BBC News editor: We may use social media photos without permission ‘in exceptional situations’

BBC News
BBC News has been criticized recently for using, without photographers’ permission, photos posted on social networks. In response to a complaint, someone from BBC News had wrongly contended that photos posted to Twitter were “in the public domain” because they are “available to most people who have a computer.” Social media editor Chris Hamilton clarifies that the organization’s policy is to “make every effort to contact people who’ve taken photos we want to use in our coverage and ask for their permission before doing so.” However, Hamilton noted, “where there is a strong public interest and often time constraints,” a senior editor may decide to “use a photo before we’ve cleared it.” || Related: Why do news organizations still attribute images and video to the platforms they were hosted on?