R.E.M. Tells Fox News to Stop Playing 'Losing My Religion': Are You on Team Michael Stipe or Team Fox?

by SodaHead Celebs Posted 2012/09/10 15:52:51

Related Topics: REM, Fox News, Losing My Religion, Michael Stipe

415 votes
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	Team Stipe	259 votes	62%
	Team Fox	156 votes	38%

R.E.M. is NOT a fan of Fox News. Last week, the band asked the cable news network to stop playing "Losing My Religion" during its coverage of the Democratic National Convention.

"R.E.M.'s 'Losing My Religion' was used in the Fox News coverage of the Democratic National Convention last night," the band wrote on their website last Thursday. "R.E.M. today, through its music publisher, Warner-Tamerlane Music, demanded that Fox News cease and desist from continuing its unlicensed and unauthorized use of the song."

The band's frontman, Michael Stipe, added: "We have little or no respect for their puff adder brand of reportage. Our music does not belong there." Do you think Stipe is right about the network? Or are you on Team Fox all the way?

+12

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tori 2012/09/10 16:45:46

Team Stipe

+28
Doesnt matter if he's right about fox or not. It's his song, he can decided who to allow to use it.
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Wahvlvke to scurvison 2012/09/12 12:38:35

+1
Thank you ... the little coward blocked me ages ago ... doesn't like to take.

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Vieuphoria 2012/09/11 09:49:41

Team Stipe

+5
Music is his, he can choose who uses it. If he doesn't support Fox (and no logical person really should) then he has all the right in the world to tell them not to use it.

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fuzzy K... to Vieuphoria 2012/09/11 14:40:54

+1
Sorry, but you're wrong. An artist cannot choose where their music is played as long as the player is paying royalties.

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David to Vieuphoria 2012/09/11 18:30:27

"Music is his, he can choose who uses it." Actually, no he cannot. As long as an entity complies with licensing, pays proper royalties, he doesn't have donkey squat to say about who uses it.

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Dirrty English 2012/09/11 09:29:39

Team Stipe

+3
The shouldn't be using ANY song without permission. Simple copyright laws no matter what stipe or anyone else thinks of the "news source" in question.

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David to Dirrty ... 2012/09/11 18:33:44

No, not "simple copyright laws". Licensing laws, as a subset of copyrights and ASCAP/BMI/SESAC (depending on whom Stipe/R.E.M. has chosen--one or all--to be member/s of) collection and payment of royalties from those who comply with licensing and pay royalties on use of music. Stipe doesn't have donkey squat to say about who uses his music once he puts it out there for play.

Change feet. The one you have stuck in your mouth right now is soaked with saliva.

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AvK 2012/09/11 08:15:30

Team Stipe

+3
It should be the artists decision, they're the reason we have the song in the first place.

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Mellow 2012/09/11 06:53:03

Team Stipe

+4
I would be upset too if my work was used for something I didn't support.

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Randy 2012/09/11 06:51:29

Team Fox

I knew there was a reason I didn't care for the cry babies!

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Guru_T_... to Randy 2012/09/11 13:28:59

+1
So... before this happened... you hated REM for no good reason?

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Randy to Guru_T_... 2012/09/11 15:12:59

+1
You guys really have a fixation on hate, probably because you spew so much of it.
I said I didn't care for them.

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boredco... to Randy 2012/09/11 16:15:20

Yes the do!

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Randy to boredco... 2012/09/11 18:48:36

The Democrat platform?

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boredco... to Randy 2012/09/11 18:54:11

+1
Absolutely.

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boredco... to Randy 2012/09/11 18:55:02 (edited)

+1
I was agreeing with you on the fixation of hate from the democrats.

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Guru_T_... to boredco... 2012/09/11 19:04:54

Hypocrite much?

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Guru_T_... to Randy 2012/09/11 18:40:35

No, no fixation here. I just recognize hate when I see or hear it. Besides, I'm not the one calling them cry-babies. Sounds like a pretty hateful attitude to me, but then, I'm not a Republican so I don't deal in hate as regularly as you guys do.

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boredco... to Guru_T_... 2012/09/11 18:56:43

You accused him of hating. That in itself is fairly hateful imo.

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Guru_T_... to boredco... 2012/09/11 19:08:33 (edited)

Actually, I asked him if he hated REM for no good reason. You have problems with reading comprehension, don't you? You obviously have no idea how sarcasm works. Must've been left out of your education like everything else.

