Streamers attempting to cover the recent Democrat presidential candidate debates ran into copyright issues with CNN, whose complaints forced take downs on YouTube and Twitch.
The take-downs included conservative and liberal sites, according to a report from ReclaimTheNet. Those affected included David Pakman, Kyle Kulinski, Destiny, Hasan Piker, and Trihex , all of them either demonetized or removed. Some received YouTube strikes or suspensions, which ultimately could mean they will be banned.
Pakman said he received his hard strike on the first night. He claims he started his program 15 minutes before the debates started, and had 10,000 live viewers. Two minutes after the debate started, his stream was cut off.
CNN spokesman Matt Dornic said Pakman was distributing a live stream of the debate in real time, as were the others whose streams were cut, per their user agreements.
“A competitive stream would not be protected,” Dornic said. “That’s piracy. Otherwise, every news outlet in the country would be streaming the debate. And every pro sports game. And the Emmys, Oscars, etc. That’s why you didn’t see it on the Times, Fox News or MSNBC.”
Dornic said clips were permitted under fair use and per the usage guidelines that CNN distributed before the debates, Dornic said.
“More importantly, no one was prevented from watching the debate,” he added. “We streamed it for free on our own platforms.”
responded to complaints on Twitter, calling use of the CNN video “piracy.” The copyright claims were made despite claims that use of the clips is protected by US copyright exceptions, which allow use of third-party content for criticism, commentary, and news reporting.
Twitch users also lost their accounts for 24 hours thanks to CNN complaints, said ReclaimTheNet.
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