An indie rock band based in Brooklyn, New York was “irritated” when an Ohio University Facebook group uploaded a political video featuring one of their songs.
Bobcats for Romney posted a pro-Mitt Romney video on YouTube featuring The National’s song “Fake Empire,” which was previously used in an ad during Barack Obama’s 2008 United States presidential campaign.
Matt Berninger, The National’s vocalist, commented on the video and said, “Our music was used without our permission in this ad ... every single person involved in the creation of the music you’re using is voting for President Obama.”
The National released a statement on its website saying the video shows a “pandering ignorance about the young people they were trying to reach with our music.”
The Facebook group removed the video after the band filed a copyright claim through YouTube, according to The National’s manager Dawn Barger.
“If the use of the song by the group would continue, we would proceed with legal action,” Barger said. “The unauthorized use of copyrighted material shouldn’t have happened in the first place, especially for a candidate that (the band) doesn’t support. It was a very serious problem in their minds.”
An administrator of the Bobcats for Romney Facebook group, who requested his name be omitted, said the band didn’t threaten legal action.
“I think (The National saw its response) as a way to make a political comment, which I understand and respect,” he said in an email.
The Facebook group posted an apology, which was later deleted, that read, “Unfortunately we’ve learned that partisan divide exists on YouTube and in music as much as it does in Washington; we respectfully took down the video, and will repost with music representing a better future with Romney & Ryan in Washington.”
bc822010@ohiou.edu