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boredco... to boredco... 2012/09/11 19:33:24 (edited)

Rufus:
I have no problems with reading or comprehension.
I fully understand a rhetorical question when I see or hear it. BTW, that was sarcasm.

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Randy to Guru_T_... 2012/09/11 18:59:12

+1
Read your your response, my friend! Even better, go read my responses, you won't find the profanity or insults indulged by so many so-called loving liberals.

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Guru_T_... to Randy 2012/09/11 19:11:00

So asking if you play hypocrite much is name-calling? LOL! You're really thin-skinned, aren't you?

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Randy to Guru_T_... 2012/09/12 06:28:47

No, I'm not. As I said before, read your responses. Hell, people tell me I'm one of the nicest people they've ever met. Actually, I would have added: Quite charming also!!!

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Joel 2012/09/11 06:32:54

Team Stipe

+2
He does not want his song misused. I get that and so should FOX.

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jim 2012/09/11 06:04:01

Team Stipe

+2
Don't know the band or the the song. But this is clearly copyright infringement plain and simple. Unless Fox had permission to play it on air. Which I highly doubt.

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Wahvlvke to jim 2012/09/11 13:30:57 (edited)

+1
Bands are money whores ... their music is out there to gather royalties and the customer cannot be restricted. No permission is required ... just the payment of royalties. You know ... it's kinda like you cannot refuse to serve blacks in your restaurant.

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jim to Wahvlvke 2012/09/11 15:59:34

Fox wasn't just playing in the employees break room on someone's iPod. They were BROADCASTING it on live TV. And yes, you do need permission to do that.

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fuzzy K... to jim 2012/09/11 17:04:18

um.... no you don't.

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Wahvlvke to jim 2012/09/12 12:39:48

No you don't ... not as long as you pay the royalties.

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jim to Wahvlvke 2012/09/12 15:45:17

Show me anywhere in the article where its says FOX paid any kind royalties. If as you say, that's all it takes.

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Wahvlvke to jim 2012/09/13 11:49:52

+1
That's the way the broadcasting world works. Pay the royalty ... play the tune. Hell, even clubs that play music for dancing has to pay BMI. Grow up and get some knowledge.

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jim to Wahvlvke 2012/09/13 23:35:38

Did not mean to rave you. By the way, I'm 46 not a teenager. So watch who the hell you're telling to grow up, idiot.

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Wahvlvke to jim 2012/09/14 12:05:37

You are whining like a teenager you sorry twerp. Grow up still applies.

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XQNP 2012/09/11 05:35:49

Team Stipe

+3
Personal feelings aside, Fox News, as a private organization with a vested economic interest in boosting ratings and viewership, has no right to use a piece of intellectual property in order to promote that interest without the permission of the holder of said property. Fox are essentially profiting off of the band's property against their wishes, and are therefore committing theft.

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fuzzy K... to XQNP 2012/09/11 14:45:07

An artist has no right to decide who gets to play their music and who doesn't as long as the royalties are paid.

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jim to fuzzy K... 2012/09/11 16:09:54

But Fox wasn't just playing the song. They were broadcasting it. Obviously you don't need to ask the band/Singer permission to play their song in order to listen to it yourself. You DO need their okay or the okay of whoever owns rights to the song if you want to play it on air.

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fuzzy K... to jim 2012/09/11 17:03:19

An artist has no right to decide who or where their song is broadcast. An artist cannot say 'broadcast it on this station, but not that one.'
A broadcaster only needs to pay the royalties.
You're either playing semantics with play/broadcast or a complete idiot. Either way you don't have an argument.

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XQNP to fuzzy K... 2012/09/13 06:23:02

True, the artist doesn't usually have that right, but it does belong to the label. And given that the label is calling Fox's use "unlawful," obviously royalties were not paid.

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XQNP to fuzzy K... 2012/09/13 06:11:02

That is entirely dependent on an artist's contract, and, given that the publisher, at the request of the band, is saying that the use of the music is unauthorized, I don't see how it's at all relevant.

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fuzzy K... to XQNP 2012/09/13 14:34:32

Use of a song can only be unauthorized if royalties are not paid. I have not seen anyone claim that.
You do not need the permission of an artist, their label or their publisher to broadcast their song.
As someone else pointed out Rush Limbaugh did not have to ask Chrissie Hynde for her permission to use one of her songs for over a decade.

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