National Press Photographers Association: www.nppa.org University of Wisconsin Center for Journalism Ethics https://ethics.journalism.wisc.edu/?s=photo+ethics University of Indiana http://mediaschool.indiana.edu/search/?q=gallery Poynter Institute for Media Studies www.poynter.org Association for Texas Photography Instructors http://atpi.org
Scholastic journalism resources National Scholastic Press Association http://studentpress.org/nspa/ Columbia Scholastic Press Association http://cspa.columbia.edu/who-we-are Student Press Law Center http://www.splc.org Journalism Education Association http://jea.org
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Editorial, advertising
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Lifetouch policy Lifetouch offers this information not as legal advice, but rather as a guide to alert advisers to the potential risk of using copyrighted or trademarked materials without first obtaining permission from the owner(s). Many authors will grant permission once contacted by a school, but submit your request(s) as early as possible. We recommend you direct any legal questions or concerns to your district legal consultant.
Yearbook copyright guidelines
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Copyrighted images in yearbook ads Schools are responsible for obtaining the necessary rights to use copyrighted images and artwork for all advertising in the yearbook. Students submitting professionally photographed images for ads (i.e. senior ads) should obtain written proof of permission, or else the school should work with the photographer to obtain necessary rights. Be alert for images with watermarks or copyright protection which may indicate the school lacks permission to use such images.
Images or art in covers or themes Avoid copyright or trademark violations in yearbooks and yearbook covers based on popular themes such as board games, video games, magazine covers, theme parks, sport teams and the like. Schools are responsible for obtaining written copyright and/or trademark clearance if they want to use elements from such third parties as Disney, Hasbro, NFL or other major rights-holders. If questions arise about whether a specific use of third-party materials requires a copyright release, check with the school’s legal counsel.
Lifetouch generally requires written assurance from the school that appropriate releases have been obtained. Such assurance could be in the form of a copy of the actual release or a specific confirmation letter or email from the school principal.
Cover design If Lifetouch provides creative services for cover designs, we need to ensure we have the necessary permissions to use the images and artwork that make up the cover. If we do not assist with the creation of the cover, and we see images or content that we believe is protected, we may advise the school that permission is required to use the content or images.
Pages and endsheets If we help our schools create pages or endsheets, we again need to ensure we have the necessary permissions to use the images and artwork. If we do not assist with the creation of the pages or endsheets and see images or content that is protected, we may advise the school that permission is required to use such content or images.