Ethics in Design 2B

Shepard Fairey could have avoided this entire situation had he asked for permission to use the photograph in his “Hope” poster. He could have even given credit to the Associated Press for the use of the photo in legal documentation. When it comes to copyright laws, it’s better to use your images/design to avoid any legal problems down the line. Otherwise, you’ll have your reputation tarnished and have to deal with legal fees. Fairy made it even worse himself when he decided to tamper with evidence and tried to cover his own mistakes. Fairy knew he was in the wrong he said he was “ashamed” of what he had done.

The Associated Press had every right to call out Fairy for copyright infringement. It was a fair case. Even though Fairy argued that the Associated Press imagery was under fair use. He still used their image without any credit given to them. This is an important example of how not to deal with copyrighted materials when it comes to design. You can easily get wrapped up in legal trouble if you don’t use your materials.

Citations

• “Case Study on Fair Use and Fair Dealing: The Hope Poster Litigation” Fisher, W. (2012). PDF. Cambridge; Harvard Journal of Law and Technology.
• “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
• Kennedy, R. (2012, September 7). Shepard Fairey is fined and sentenced to probation in ‘hope’ poster case. The New York Times. https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/07/shephard-fairey-is-fined-and-sentenced-to-probation-in-hope-poster-case/