"As the election seasons ramps up, so do the inevitable cease and desist letters from music stars who don’t like the use of their songs by politicians at campaign events. The most recent dispute concerns Tom Petty’s objection to Michele Bachmann’s use of his song “American Girl.”
Look, I kind of like Petty and I really don’t like Bachmann, but that isn’t the point. I’ve sung this song before, during the last presidential campaign, so I’ll just repeat what I said then:
I understand celebrities who want to prevent John McCain from borrowing any of their cachet to run for president. I don’t support him either. But bogus IP claims harm overall public discourse by discouraging people from exercising their rights to draw on content legally when communicating their ideas. All of us lose out when that happens."
Candidates You Hate Can Use Your Songs
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