A Desparate Associated Press (AP) Seeks To Charge Bloggers For Quoting Portions Of Their MOSTLY Worthless And Biased (So-Called) “Articles’
INTERESTING. The Associated Press seems to have no problem at all with grabbing my PUBLICLY syndicated news feed and offering my articles to various newspapers around the country, which they have done on more than one occasion. The newspapers publish my article in their “rags”, attributing the “Op-Ed” to “a blogger who goes by The Gun Toting Liberal™, the newspaper who publishes the “Op-Ed” benefits by selling ads, but I don’t see a dime of their revenues. And, hey, I’m A-OKAY with the arrangement. But, not the AP, apparently.
NOPE — the AP has taken it upon themselves to feel “entitled” to grab MY articles and offer them to newspapers nationwide — i.e., they subscribe to the AP, they can pick, choose and print anything the AP offers them, including ANY writings found here, at The GTL™. Again, I’ve never had any problem with this arrangement, despite the fact that my most-often searched phrase, according to Google, is “gun toting liberal” since the AP forces “impressed” readers to locate me on their own since they rarely offer my web address.
On the OTHER hand, I send traffic to the Associated Press every time I quote one of their articles — FREE OF CHARGE. Normally, I charge anywhere from $200 to $300 per week for a featured link at this website. Yet, the AP has NOW asserted, after attacking one of THIS blogger’s favorite weblogs, The Drudge Retort (“Red Meat For Yellow Dogs“), it will cost me, as a blogger, anywhere from $12.50 and UP to quote tiny portions of their articles from now on. And, while that’s not THAT bad of a deal versus my own “per link” charges, I don’t really believe I’ll be interested in looking to the Associated Press for my “digs” any longer. After all, why would I wish to pay a fee to send my coveted traffic to their websites? Obviously, it’s not that good of a deal, is it?
Let’s see what’s going on with these rabid DOOMASSES, courtesy of BetaNews and H/T to MemeOrandum:
AP sets up a toll booth for bloggers citing its stories
By Tim ConneallyThe AP’s disharmony with bloggers may have only just begun, as the alternative it’s now offering to being served with takedown notices involves paying an up-front sum for excerpting online articles — as few as five words.
A meeting between the Associated Press’ Vice President for Strategic Planning Jim Kennedy and Robert Cox, who heads the Media Bloggers Association, is now planned for Thursday of this week. The subject at hand is the AP’s attempt to find a new way of sharing AP content, which now involves a fee per excerpt based on its word length.
On the heels of a blogosphere revolt last week because of its harsh actions against social news site The Drudge Retort, the AP regrouped over the weekend to take a less litigative — but more bureaucratic — approach to dealing with those who wish to quote its material.
Where the group had previously invoked the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and sent cease-and-desist orders to at least one blogger, seeking the removal of excerpted content (in some cases as few as 17 words in length), now the press service has attached an “Excerpt for Web Use” charge for passages as short as five words in length.
The pricing scale for excerpting AP content begins at $12.50 for 5-25 words and goes as high as $100 for 251 words and up. Nonprofit organizations and educational institutions enjoy a discounted rate. …”
Okay. Let’s just put it this way: I just sent a TON of FREE traffic to BetaNews. MY traffic. MY readers. Some will never come back. Some of THOSE will bookmark BetaNews and visit their sponsors. It’s just the way it goes. It’s REALITY. It’s the blogosphere and it’s THE “Press” our Founding Fathers risked their lives and/or spilled their precious, life’s blood to protect. If it’s simply a recantation of the Truth (capital “T” on purpose), it’s not “copywrited” by ANYBODY. Is this a direct confession by the Associated Press that what they (supposedly) “report” isn’t always the Truth?
In a sense, the AP, by going after The Drudge Retort and other bloggers for compensation for copying and pasting their words, is ADMITTING to reporting nothing but opinionated, slanted, BIASED GARBAGE. Fine with me. If the Associated Press doesn’t wish to enjoy my FREE inbound web traffic and exposure, I’ll be more than happy to go this route instead:
“Some major news outlets are claiming blah, blah, blah. Look it up in Google if you wish, but here’s my opinion on the matter…” (NO LINKS PROVIDED)
And folks, it’s JUST that EASY.
And for the time being, I suppose I’ll just stick with Reuters and my fellow bloggers. Particularly since the AP offers less than two percent of THIS blogger’s “wordage” in the first place. No big loss in other words…
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Quite The Frenzy Around The Blogosphere, All Sides Of The Aisle Represented — One Of Those Rare Moments Where The Left Is United With The Right: Crooks and Liars; Michelle Malkin; The Newshoggers; Don Surber (a REAL MSM blogger who “gets it”); Donklephant; Little Green Footballs; Hot Air (Says it better than moi — and that’s sayin’ somethin’); Comments From Left Field; The Impolitic (Libby Spencer); The Moderate Voice; Firedoglake; Ace Of Spades HQ (A hearty Amen!); The Moderate Voice (Shaun Mullen, surprisingly, takes the side of the MSM — calls for bloggers to “chill”); The Mahablog
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3:42 am on June 18th, 2008 1
Propagandists have kids to feed GTL, geesh.
8:54 am on June 18th, 2008 2
I probably get about 20-30% from AP, but, no more. F*ck them.
9:01 pm on June 19th, 2008 3
I beg to differ on this issue. MBA is posting the facts behind the Drudge Retort. DR was basically stealing entire posts and that is wrong. Quote the AP but don’t post the entire article? Hello!
You can check it all out here at Papamoka
http://papastraighttalk.blogspot.com/2008/06/mba-clears-up-ap-issue.html
12:27 am on June 20th, 2008 4
Thank you for the link bro!!! Who loves ya!!! That would be me, your brother from another mother. Ya rock!
12:32 am on June 20th, 2008 5
Heh… I even click-click-clicked on your ads, bro
Blog ON!
12:38 am on June 20th, 2008 6
Thank you for your support of a die hard liberal Gunny! I still think you need to post a retraction if you read the full MBA post. I did an apology… you up for it or not?
1:27 am on June 20th, 2008 7
NOT! Ya still love me though, right Mat? lol…
1:47 am on June 20th, 2008 8
Do I have a choice? Breath air, don’t breath air… Hmmm? ROFLMFAO~!!!
9:59 am on June 20th, 2008 9
GTL
Chiming in a little late on this one, but I did want to praise you for calling the AP on it’s blatent communist inspired bias. Twenty or thirty years too late, but a fine job nonetheless.