Sometimes The Good Guy Does Win

[Annie]

Michael Yon has had a major problem http://www.michaelyon-online.com/wp/actions-speak-louder.htm

http://www.michaelyon-online.com/shockmag.php

with the misappropriation of his photo of soldier cradleing the dying Iraqi baby girl. Matt at Blackfive called on milblogs to get the word out and not buy any of the magazines published by Shock publisher. He was also calling for a boycott of advertisers. http://www.blackfive.net/main/2006/06/the_hammer_and_.html

Guess where the story has led:

Advertising Age: http://www.adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=109940

Blogs: The army of Davids...

Hachette Defends 'Shock' as Retailers Pull Premiere Issue
Blames Photographer of Disputed Cover Pic of Swaying Stores

By Meredith Deliso and Nat Ives

Published: June 16, 2006
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Tower Records yesterday become the latest retailer to pull Shock magazine from its shelves because of the dispute over a photo on its cover, but publisher Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S. is striking back today with a letter to merchants defending the title.
The battle over 'Shock' has spilled into retail aisles.
The battle over 'Shock' has spilled into retail aisles.


The activity is just the latest stage of a battle that erupted after Shock hit stands May 30 with a cover photo taken by Michael Yon, a blogger and former Green Beret who had not authorized its use. Hachette called the infringement innocent -- it had gotten the picture from a photo agency -- and the parties reached a settlement in principle, but Mr. Yon called that deal off a week later.

Three retailers
Tower plans to carry future issues of Shock, but another chain that pulled it, Brooks Eckerd, hasn't decided that question yet, and a third, Rite Aid, said it will not.

"We had many, many complaints from our customers over the photo on the front," said Helene Bisson, a spokeswoman for Brooks Eckerd parent Jean Coutu Group.

Rite Aid spokeswoman Judy Cook said its decision was not related to Mr. Yon's photo. "We pulled it before the big picture incident based on customer feedback," she said, confirming a report by Photo District News.

Mr. Yon intensified his appeal to the public after the agreement with Hachette collapsed. Through a website at http://michaelyon-online.com/shockmag.php, he urged "ordinary people" to call distributors asking them to remove the magazine from their stores. Rite Aid and Brooks Eckerd are listed under the "Good Guys" for having removed the issue; a "Bad Guys" list is planned for those that refuse.

But Hachette President-CEO Jack Kliger said Mr. Yon and his backers are not Shock's target audience and should not try to restrict the magazine's circulation.

Readers are not complaining
"There's no question that their efforts to convince retailers that it is consumers who are upset at the issue have succeeded in some cases, even though that's not what the fact is," Mr. Kliger said. "The fact is, these are not complaints being made by Shock readers -- these are complaints being made by Michael Yon's followers. There's a big difference."

Mr. Kliger also denied Mr. Yon's assertion that Shock used the photo, which shows a U.S. soldier cradling an Iraqi girl injured by a car bomb, to dishonor American troops. The Yon photo appears inside the issue as part of an article comparing the Iraq conflict with the Vietnam War.

"We invite people to take a look at the story and decide for themselves whether we didn't honor American troops," Mr. Kliger said. "That was not our intent and I don't think that's what the story did. We would like the judgment to be made by readers, not by self-appointed censors."

 

[nt250]

I don't get it. What's he upset about? They didn't pay him enough?

 

[nukeman]

I don't get it. What's he upset about? They didn't pay him enough?

See this is where being older than 19 comes into play!!

Not everything in the world is about money. some people have these things called principles/morals.

Mr. Yon made it very clear to HFM publications as to how they would be able to use a picture of his. The fact that they didnt have permission to use it in the first place didnt seem to matter to them.

Once he (Yon) realized that they(HFM) were using a copyrighted image of his he contacted them and ask them to not use it especialy in the context of their story. They offerd compensation and he refused, instead he did ask that a donation be made to a charity of his choosing, and if they would do this and adhere to his request for the use of his picture than he would allow them to use it. They tentativly agreed to this and than proceded to use the photo in more than the agreed upon context. At that time Mr Yon asked them to forget the whole deal and stop using his photo. HFM proceded to use delay and stall tactics to get their publication to market.

Mr. Yon did not want money, or compensation what he wanted was a fair treatment of our soldiers in the story and they (HFM) Shock magazine were not willing to do that. In fact they offerd him an additional $20,000 plus the donation and he refused. So as you can see its not always about money but what is right and just.

This is something the the liberals in this great contry forget. They feel everything can be bought or fixed with the right amout of money.

Next time read the links to get the whoe story. If you had you would have realized it wasnt about money at all..

 

[Annie]

I don't get it. What's he upset about? They didn't pay him enough?

You would have to read the article. They didn't have his permission. The 'agreement' was a cease and desist, as well as paying money into a charity. They reneged and that voided the agreement.

He did not want his copywrited photo used against the troops, which is what Shock was doing.