r/asklaw • u/FunFortune1 • Apr 18 '20

When is it against the rules/law to upload videos that other people filmed?

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Is it allowed when posting a police cam video?
And is it allowed when filmed from the person being arrested's camera?

Here are examples:
From cop's cam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVzKiZ6DfCY
From citizen's cam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_scZtwgEGo

Is this considered fair use or journalism or is it not allowed? . Is it breaking the rules/laws and would it be OK to upload a video from the citizen's cam, esspecially if they are critisizing them and they are arrested.

Another example is political stuff, like this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utqHkvkrKWY&feature=emb_title It claims to be "education", but does this video fall into fair use?

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u/BirdlawIsBestLaw Sep 14 '22

Fair Use is a complex topic with a four pronged test, and the test requires the judge to weigh each prong independently and no single prong determines the outcome of the test.

Footage generated by an employee during the course of their duties as part of those duties are the IP of their employer (in this case, the police department, local municipality, or state police department depending on how their institutions are structured). There are exceptions that specify when footage filmed by the police is private or public, but this varies by state.

Footage like this can be used for journalism, but the amount and substantiality of the work being commented on is one of the four factors judges are required to weigh. That means that even if you are commenting on a video for journalistic reasons, a judge might conclude that your commentary or story used more of the footage than was necessary and thus fails to equate to fair use.

Copyright law is complex--too complex to judge in a forum such as this (imo) without much more detail.

Re: that youtube video: it is impossible to say whether this is copyright infringement without knowing whether the channel's owner has permission or a purchased license to use the material, but assuming not for the sake of discussion I would personally find this unlikely to pass the fair use test.

This all assumes everyone is in the US (you didn't mention country in your title).

1

u/PsycKat Sep 23 '23

Uploading others' vids? Shady terrain, mate! Can violate copyright. Context matters - Fair use? Maybe journalism, critique. Always best to consult a legal beagle.