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Sunday, April 13, 2008 12:25 AM CDT
OUR VIEW: Settlement of photo dispute with IHSA benefits public
By the JG/T-C Editorial board
editorial@jg-tc.com
The Illinois High School Association’s efforts to regulate media coverage of public high school sporting events and the use of news photographs essentially collapsed this week.
The writing was on the wall last week when the Illinois Senate voted 47-5 to ban the IHSA from its intended action. A similar bill was pending in the Illinois House.
The Illinois Press Association drafted the legislation. The IPA and the IHSA tangled several times last year as the result of IHSA’s bid to dictate newspaper coverage of sporting events and the use of photographs derived from such coverage.
IPA Executive Director Dave Bennett, in the wake of the Senate vote, said, “Being able to control our content is a core issue. This is good news coming out of the Senate.”
The Sangamon County Circuit Court was asked by the IHSA last December to rule that the IHSA has exclusive right to decide how newspapers use their photographs. It also sought the power to deny the press entry to IHSA games if publishers and editors failed to submit to its policies.
The IPA argued constitution guarantees of freedom of speech and the press preventing the IHSA from exerting “prior restraint.” The IPA also contended the IHSA could not grant exclusive license to a third party.
Visual Image Photography, Inc. had entered into a contract in which the IHSA gave the company sole rights to take and sell photographs at state athletic championship games.
Two paths loomed for high school sports coverage when IHSA made its bold claim to control press coverage of public events and dictate what it did with the photographs.
Practically, it meant parents and other people wanting photographs of public high school sporting events would have to buy them from Visual Image Photography, which is located in Wisconsin.
For decades, local news media have provided photographs to fans and relatives, usually at minimal cost, if not free. From newspapers’ vantage, making easy access to sports photographs is good policy and helps builds rapport between between public and press.
It’s not difficult to postulate that if the IHSA controlled news coverage of public high school sporting events and the power to dictate usage of photographs taken at sports events, it would inevitably control information the public is entitled to. Public schools are financed and supported by taxpayers, PTAs, booster clubs, civic organizations, local businesses and many other private and public entities.
Public schools are the property of the public. The IHSA has no valid claim of an inherent right to regulate coverage of school events.
The IHSA threw in the towel this week after the Senate vote. The agreement with the IPA accepted newspapers’ right to sell photographs and videos and freely cover sporting events.
The IHSA can also hire an official photographer and allow him unrestricted access.
According to Mary Hickman, executive director of the IHSA, “The IHSA understands the value of newspaper coverage of high school sports. This settlement will allow both of our organizations to get back to doing what we do best.”
We agree. We’re happy to hear the IHSA acknowledge the right of the press to cover tax-supported, public sporting events.
— JG/T-C Editorial Board
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