[Foundation-l] Wikinews is giving out press credentials

Fri Nov 11 12:09:31 UTC 2005

Please...

Giving out press credentials has nothing to do with trademark law, 
copyright or policy. Most countries regulate the right for organization 
to act as press organizations. For example, the french status of press 
journalists is regulated by a law of 1935, and its conditions are very 
strict.

First, I don't think that wikinews would like to engage its liability by 
issuing false press credentials when they don't have the right to do so.

Second, I don't think that wikinews would like to enrage journalist 
unions that control the issuing of these credentials.

If you want to issue press credentials there are strict steps to follow, 
and they have nothing to do with trademark law or whatever : they depend 
on national press legislations. Press organizations have special 
privileges related to press, but they also have special obligations to 
fulfill, and special liabilities !

As of today, Wikinews is not such a press organization and cannot 
benefit of their privileges !

I can provide more help on this if you are interested.

The French law related to this is pretty much a good example of what is 
needed :

http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/texteconsolide/PCEAA.htm

and

http://mapage.noos.fr/odalage/monde/statut.html

for policy-related and historical explanations of the status of 
journalists.

JBS, working in parisian cafés

Elisabeth Bauer wrote:
> Delirium wrote:
> 
>> I agree oversight is necessary, but disagree that the Foundation is 
>> the proper entity to provide it---the Wikinews community is the only 
>> entity that should or can legitimately do so. The Foundation can, of 
>> course, step in in an emergency if necessary (which has always been 
>> the case on all projects), but pre-approval should not be necessary, 
>> nor should that authority be used in any case except a true emergency.
>>
>> I don't see the importance of the outside vs. inside distinction in 
>> this case. It is entirely proper for a Wikinewsie to be given the 
>> authority to represent themselves to the outside world as "vouched for 
>> by Wikinews" if, in fact, they are vouched for the Wikinews community. 
>> So long as they are not presenting themselves as representatives of 
>> the Wikimedia Foundation, I don't see the need for Foundation approval.
> 
> Okay, I do. The foundation as the owner of the name Wikinews is the 
> ultimate instance to decide who is allowed what to do with this name. It 
> can decide to delegate this decision to the community, even for outside 
> relations as in the case of press credentials but it stays their 
> decision. If the wikinews community wants to hand out press credentials, 
> they should submit their policy to the foundation and have it approved 
> by the foundation. Since the policy seems quite okay, I see no reason 
> why the foundation shouldn't accept it, but there's certainly a need for 
> approval as they want to use the trademark in external relations.
> 
> greetings,
> elian
> _______________________________________________
> foundation-l mailing list
> foundation-l at wikimedia.org
> http://mail.wikipedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
> 