EFJ/IFJ discuss journalists’ concerns over authors’ rights protection with WIPO Director General
An IFJ/EFJ delegation composed of chair of IFJ/EFJ authors’ rights expert group Mike Holderness, EFJ President Mogens Blicher and IFJ/EFJ authors’ rights officer Pamela Morinière drew the attention of WIPO director General Francis Gurry to the current and urgent challenges journalists are faced with when trying to protect their authors’ rights and get an adequate remuneration for the use of their work.The delegation pointed in particular at the lack of moral rights enforcement, the unfair contractual situation of journalists, the need to strengthen journalists’ skills on authors’ rights negotiation and the worrying debate on copyright exceptions at WIPO level.Director General acknowledged the need for WIPO to pay further attention to authors and pointed at the current economic system “squeezing more and more the author”.This fruitful meeting contributed to deepen IFJ/EFJ/WIPO relationship and set the basis for a number of actions to uphold journalists’ authors’ rights on the international scene.