Advice, Please

Courtesy of http://whenfallsthecoliseum.com

I have stated before in other posts that as a Media Director I have to keep up with legal issues that can arise involving what our church is creating and putting out. Not having a lawyer on hand to consult with does make it hard when I have decipher copyright and intellectual property law in reference to the videos, graphics, and songs that are created or used during a church service. When I am in need of advice or just clarification with respect of what we are creating I look to podcasts pertaining to entertainment law. I have found three really good podcasts that offer advice and/or another perspective on entertainment law.

The first podcast called Entertainment Law Update is from Gordon Firemark. Firemark covers a wide range of topics concerning entertainment law but the ones I listen to the most are about copyrights because those are the issues I deal with the most. I enjoy his podcast because he talks about current cases in the industry and then explains the law surrounding those cases and the verdicts. Firemark has a way of explaining the cases in a way that is not necessarily all legalese but in a way that anyone who isn’t a lawyer can understand. In one of his podcasts he talks about a few copyright cases, one of those cases deal with remakes of the Wizard of Oz and the protected characters looks. The issue lies in if the characters are still protected under the current copyright laws.  I would recommend listening to this podcast, especially if you are facing similar issues with using a character’s likeness in a video or graphic.

Another podcast hosted by Arizona State University law students I have found to also be helpful in finding information on entertainment law. These two students are not yet lawyers and by no means offer legal advice but merely opinions and information to help you make your own informed decisions. The podcasts are found on the ASU Sports and Entertainment Law Journal page. Although these podcasts are nearly a year old the information and opinions discussed are still relevant to copyright and fair use laws today.

The third podcast that I would recommend deals with issues that pertain to the music industry. This podcast is called Above the Noise hosted by Aaron Bethune and discusses legal issues within the entertainment industry, specifically the music business. Although this podcast does not directly talk about video or graphic issues but the information and interviews still are of some value. Churches still have to deal with licensing issues with music used in the worship portion of services. For example, our church is planning on putting out a worship cd with our band and it is important that we work out the legal issues prior to recording the live worship set.

When it comes to dealing with any issue within the entertainment industry and church media it is important to always research the information needed to make an informed decision. Also, never rely solely on information found on the Internet or library, try to consult a lawyer whenever possible.