Home  >  News  >  Special announcements  > Announcement

May, 2004 New York Times Freelance Contract Update

Photographer & American Society of Media Photographers meet with New York Times to discuss the new Freelance Photographer Contract

In New York City, on Wednesday, May 5, 2004, Alan Chin, freelance photographer, Victor Perlman, American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) Counsel and Managing Director, and Eugene Mopsik, ASMP Executive Director met with William Schmidt, Associate Managing Editor of The New York Times and other members of the Times staff. The purpose of the meeting was to clarify the terms and conditions of the newly offered NYT Freelance Photographers Contract and to bring to the attention of the Times what may have been unforeseen issues surrounding the wording and implementation of the contract.

The meeting was cordial; however, as previously indicated by the Times, it yielded no prospect of change to the core issue of the contract—work for hire leading to joint copyright ownership in perpetuity with no additional compensation at this time. In effect, the contract makes photographers both partners and competitors with NYT in the syndication of images.

Regardless of any changes that the Times might be willing to make to improve the wording of the contract, the basic terms of the contract will not be revised. The only circumstance that we can see that would compel the Times to make substantive changes is if a sizeable number of the photographers on whom the Times relies were to not sign the contract and their absence were to become a problem for the Times.

This is one of those pivotal times in a photographer’s career where many factors must be weighed and individual decisions must be made. Key in this decision is a determination of the value of the work being contributed to the Times and the value received. If enough photographers sign this contract and if it becomes the industry standard, it will force many independent newspaper and editorial photographers to find additional streams of revenue while they, the photographers, subsidize their clients.

More Detail:

Since the Times is taking the position that one must sign the contract in order to continue to work for the paper, photographers must now individually decide whether or not it is in their best interests to continue a working relationship with the NYT. They must look at their current business models and project where they want to be in 2, 5, and 10 years. Does working under the Times contract advance that model? For some photographers for whom the Times provides credentials and an entrŽe to otherwise closed doors, the arrangement may be still worthwhile. However, if you rely on the Times for a majority of your income or if you expect to collect a significant stream of royalties based on your future sales and licenses, you must give serious thought to the ramifications of the shared copyright and impending partnership. If most of your best work is going to be for the New York Times, do you want to share the copyright and will you be able to survive financially under the new arrangement?

Historically, what has made freelance photojournalism an economically viable profession has been the retention of copyright and the ability of the photographer to license additional uses now and in the future. This contract virtually ends this model and does so without any additional compensation. At our Wednesday meeting, Mr. Schmidt and other Times staff members agreed that the Times needed to raise its level of fees to freelancers, but stated that this was not possible within this budgetary cycle and that there were no guarantees for the future.

The Times has clearly recognized and appreciates the power and value of photography and says that it wants to move forward deliberately with the marketing of a New York Times Archive that will be available for syndication and license. In spite of repeated statements that the Times values its relationship with its freelance contributors and wants them to be happy, it appears to ASMP that the only aspect of the contract that could be said to directly “benefit” photographers is the prospect of increased revenues from the photographer’s share of the Times licenses, assuming that the Times successfully expands and formalizes its efforts in that direction.

There was a willingness expressed by Mr. Schmidt and staff to discuss issues surrounding the reporting systems for syndication and licensing, syndication fees, the code of ethics and its ramifications for freelancers, the use of the Times name, and the crediting policy. While no promises were made that there would be any changes, Times staff did ask for specific recommendations from ASMP in regard to these and other areas of concern for their consideration. ASMP will follow up on this request with the hope of effecting some clarification and improvements to the contract.

For more information on ASMP go to www.asmp.org. To contribute to ASMP’s Legal Action Fund go to www.asmp.org/commerce/legal.php.

ASMP Information:

For almost sixty years, the American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) has been the premier trade association for promoting and protecting the interests of working publication photographers. Membership in ASMP continues to be recognized worldwide as a commitment to professionalism, quality, good ethics, and as a sign of proven experience. Founded in 1944 by a handful of the world’s leading photojournalists, ASMP has grown to over 5000 members in 40 chapters in the United States and in many foreign countries. ASMP is built on the cornerstones of education, information, and advocacy. ASMP members are drawn from every photographic specialty - advertising, annual reports, corporate/industrial, architecture, underwater, editorial, fashion, medical, sports, special effects, and more - but are held together by their common problems and concerns. ASMP calls upon the wealth of information available from within its experienced membership and from industry leaders to develop solutions that work. ASMP has the determination and clout to make its voice heard. ASMP is photographers helping photographers through community, culture, commerce, and publications. For more information on ASMP go to www.asmp.org. To contribute to ASMP’s Legal Action Fund go to www.asmp.org/commerce/legal.php.

Related announcements:

New York Times Freelance Contract (3/8/04)

New York Times Freelance Contract Revision (6/11/04)

New York Times Legal Fund Contributors