Jul 21, 2009 2:17 pm US/Pacific
John McCain Has To Pay For 'Running'
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
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Jackson Browne (file photo.)
AP
John McCain lost again today. This time the defeat wasn't as crushing as the election in November, but the former presidential candidate and the Republican party of Ohio lost a federal copyright lawsuit brought against him by rocker Jackson Browne.
Browne receives an apology and undisclosed sum for the unauthorized use of the 1977 hit song "Running on Empty" in a McCain campaign commercial.
McCain, the Republican National Committee and the Ohio Republican Party settled the complaint jointly. They also issued a statement apologizing for using the song without permission. The amount of the financial agreement was not disclosed.
"Although Senator McCain had no knowledge of, or involvement in, the creation or distribution of the Web campaign video, Senator McCain does not support or condone any actions taken by anyone involved in his 2008
presidential election campaign that were inconsistent with artists' rights or the various legal protections afforded to intellectual property," the statement read.
McCain and the other defendants also promised to get artists' permission before using their work in the future.
Browne was not the only artist irked by the McCain campaign's use of material. The Foo Fighters, Heart and John Mellencamp also complained that their material was used in campaign ads or rallies.
Browne, a lifelong and outspoken supporter of liberal causes, "is not a litigious person, but felt he needed to stand up for artists' rights and believed this was an appropriate undertaking," said the singer's Santa Monica-based lawyer, Lawrence Iser.
"This means that just because you're running for office doesn't give you the right to use copyrighted works without permission," Iser said. "The copyright laws apply to everyone, and everyone needs to be reminded that copying is illegal when you don't have license to do it."
Browne sued McCain, the RNC and ORP last year over use of "Running on Empty" in a Web ad mocking then-nominee Barack Obama's proposed energy policy.
The lawsuit had been slated for trial in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles early next year.
Browne's lawsuit had accused McCain and his campaign of engaging "in a consistent pattern of making unauthorized use of copyrighted musical compositions in an effort to boost McCain's image."
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
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