Large tech giants like Google and ChatGpt Maker Openai are seeking “stolen licenses” to allow them to push the White House and train AI models with copyrighted materials without proper compensation.
More than 60 newspapers owned by Alden Global Capital (including the New York Daily News, the Chicago Tribune, and the Denver Post) issued an editorial on Monday, urging the Trump administration to reject “selfish proposals” that could destroy the news industry.
“The generation of copyright protection for the benefit of AI bots will have a calm effect not only on news organizations, but also on all creative content creators, from novelists to playwrights, poets and poets.” The editorial said.
“The iron-covered commitment to protecting the rights of the owners of their own work, which really distinguishes the United States from communist China, not the other way around.”
The plea comes days after Google and Sam Altman-led Openai in a letter sent to the Trump administration claimed that newspapers and other content creators were essential to stop others from tearing their jobs.
The demand for big technology has been subject to the rise sound by a coalition of famous Hollywood actors, including known Trump critics like Mark Ruffalo and Olivia Wilde.
“We firmly believe that America's global AI leadership should not come at the expense of our essential creative industry,” said a letter signed by more than 400 Hollywood Creatives.
“AI companies are seeking to undermine this economic and cultural strength by undermining copyright protections for films, television series, artwork, writing, music and voice.
The post reached the White House for comment.
“We support the existing fair use frameworks in America and we are confident that current copyright laws will enable AI innovation,” a Google spokesperson posted Tuesday.
Openai did not comment.
Big Tech's proposal was submitted in response to a Trump White House request for an AI-related “action plan” that could be used to form federal regulations.
Openai concluded a debate about directly loosening copyright laws to national security. He argued that if the US does not roll back protections there is a risk of losing AI races.
“The federal government can ensure the freedom of Americans to learn from AI and avoid confiscating AI leads into the PRC. Microsoft-backed companies said.
Meanwhile, Google has pushed what is called “balanced copyright rules,” which allow AI companies to train their models in protected tasks.
“These exceptions allow us to use copyrighted, published material for AI training. We can avoid very unpredictable, imbalance, lengthy negotiations with data holders during model development or scientific experiments without having a major impact on the right holder.” Google said in the letter.
Industry proponents such as News Media Alliance, a nonprofit that represents more than 2,200 publishers, including The Post, have long argued that AI chatbots trained with copyrighted articles without proper credit or payment can cause “devastating” damage to cash-trapped publishers.
The News Media Alliance said in its own submission to the White House that copyrighted industries “donate $2.09 trillion to US GDP, representing almost 8% of the US economy.”
“I argue that AI companies should rely on years of Chinese business practices of significant copyright infringement, and that we in America should abandon our historic commitment to protecting and promoting intellectual property development,” the group said.
“This argument falsely suggests that American AI cannot compete without violating our laws. We cannot move far from the truth.”
Currently, several Alden-owned newspapers are suing Openai and its chief backer Microsoft for copyright infringement. The New York Times filed a similar lawsuit against the ChatGpt manufacturer.
According to CEO Robert Thomson, the media giant that owns the Post and Wall Street Journal, News Inc. believes that “courtation is better than courtrooms.”
Last year, the company won a content licensing agreement with Openai, reportedly worth more than $250 million, including guardrails to protect its work.
“We would prefer to plead rather than sue, given that lawyers are the big winners of the lawsuit,” Thomson said last July. “But if we don't plead with you, we may sue you very well.”
