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News syndication - what are your thoughts?

by abhayhendre
6 replies
I've seen some sites that take news from sources like CNN, huff post, reuters, yahoo finance etc, and re-publish those news as they are, without any changes. Some sites publish the entire piece of the news and some publish only excerpts.

The problem is that some sites don't link back to the original source from their syndicated piece, which means that they will probably get a copyright notice sometime in the future.

I've also read that even if you link back to the original source, you still might get a copyright notice from the owner of that content.

I think if you're gonna syndicate the entire piece as it is on your site, you need a written permission from the author (whether you link back to it or not). I know that just because you link back to the original source, doesn't mean that you have the right to publish the whole piece on your site.

There is still something I'm not yet sure about - if I take a news from, lets say Reuters, and post an excerpt of that news (first 3-4 paragraphs for example) on my blog (without any edits) and i give a link back to the URL of that news page on Reuters by adding credit line like - Source: http://www.reuters.com/xxxxxxx.html or something like that. If i do something like this, do i still need to worry about copyright issues?
#content #news #syndication #thoughts
  • Profile picture of the author art72
    The majority of the sources you name above do 'syndicate' and re-circulate content, but do so with permissions, and or from the 'original contributors' consent.

    I'm not sure what the process is for re-publishing news related content, to be honest with you.

    There is a big difference between you or I just grabbing web content and re-circulating that content with or with a credit link or included link back to the original source. In many cases, you need permissions to do this or you will need to contact 'contributors' (also referred to often as guest bloggers or writers) in order to publish their writings, news, or latest articles.

    I'm sure Alexa or others here will chime in, and give more details, as I am not an expert in this area, but have a vested interest in the benefits of syndicated content, as well as a desire to have my own writings syndicated through online/offline resources to gain more targeted traffic, and quality (relevant) backlinks to my sites.

    I've always found this thread to be an amazing resource for understanding 'syndicating content' -
    http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...mith-myob.html
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  • Profile picture of the author kk075
    Originally Posted by abhayhendre View Post

    There is still something I'm not yet sure about - if I take a news from, lets say Reuters, and post an excerpt of that news (first 3-4 paragraphs for example) on my blog (without any edits) and i give a link back to the URL of that news page on Reuters by adding credit line like - Source: http://www.reuters.com/xxxxxxx.html or something like that. If i do something like this, do i still need to worry about copyright issues?
    Nope, you're fine quoting their content with a link...but you can't use their image without permission and the content will not rank especially well if you don't add your own unique content.
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    • Profile picture of the author abhayhendre
      Originally Posted by kk075 View Post

      Nope, you're fine quoting their content with a link...but you can't use their image without permission and the content will not rank especially well if you don't add your own unique content.
      So you're saying that if I publish only an excerpt of the news (not the whole news story) on my blog and give a credit to the original source, it won't raise copyright issues? If yes, that's good
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      • Profile picture of the author kk075
        Originally Posted by abhayhendre View Post

        So you're saying that if I publish only an excerpt of the news (not the whole news story) on my blog and give a credit to the original source, it won't raise copyright issues? If yes, that's good
        I would assume it still falls under fair use but if Alexa says not to risk it, then you definitely shouldn't. I've never syndicated my writing like she has since I'm mainly writing for clients, so she's definitely the one to trust.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by abhayhendre View Post

    The problem is that some sites don't link back to the original source from their syndicated piece, which means that they will probably get a copyright notice sometime in the future.
    Nope ... that isn't the really the problem, at all.

    That isn't really relevant, at all.

    What's relevant is whether they have permission to re-publish. It's that simple. "Linking back to something" doesn't absolve anyone from breaching someone else's copyright.

    Originally Posted by abhayhendre View Post

    I think if you're gonna syndicate the entire piece as it is on your site, you need a written permission from the author (whether you link back to it or not).
    Correct.

    Originally Posted by abhayhendre View Post

    There is still something I'm not yet sure about - if I take a news from, lets say Reuters, and post an excerpt of that news (first 3-4 paragraphs for example) on my blog (without any edits) and i give a link back to the URL of that news page on Reuters by adding credit line like - Source: http://www.reuters.com/xxxxxxx.html or something like that. If i do something like this, do i still need to worry about copyright issues?
    That's a complicated legal question, and we're not lawyers, here (at least, most of us aren't).

    It depends on whether what you publish is "fair use".

    Lawyers and courts don't even agree on exactly what "fair use" is, so there's no point in expecting internet marketers to agree about it, or to take any notice of what we say, really. (My own opinion is that "3-4 paragraphs" is probably not "fair use", in that context, whereas 3-4 sentences might be. But it also depends on what you're using it for.)

    Seriously, beware of taking advice from internet marketers. Some of them have heard of "content curation" and have all sorts of strange ideas about it. Many people - including plenty of Warriors - have had both legal problems and websites removed by their hosting companies (after DMCA site take-down notices were served on them by copyright holders) because they unwisely imagined that "content curation" raised no legal problems, and made the huge mistake of effectively taking "legal advice" from curation enthusiasts without legal qualifications, thereby forming some rather distorted perceptions of what "fair use" means, if/when your site has any commercial intentions. As so many have found out to their cost (often having made the mistake of believing what "curation enthusiasts" and sellers of "curation software" or "curation services" wrongly told them a few years ago, when the "curation craze" was at its height), the reality isn't nearly so simple.

    The bottom line: don't imagine, if taking content without express permission, that including a link back to the original will somehow exonerate or legitimize a breach of copyright - it won't.


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