Update on Taylor Swift's contract for concert photographers

In my article last month about music superstar, Taylor Swift, I wrote a highly critical piece about Swift and the contract she required photographers of her concerts to sign. I called Swift a hypocrite?

In late June, Swift wrote an open letter to Apple Inc. explaining why she was holding back her album “1989” from Apple Music, the new Apple streaming service.

In the letter, Swift decried Apple Music's free three month trial policy, during which they were not going to pay royalties to the musicians, writers, producers and others for playing any music. Swift said of Apple's decision,

“I find it to be shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company [Apple]. …Three months is a long time to go unpaid, and it is unfair to ask anyone to work for nothing.”

Most people in the arts including me, and the general public thought Swift was dead-on. Soon after Swift made her letter to Apple public, the company announced they changed their policy and would pay the royalties after all.

Purdue photojournalist detained, and his equipment seized covering a shooting

On January 21, 2014, Michael Takeda, Purdue University Exponent newspaper photo editor, was attempting to photograph the aftermath of an on campus shooting in the Electrical Engineering Building.

Mr. Takeda reports he was at the entrance to the building near the skywalk where there were no police barriers or signs telling anyone not to enter the building, and identified himself to the Purdue University Campus Police as an Exponent photographer. Mr. Takeda had a Nikon camera in each of his hands at the time.

Philadelphia Police Apparently Need Remedial "First Amendment" Education

On the night of March 14, 2012, Temple University photojournalism student Ian Van Kuyk was arrested outside his residence while taking pictures of uniformed Philadelphia policemen performing what has been termed a “routine traffic stop.”

Van Kuyk, who was with his girlfriend who was also arrested, said he was never closer than ten feet of the scene when police ordered him back. He said he voluntarily backed up and was at least thirty feet away when a uniformed Philadelphia police officer approached him aggressively demanding he stop taking pictures. Van Kuyk stated he politely told the officer he was a Temple University photojournalism student, and within his rights to be taking photos on a public street.

Have JetBlue and the Port Authority gone off the deep end?

A late December snow storm in the northeastern US caused havoc at airports from Washington north through Boston. The northeast storm caused delays and cancellations across the US, and seriously affected international flights.

The storm was a tough one, to be sure. At one time or another, seven major northeastern airports were closed due to the snow, some for more than a day. No where, it seems, was affected more than New York City's airports. At John Fitzgerald Kennedy International Airport (JFK), commonsense seems to have been thrown out the window more than anywhere else.